Physical Description:
5,143 negatives
black and white
35 mm
Physical Description:
17 photographic prints
black and white
Scope and Contents
There are 5,143 black and white 35mm negatives stored in 236 separate sheets in this Part I of the collection. No
effort was made to arrange the sheets in chronological order; however, the negatives are organized so that in most cases
those grouped together in a single sheet originate from the same roll of film. The information regarding film type, speed
settings, filter use, and processing methods below was taken directly from the notes on the glassine envelopes in which
the 35mm negatives were originally stored, or from notebooks or diaries kept by the photographer. The works are dated
precisely where notes on the original glassine envelopes or entries in notebooks and diaries supported such
identification. In other cases, dates were determined (e.g., "1984") or estimated (e.g., "circa 1984") based on
information known to the photographer.
Riley used commercially-available films in cartridges for his 35mm work. At the time these negatives were made, the
black and white 35mm roll films Riley used were sold in lengths of 20 or 36 exposures, and the negatives are numbered 1
through 20 or 1 through 36 accordingly. The negatives are arranged in numerical order in each sheet. Exceptions to this
rule occur in a few cases where negatives from different rolls have been grouped together in a single sheet. In such
instances, the negatives are arranged in the sheet in the same order as described in the table. (For example, see
NR35-055 and NR35-235.) Occasionally, the viewer will see reference to negative numbers "0," "21," and "37". This simply
means that in such cases the photographer was able to get an additional exposure or two on the roll because less of the
film leader was wound onto the take-up spool. Where a 35mm negative number is missing from a sequence either: (1) the
negative was withheld because it was still being actively printed at the time Part I was assembled (negatives initially
withheld will be included in Part V or Part VI of the collection); (2) the negative was intentionally or accidentally not
exposed; or (3) the negative was intentionally discarded.
The 17 photographs presented in Part I are from negatives in Part I of the collection.
Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements
All of the prints in Part I are dry-mounted on 100% acid and lignin-free, white cotton rag boards of 4-ply thickness,
buffered with calcium carbonate. Some of the boards were obtained from "Archival Methods" in Henrietta, New York, others
were obtained from Light Impressions in Rochester, New York. The dry mount tissue used in every case is Seal/Bienfang
MT-5. With the exception of one image printed on Forte paper, the prints in Part I are either vintage prints on Ektalure
G processed in either Dektol or Selectol, or new prints made on: (1) old Ektalure G stock developed in Ansco 103; (2)
Ilford MGIV developed in Ansco 103; or (3) Ilford MG Art developed in Ansco 103. All prints were toned in a selenium
bath. In cases where spotting was required, "Spotone" fluid manufactured by Retouch Methods Co., Inc. in Chatham, New
Jersey was used. Each mount is stamped on the back with black Sanford ink. The title of the image, the identification
number corresponding to the negative from which the print was made, and the dates of the negative and print are written
in pencil inside the stamped area. The finished photographs are each stored in a polyethylene sleeve, and together the 17
photographs are contained in a grey, 3-inch drop front archival box from Archival Methods.
Key to Abbreviations
"1:0" refers to a developer made to full strength without dilution. "1:1" means one part full strength developer
diluted with one equal part of water (e.g., 300 ml developer + 300 ml water for a total of 600 ml of working solution).
"1:2" means one part full strength developer with 2 parts water (for example, 200 ml of developer + 400 ml of water for a
total of 600 ml of working solution). In those cases where Riley experimented with mixing developers, 1:1 means equal
parts of each developer at full solution strength were used.
"120 format" refers to a film imaging format of medium size. See: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/120_film
"4x5" refers to a "large format" film 4x5 inches (102x127mm) in size. See:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Large_format
"25A" refers to a medium red-colored contrast control glass filter made by Tokina Co., Ltd., Japan.
"35mm" film is a "small format" film with a full-frame image approximately 24x36 mm in size. See:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/135_film
"8x10" refers to a large format negative 8x10 inches (20x25 cm) in size. See:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Large_format
"80B" refers to a light blue-colored contrast control glass filter made by Ampro Corp., USA.
"Acufine" is a trademark name for a proprietary, high-acutance, ultrafine-grain, black and white film developer
manufactured (at that time) by Baumann Photo-Chemical Corporation in Chicago, Illinois. Acufine is not a MQ
developer.
