I’m a little shocked at myself for not sharing this simple artform with you! I’ve been creating lumen prints for a little over 2 years now and thought it was about time to share this process. Lumen Printing, similar to cyanotype, anthotype, and sun printing, is a form of contact printing; using the energy of the sun to ‘expose’ your subject. A simple form of ‘cameraless’ photography.

To get started, you just need a few simple items: photographic paper; not to be confused with modern photo paper for the computer. You need photographic paper- the type used in the darkroom. Personally, I like to use expired photographic paper. It’s ok if the box has been opened and the paper is fogged. This paper can’t be used in the traditional darkroom any longer but is PERFECT for what we want to create! I love going to estate sales, yard sales, auctions, and scouring ebay for a lot of old papers. I love being able to give new life to an otherwise ‘useless’ item. It’s the best form of recycling when it comes to creating art. Not all papers are the same and each paper will give you different outcomes. I personally like to use black and white paper as it will actually give you the broadest range of colors to your finished art piece.

Lot of expired photographic papers — I picked up this lot of expired papers on ebay for a steal! Estate and yard sales would be a great place to find expired papers as well.

I make my lumens from botanic items: flowers (fresh, dried, or pressed), herbs, feathers, mushrooms, etc. Whatever I find lying on the ground during my walks or whatever catches my eye in the garden. You’ll also want a piece of glass or plexiglass larger than your paper to hold your subject matter down and in place. I like to use old picture frames I’ve picked up for cheap at thrift stores. Ex: I use a 11x14 frame when working with 8x10 paper size.

Creating a lumen print from found objects — An unfixed lumen print of monarch butterfly wings I found during one of my walks

Optional: darkroom fixer. You’ll want to fix your papers to stop the development process, if you don’t fix your paper after exposure, the paper will continue to develop until you are left with a black piece of paper. I’ve tried homemade fixer from a solution of water and salt and couldn’t replicate the outcome from traditional darkroom fixer. If you choose NOT to fix your print, you can always keep it in a dark room until you are ready to scan it to create a digital print you can later print at home or at your local printer. You’ll also want some sort of tray to use when fixing your paper if you choose to go down this route. I found my trays in the dollar section of Target. They were labeled as paper trays and were about $3 each.

I would like to warn you now before we get started with the process that lumen printing is not for those that like to remain in control or are looking for a certain outcome with their prints. With this type of medium, it is best to go with the flow, and allow the final piece to unfold naturally. I am happily surprised every time I create with this medium but I have to go into it with no expectations. I have to allow the magic to unfold.

To get started, select your objects for your print. You’ll want to figure out the composition BEFORE laying them on the front of your photographic paper as the paper will start to expose as soon as the light touches it. You’ll need to act fast with this process! Once you are happy with your composition, pull out a sheet of your paper, laying it on the backside of your picture frame, next lay your subjects onto the emulsion side of the photographic paper making sure you act quickly. Put the glass on top to hold everything in place, paying attention to make sure the sides of the glass are not laying on the paper as this will create shadows and lines in your finished piece. I like to expose my prints outside in the sun (or even during an overcast day) but I have been known to expose prints inside the home by a sunny window.

Exposure times vary depending on the UV index. I’ve never chosen to get super scientific with this process. For me, it’s about connecting to nature + creating with the beauty around me. I tend to rely on my intuition to tell me when the exposure time is up for each piece. This is typically around 2 hours but could be less or more depending on where you live + the season you are in when working with this process. For me, it’s all about creative play, and I choose to have fun with the process instead of getting wrapped up in the details.

Exposing a lumen print in the winter — Exposing colored photographic paper out in the snow during the winter of 2020

The results were monochormatic, fitting for the winter months

A few tips though from my experience -

You can do an exposure test on your paper prior to really playing with it. Cut up 1 sheet into 4 pieces, exposing each for different times using the same subject(ex. I pressed a bunch of pansy flowers and used these for my exposure tests to determine which exposure time gives me the best detail of the flower). Once all 4 test pieces are exposed, decide which exposure time you prefer. Again, this will vary depending on the seasons so exposure time will be different in the summer vs the winter months. When I test exposure, I test for 1, 2, 4, + 8 hours.

Testing exposure times using violet flowers

Condensation will develop under the heat of the sun and could alter the details of the final image. You may or may not like the outcome; I’ve experienced both!

Working with condensation in the lumen printing process — The halo effect around this dhalia flowerhead is due to condensation that developed during exposure in the heat of the summer

If you choose to fix your prints after exposure please know that the fixer will alter the colors you’ve achieved in your initial print. I choose to scan all of my prints before + after fixing so I don’t lose any of the initial colors. Fixer can also be ‘exhausted’ meaning, it loses some of its potency after a while and a new batch will need to be used after fixing a few prints and this could also affect the final outcomes of your prints *Please do a little bit of research regarding fixers and how to properly dispose of the used fixer. I will not go into details in this article but there could be environmental impacts so please do your own due diligence prior to using.

A Lument Print Before Fixing — A lumen print of dhalias from my garden prior to fixing. This particular paper produced the dreamest blues and pinks!

A lumen print after fixing — The same print AFTER fixing shifted the colors to a peachy pink and yellows with hints of purple. This particular print was fixed with a fresh batch of fixer; the colors could've been different had I used a batch of fixer that had been used before.

A Pair of Dhalia flowers used in lumen printing — The dhalias in my garden last year exposed exceptionally beautiful in the lumen process

pair of dhalias in a lumen print — This print now hangs on a gallery wall I created with my lumens from the summer of 2021

I do hope if you are enchanted as I am in this process you give it a try! You can pick up a pack of photographic paper for pennies per paper and what a beautiful way to document your garden or memorialize your nature walks while creating artwork for your walls!