FROM OUTER SPACE! Once again those photographic buffs from the Essex out back of Colchester, the Pearles (who else?), have provided a few items of, I think, general interest. Pride of place must go, without doubt, to a new contrast Cibachrome print, made by this couple from one of a set of slides taken from a geo-satallite, and which is truly breath taking!

The shot is so sharp, so full of detail, despite it`s spinning thousands of miles from India, Burma, the Philippines, Japan, Australia, New Zealand and down into the wastes of Antarctica. This really does put into truly, amazing perspective, the advances made whereby photographs from outer space now provide,in almost terrifying detail, the means by which nation now keeps an eye on nation.

Phew! I swear I can detect a female Kangaroo sunning herself down there on Bondi Beach!

Seriously though,this is a picture to savour embracing, as it does, both the Indian and Pacific oceans. I was even able to pin-point my old stamping ground of the mid-fifties... Coxes Bazar!!

AN E6 VIDEO? The Pearles - Major & Rita - are also enthusiastic regarding the suggestion of a video outlining the whole process of developing the E6 films. This idea originated, in the first place, by Tony Chuter of Southampton, and I must say that several members have offered support. The Pearles, though have a son-in-law who is a seasoned professional in the video world with full scale camera and copying facilities together with a fully equipped studio.

Major Pearle has promised to look into the possibility of getting considerable help and guidance from this source. Further news of this exiting project will follow, hopefully, with not too much delay.

CAMERA BUILDER! Building a wood and brass 5" x 4" field camera! That`s the latest project of Area 22 chairman, Jeff Mundell. Also on the stocks is a miniature video camera which attaches to the viewfinder of a 35mm, or medium format instrument.

The idea of this is that Jeff needed to see through the camera viewfinder to compose pictures, alter zoom and focus settings from about 50 metres distance. He found a camera module, the size of a packet of cigarettes, ready made and of low cost. With the aid of a motorised pan and tilt head, he is now working on an attachment which will enable him to zoom and focus the lens. All will then be used with a mini LCD B&W 4" monitor.

NOTCHING UP THE CENTURY! Mention of both Tony Chuter and Major & Rita Pearle, reminds me that all three of us have been communicating with each other for a very long time... via a tape recording. Leading the field, at the moment, are Tony and I who have, according to the meticulous records from Southampton, already have reached the century mark a piece! This over a period, I think Tony says, of six years. The Pearles cannot be all that far behind, either, for we have also been `on the air` for a long time. And regularly, too.

BOGGLE YOUR EYES AT THIS! An American company has manufactured, introduced and marketed ... wait for it! ... an all-cotton vest - especially for photographers. Especially for photographers? Well yes! You see this brand new product has special features of value, it is said, to the men, or ladies, with cameras! It has, for instance, quilted shoulders to give added comfort when carrying heavy equipment, a padded collar as a cushion between neck and camera strap.

The neutral colour of olive/grey will camouflage dirt and stains! There are mesh panels at the yoke and back to provide ventilation! Oh yes! ... there are also 18 POCKETS!! Honest! I joke not! The mind boggles.

PRINT FLATTENING! Kodak, in America, have now, I read, discontinued their print flattening solution. One enthusiast has been having bubble troubles with an alternative product. Print flatteners can employ hygroscopic compounds - or glycols, glycerine, hexaline glycel. After a soak in one or the other of these concoctions the print is drip-dried and the print is, presumably, suitably `flattened`.

I would not have thought this was much of a problem these days of plastic coated printing paper. But, if it still is, here is my simple long tested and effective method. All you need is a flat edge - a ruler is ideal - lay the print on a flat surface, curl side down, position the ruler against the back of the print and pull gently but firmly against the curl.

As I say, it`s simple. And it works. And it can be repeated if need be until the offending curl has admitted final and total defeat!

BRIAN`S AWAY! Brian Asquith, you may remember, was having trouble, a while back, with the C.R.C. formulae! Not any more! I`m happy to hear, in a letter from him, that all, or nearly all, of his former difficulties have been resolved. He tells me he has now again mixed solutions to the Club formulae - apart from the reversal bath. This latter was an old mix which he risked and it worked.

During this session he processed three Ektachrome, a short length of `old` Konica and an Agfa. All, says Brian, were fine with good colour, good blacks. And I`m delighted!

The old reversal bath, he says, was not cloudy. I have explained that this was undoubtedly a CONCENTRATE (probably from a kit) or it would not have worked at all! But a concentrate will keep well and tends not to be cloudy as a freshly mixed ready-to-use solution. The ready-to-use solution also does not keep well and it is wise not to risk a solution that has been stored over a long period.

STOP...THE STOP BATH!! There seems still to be considerable reluctance by members to accept the fact that a stop bath should NOT be used in the E6 process following the first developer. There is a specific reason for this, if it is accepted that development should be, as approximate as possible, evenly balanced between the top layers of emulsion and the layers lower down when processing colour reversal film.

Thus it should now be accepted that development should be gradually tapered off starting with the top layer and allowing more active development lower down, enabling these layers to `catch up` in terms of density, with their colleagues higher up. This could not be achieve by the IMMEDIATE `cut-off` of developer activity by utilising a stop bath.