"Ansco 103" is a MQ paper developer designed to give blue-black tones on contact papers. For general information about
Ansco as a business concern, see: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ansco. For information regarding the composition of Ansco
103, see "Photographic Lab Handbook, 5th Edition" John S. Carroll, American Photographic Book Publishing Co., Inc.
(AMPHOTO), Garden City, New York, 1979, or an equivalent authoritative reference.
"Ansco 135" is a warm-toned MQ developer for enlarging and contact printing. For general information about Ansco as a
business concern, see: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ansco. For information regarding the composition of Ansco 135, see
"Photographic Lab Handbook, 5th Edition" John S. Carroll, American Photographic Book Publishing Co., Inc. (AMPHOTO),
Garden City, New York, 1979, or an equivalent authoritative reference.
"ASA" stands for "American Standards Association." The ASA system was one of several developed for rating the speeds
of different films. It has been largely replaced by the "ISO" rating system. For more information on the ASA and other
speed rating systems see: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Film_speed or other authoritative references.
"D72" is an Eastman Kodak Company ("Kodak" hereafter) formula producing results substantially similar to those
obtained with Dektol. Like Dektol, D72 is a MQ paper developer producing neutral tones on most papers.
"D76" is a Kodak formula for the development of black and white negatives. According to the Photographic Lab Handbook,
5th Edition, John S. Carroll, American Photographic Book Publishing Co., Inc. (AMPHOTO), Garden City, New York, 1979,
"Kodak Developer D-76 is a classic. Its ability to produce full emulsion and maximum shadow detail with normal contrast
has made it the standard by which other developers are judged." D76 is a MQ developer.
"Dektol" is a trademark name for a proprietary, neutral-toned, pre-packaged MQ developer manufactured by Kodak. Dektol
is a black and white paper developer. In his early experiments, Riley occasionally used Dektol (or mixtures of Dektol and
other paper developers) as a negative developer. Such instances are noted in the table above.
"Ektalure G" was a Kodak-manufactured black and white, double weight, fiber-based paper having a cream-colored based
and fine grained "lustre" [sic] surface. Ektalure G was discontinued by Kodak in 1999. For technical information
regarding this paper see: http://www.kodak.com/global/en/professional/support/techPubs/g9/g9.pdf
"ESTAR-AH" is Kodak's trade name for a polyester (polyethylene terephthalate) film base.
"Forte" was the trademark name for photographic film, paper, and chemical products manufactured by the Hungarian
company "Fote Photo VAC." Originally established in 1922, the company filed for bankruptcy in 2004 and ceased operation
in 2007.
"FX" stands for "Panatomic X" (also designated as film number "5060"), a black and white panchromatic Kodak film with
a box speed rating of ASA 32.
"FX135-20" refers to a 20-exposure roll of 35mm FX film.
"FX135-36" refers to a 36-exposure roll of 35mm FX film.
"G0" refers to a yellow/green-colored contrast control glass filer made by Minolta Co., Ltd., Japan.
"HIE" means "High-Speed Infrared Emulsion." This black and white film manufactured by Kodak and discontinued by them
in 2007 was also designated as film number "2481." For technical information regarding this film see:
http://www.kodak.com/global/en/professional/support/techPubs/f13/f13.pdf.
"HIE135-20" means a 20-exposure roll of 35mm HIE film.
"HIE135-36" means a 36-exposure roll of 35mm HIE film.
"Ilford Pan F"was a black and white panchromatic film, manufactured by Ilford Limited (subsequently Harman Technology
Ltd., and commonly referred to as "Ilford Photo") with a box speed rating of ASA 50.
"MG" stands for "multigrade" paper. Multigrade papers are also known as "variable contrast" papers.
"MG Art" is a multigrade, double weight, fiber-based paper with a textured matt surface and eggshell sheen produced by
Ilford/Harman.
"MGIV" stands for "Multigrade IV," a glossy, double weight, fiber based paper produced by Ilford/Harman.
"Microdol-X" was a trademark name for a proprietary, pre-packaged fine-grain MQ black and white film developer by
Kodak.
"MQ" stands for "metol-hydroquinone." "Metol" and "hydroquinone" are common names for distinct chemicals used in
combination with other substances to produce large and broad classes of black and white developers for both films and
papers.
