Set up the enlarger
An enlarger turns a small negative into a paper image, but the first print is mostly a lesson in controlling light. Clear a space for the trays, set them in order, and keep a pair of tongs for each solution. Use the paper manufacturer’s recommended times and temperatures; a thermometer and a timer are more dependable than guessing. Before opening the paper box, make sure the room is lit only by illumination known to be safe for that paper.
Place the negative in its carrier with the emulsion facing the correct way for your enlarger, then center the carrier and close it firmly. Raise the head until the projected image is about the size you want. Leave a margin around the subject rather than trying to fill every corner. The care used when loading film has a darkroom counterpart: handle the negative by its edges, and keep dust off both it and the carrier.
Focus and frame
With the lens wide open, switch on the enlarger and focus the projected image. A focus finder helps you inspect the negative’s detail; adjust the focus until the grain looks crisp, then stop the lens down two or three stops for the exposure. If you do not have a finder, enlarge a small area and focus on a sharply defined edge. Check the corners as well as the center, since a tilted negative or carrier can leave one side soft.
Move the easel blades to set the borders and check that the whole subject fits on the paper. Take a moment to look at highlights and shadows in the projected image. A dense area in the negative may print pale, while a thin area may turn dark. If you have notes about caffenol developer, keep them apart from this setup: paper chemistry has its own working strengths and timings, and the bottle labels should guide you.
Make a short test
Do not begin with a full sheet. Cut a narrow strip of paper, place it across an important part of the projected image, and cover most of it with a card. Give the exposed portion five seconds, uncover a little more, then repeat at five-second intervals. That small strip — often called a test strip — lets you compare several exposure times on one piece of paper. Keep the enlarger settings unchanged while you make it.
Process the strip in the paper developer, stop bath, and fixer, following the times on the chemical instructions. Agitate gently and evenly, and use separate tongs so the solutions do not contaminate one another. When the image appears, resist judging it under the processing light alone. Rinse it as directed, then view it in ordinary room light. If the sky is important in a future photograph, a red filter for skies can change how that scene records on the negative, but it will not correct an exposure choice at the enlarger.
Develop and judge
Choose the test-strip section with the best balance, then expose a full sheet for that time. Keep the paper flat on the easel and avoid bumping the focus knob. If the result is too dark overall, reduce the exposure; if it is too pale, increase it. Change one thing at a time. A multigrade paper filter can alter contrast, but make a basic exposure first so you know what the unfiltered print is doing.
A first print often looks different from the negative you remember. I once lifted a tray print and thought, “I thought it was blank.” A minute later, details appeared in the shadows. Give the paper its full development time before deciding it has failed, and check whether the developer is fresh and at the right temperature. Write down the lens opening, paper grade, exposure, and any changes. The next sheet will be less mysterious… and usually closer to what you saw in the enlarger.
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