Color Printing Resources

Here's a list of some resources around Color Darkroom Printing (specifically modern RA-4 printing from C-41 color negatives) that I think are great.

Getting Started - Black and White printing. The skills and equipment for color printing are largely the same as printing black and white, and I recommend starting there before diving into color. 

• If you like reading, I'd suggest starting with a book like Way Beyond Monochrome, by Ralph Lambrecht. This book covers the gamut of black and white printing, from the basics of the human visual system to the specifics of enlarging and processing different papers.
• If you're more of a mind to learn it on YouTube, check out this playlist from The Naked Photographer. You'll learn the basics of Black and White printing, building the foundation to jump into the world of color.

Introduction to Color Printing. Once you're setup for black and white, there's a few ways to proceed.

• If you happen to already have a Dichroic color head, with dials for balancing colors, you can jump right into color printing with this playlist, again from The Naked Photographer on YouTube. The first three videos cover the basics, and the others cover more advanced and very useful topics
• If you've got a black-and-white head (no color dials, just white light); don't despair! There are still affordable ways to dip your toes in the water before you commit with another big purchase. You can get color-printing filters that work similarly to balancing a print with a color head, or you can learn to balance prints with the RGB additive method, as shown in this video.

How Color Paper Works. It's more complicated than 3 black and white papers in one!

• Koraks Tinkers has a bunch of excellent posts about the science behind modern RA-4 papers, including information straight from Manufacturers that isn't easily accessible to the general public. Check them out here. I find Between the Lines - The Importance of Interlayers in RA4 Color Darkroom Paper, as well as Crossroads - A Closer Look at Kodak and Fuji Digital RA4 Crossover particularly illuminating, but every post I read from Koraks has something new for me to ponder. 
• Both volumes of Modern Photographic Processing by Grant Haist is an excellent primer on emulsion design and film sensitization in general, and the second volume focuses on the chemistry and science of color materials.
• The Color Film, Paper, and Processing subforum on Photrio contains a wealth of expertise and knowledge on everything from the basics of mixing chemistry and process control to advanced topics like emulsion design and alternative printing approaches. 

You can always reach me by email here if you've got any questions, and when you're ready to jump in check out the excellent Color Paper options we stock in convenient cut-sheet sizes.