"N" or "N exposure" means "normal exposure" as indicated by the exposure meter used. N-1, N-2, N+1, and N+2 refer to
exposures that are under (-) or over (+) normal exposure by the number of stops indicated (e.g., N-1 indicates an
exposure one stop below normal exposure, and N+1 indicates an exposure one full stop over normal exposure). These are
"Zone System" notations. The Zone System is a method of exposure and development control based on sensitometry, developed
by Ansel Adams and Fred Archer between 1939 and 1940. For more information about the Zone System see
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zone_System, consult "The Negative," Ansel Adams, Little, Brown, and Company, Boston,
Massachusetts, 1981, or see any one of many equivalent references.
"NR" means "Norman Riley."
"NR35" means a 35mm negative by Norman Riley.
"NR35-037" refers to sheet number 037 of 35mm negatives by Norman Riley. In Part I of the collection, sheets are
numbered sequentially beginning with "NR35-001" and ending with "NR35-236."
"O2" refers to a medium orange-colored contrast control glass filter made by Tokina Co., Ltd., Japan.
"P" denotes a print. A print identified as "NR35-001-P20," for example, is a print from negative number 20 in sheet
number 001 of 35mm negatives. A stamp on the back of each print mount bears the title of the image, the date that both
the negative and print were made, and the corresponding negative number.
"PL" stands for "polarizer." The presence of this note indicates that a glass polarizing filter was used during the
exposure of the negative(s). The PL filter Riley used for 35mm work was manufactured by Tokina Co., Ltd., Japan.
"PMK" stands for "pyrogallol-metol-Kodalk" an advanced film developer. "Pyrogallol" and "metol" are common chemical
names. "Kodalk" was Kodak's trademark name for sodium metaborate. Although PMK contains metol, PMK is not a MQ developer.
PMK is virtually the only film developer Riley used for personal work after late 1984 when he made the transition from
the 35mm camera to the larger 4x5 camera.
"PX" refers to "Plus-X," a black and white panchromatic film made by Kodak with a box speed rating of ASA 125. PX was
also designated as film number "5062."
PX135-20 refers to a 20-exposure roll of 35mm PX film.
PX135-36 refers to 36-exposure roll of 35mm PX film.
"RC" means "resin-coated."
"RE" refers to "recording film" (also designated as film number 2475), a high-speed surveillance, black and white
panchromatic film with extended red sensitivity manufactured by Kodak on a thick ESTAR-AH base. It had a nominal speed
rating of ASA 800, but could be rated from ASA 5000 to 8000, depending on processing conditions.
"Se" means "selenium." The Se toner used to finish the prints in this collection was a proprietary formula
manufactured by Kodak and sold under the trademark name "Kodak Rapid Selenium Toner."
"Selectol" was the trademark name for a proprietary, warm-toned, pre-packaged MQ black and white paper developer made
by Kodak.
"Selectol-Soft" was the trademark name for a proprietary low-contrast and warm-toned, pre-packaged MQ black and white
paper developer made by Kodak.
"Technical Pan Film 2415" was a slow, high-contrast, and fine-grained film made by Kodak and discontinued in 2003.
See: http://www.kodak.com/global/en/professional/support/techPubs/p255/p255.pdf for technical information about this
emulsion.
"TX" refers to "Tri-X," a black and white panchromatic film made by Kodak with a box speed rating of ASA 400. TX was
also designated as film number "5063"
"TX135-20" refers to a 20-exposure roll of 35mm TX film.
"TX135-36" refers to 36-exposure roll of 35mm TX film.
"Vintage Print" means a print made at the same time or shortly after the corresponding negative was produced.
NR35-090-P14 is a "vintage print" because it was made in December 1982, shortly after the corresponding negative was
made. Although NR35-105-26 was made in 1983, the corresponding print (NR35-105-P26) is not a "vintage print" because it
was made in March 2012, not in 1983.
"YA2" refers to a medium orange-colored contrast control glass filter. Riley used two different "YA2" filters for 35mm
exposures. One was labeled "PRO, Japan," and the other was made by Ampro Corp., USA. The PRO YA2 was slightly darker than
the Ampro version and nearly identical in color to the O2 filter manufactured by Tokina Co, Ltd., Japan.
"Y52" refers to a medium yellow-colored contrast control glass filter made by Minolta Co., Ltd., Japan).
