Lumen print is a print which is got when a paper sheet with negative or with an object(s) is exposed to sunlight or other UV light source for a rather long time (several hours or so, depends on intensity). As a result, you can get something like photogram or something like a positive print, not black and white but colour. Before fixing, it looks more like blue or gray and more like pink or brown after fixing. Exact colour depends on a paper. You need no developer for making lumen prints. No darkroom. Though it’s better to place objects or negative in subdued light conditions. No matter how bad your paper is. It could be really awful and expired many-many years ago and may absolutely not be suitable for printing in a standard process. Also, prints could be toned before or after fixing.
I made some lumen prints last summer and forgot about them. I thought that they were not good. I even found out that I threw them away… But also I found scans 😆 So you’ll see one picture anyway.
This particular print was processed in PS, so it’s much more contrasty and the colours are a bit different.
Also, I take this opportunity to thank once again Tanel Verk, a person who told me about this process 🙂
The original pic, pre-fixed.
Alena Shminke 
They look lovely.
I am just making some myself-not easy finding suitable subjects in winter but initial prints are looking nice. I will write a post at some point.
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Oh, thank you for visiting and commenting! I’d like to see your lumen prints too! I thought you shoot just digital. Yes, it’s hard to find suitable objects in winter but it’s also hard to find suitable light 🙂
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I shoot digital for work but now going back to my roots so to speak. Will be setting up a darkroom later this year I hope and trying to spend more time with alternative processes as well as conventional bnw.
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Cool! Good luck to you!
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Thank you 🙂
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Really good Alena, like the composition. Must give this a try.
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Thank you, Art! You definitely can try it. At least for it you need no darkroom and almost no chemicals.
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Good job no darkroom is required 😀
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We played around with this when I was in art college in the late 1980’s. I used a spot lamp at a 45 degree angle with a subject, say some glass bottles between the lamp and paper in a darkened room, although getting a good exposure took a considerable amount of time if I recall.
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Maybe it was a photogram then? Did you develop?
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Yes and no, not quite a Photogram, none of the objects used where placed actually on the paper. After exposure we put the paper in a old Kodak paper box, then it was taken and developed in the darkroom (we had to use the darkroom, no chemicals aloud outside the darkroom…College rules). Only used two trays, developer and a fixer. Unfortunately I don’t have any copies anymore, lord what happen to them.
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Sounds very interesting. And I can’t remember anything similar to this process. What did you get as a result?
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The image in the case of a glass bottle was a copy of it’s see though shadow across the paper.
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Cool! Now I can imagine this 🙂
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Something like photograms ^__^ I thinks that images produced in such way are unusual and thus are by default deserving not to be thrown away:)
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Thank you 🙂
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