YES!

The printer problem I’ve been having appears to finally have been solved. Yesterday I received the package of Pictorico transparency I ordered.

Pictorico is quite a bit more expensive than the brand of transparency film I had been using, but it’s considered one of the best. After figuring out that the banding was likely caused by the film I was using getting old, I decided to try the good stuff.
I printed a negative, using the Pictorico transparency, of the same image I’ve been having problems with, and it looked beautiful. Not only was there no banding present at all, but the image was much more sharp than on the other brand of transparency I was using. It also dried much more quickly. I tried touching it about 10 minutes after it came out of the printer, and it felt dry. WIth the old transparency film, I didn’t dare touch it for several hours, or the ink would smear.

The real test came last night, when I made a cyanotype print from the new negative. As you can see, it looks great. I’m really happy with it. The print is very clear and sharp, and adjusting the transfer curves has given it a much fuller tonal range than usual with a cyanotype.

I printed two more negatives last night, and made cyanotype prints with them today. They are every bit as sharp as the first one, and also have the full tonal range.

So, after about three weeks of stress and countless dead ends, It looks like I’ll finally be able to get to work making prints.