Like photography itself, retouching is renown for its vivid history. Only a few years after the black-and-white argentiferous photography had been established (the 1860s), the idea of colouring the images manually has been implemented. The aniline colour, too, was introduced in those years. This dye, suited for the then popular albumen prints, was even more adaptive for the gelatine emulsion prints that were developed later.

Thus it came in the 1980s that these watery colours completely replaced the oil-paint and watercolours in the retouching technique. The Diaphoto glaze consist of dyes solved in water. As the dyes are highly concentrated, the colour can be diluted to an infinite number of shades. The colour itself has a lower lightfastness than airbrush colours.

Our range 31 comprises 42 tones (including white) of selected nuances and high brilliance. Compatible to almost any photographic paper, Diaphoto glaze suit for a range of applications in photography, but especially for nostalgic techniques. Furthermore, it can be adopted for airbrush-work on paper, cardboard or similar materials. On demand, we can offer processing specifications for the dye. Additional notes can be found here.

Diaphoto-Supplements, Range 30

The gelatin layer of photographic papers is hydroscopic. Thus, auxiliary watery solutions can diffuse into the gelatin.

Diaphoto-Fixative (30051)

prevents water from penetrating the layer and ensures that way that the pigments remain fixed.

Diaphoto Reducer (30056)

causes the colourants to disengage partially. To use it, the reducer is applied several times and, after it took effect, removed from the paper with a wet cloth.

Diaphoto Binder (30054)

is commonly applied on usual paper or cardboard. Used as an additive to photographic dyes, it ensures that the colours adhere to the paper.

One part of binder should be mixed with four or five parts of photographic dye. When water is added, too, the proportion of binder should be increased appropriately. In most cases, the ground surface should be covered with a thin layer of pure binder that may be liquidised with water.

Retouching Supplements, Range 30

Rohrer & Klingner’s retouching supplements are developed for the work with pigmented colours (gouaches), liquid dyes (Diaphoto translucent dyes), pencils and other retouching pens.

Retouching Supplements

The products combined under this term are to be applied on the surface of the finished gouache retouching. The matt (30080) and glossy (30050) fixatives can be used to balance several degrees of lustre.