Alternative process
AdvancedBromoil
Between painting and photography
VP Bromoil is a process where a gelatin matrix, exposed and developed, is rehumidified then inked with a foam roller using black Charbonnel intaglio ink. Tanned areas accept ink while water-swollen areas repel it. Each roller pass reveals the image a little more. The result sits between oil painting and photography.
The art of inking
Bromoil is a process from the early days of photography. The softness and painterly quality of the prints are typical of this genre. Pictorialist photographers used it to affirm photography as a true art form. The VP kit eliminates all the toxic chemistry of the old process: no more silver bleaching, no more copper sulfate.
Materials
640 gsm watercolour paper · VP Gelatin · VP Developer N°06 · Black Charbonnel intaglio ink · Foam roller
100% non-toxic
All our chemistry is reformulated by Vision Picturale to be safe for home use. No toxic products whatsoever.
In 4 steps
Ink a bromoil in 4 steps
Prepare
Prepare your gelatin-coated sheets (glass plate, bain-marie, syringe, comb, drying).
Calibrate
Generate your negative countertype and print it on transparent film.
Expose
Expose with the Luminograph (2 min), develop with N°06 (3 min), then rehumidify 10 min at 20°C.
Reveal
Ink with a foam roller using black Charbonnel ink. Alternate water and inking until you reach the desired result.
The signature gesture
The foam roller: the mechanics of bromoil inking
Bromoil isn't a print you develop — it's a print you paint. Once the gelatin matrix is exposed, developed and rehumidified, you hold an apparently uniform sheet. The image only appears the moment you pass the foam roller loaded with black Charbonnel ink.
The principle is simple in theory: areas tanned by light (image shadows) absorb water slowly and accept oily ink; water-swollen areas (highlights) repel it. The artist's hand decides how much ink to deposit, at what angle, with what pressure, in what order.
In practice, it's a dialogue. First light pass across the whole surface: a ghost image appears. You dab dry with a sponge. Second firmer pass on pure shadows, cross-hatched movement. Third selective pass on areas you want to densify. Each artist develops their own gestural signature after a few prints.
That's why two bromoils made from the same negative by two different people will always be recognizably different. And it's also why a bromoil never reproduces identically, even by its own author. This unpredictability is the absolute opposite of inkjet — and it is its raison d'être.
Frequently asked questions
Everything about this process
What is the origin of bromoil?
Bromoil is a pictorialist process developed in the early 20th century, formalized in 1907 by C. Welborne Piper and popularized by Briton E.J. Wall in his book The Bromoil Process published in London. Historic bromoil relied on a silver gelatin matrix bleached with cupric dichromate, a toxic salt today classified as CMR by ECHA. Bromoil Vision Picturale completely removes silver bleaching: the matrix uses VP N°05 gelatin sensitized by VP N°03 Universal Sensitizer and revealed by VP N°06 developer, then inked with black pigmented Charbonnel intaglio ink. The practitioner obtains the characteristic pictorial rendering of bromoil, between oil painting and photography, without handling toxic salts. The process remains editable for several hours after re-humidification.
Is bromoil non-toxic in the VP version?
Bromoil Vision Picturale is non-toxic and practicable in a kitchen, unlike historic bromoil which required cupric dichromate bleaching, a salt classified carcinogenic and mutagenic CMR 1B under the European CLP regulation. The VP matrix uses food-grade photographic VP N°05 gelatin, sensitized by VP N°03 Universal Sensitizer without dichromate, and revealed by biodegradable VP N°06 developer. Final inking employs black Charbonnel intaglio ink, pigmented and compliant with EN 71-3 standards on toxic element migration. The practitioner can concretely prepare the matrix on a kitchen table, then ink in the same space. Roller cleaning is done with vegetable oil then black soap, without petroleum solvent such as white spirit.
What are the steps of a bromoil print?
A bromoil Vision Picturale print follows a strict six-step sequence. The VP N°05 gelatin matrix sensitized with VP N°03 is exposed under a 365 nm Luminograph A4 unit for two minutes depending on negative density. Development in diluted VP N°06 developer lasts three minutes at 20°C, followed by a five-minute rinse in running water. The matrix is then flat-dried and re-humidified by immersion in water at 20°C for ten minutes, a critical step that reveals the swelling differential between exposed and unexposed zones. Foam roller inking with black Charbonnel intaglio ink deposits pigment on dry swollen areas and spares the wet ones. The practitioner can adjust density by successive passes over several hours. Final drying takes twenty-four hours.
How does bromoil differ from carbon transfer?
Bromoil Vision Picturale and carbon transfer share VP N°05 gelatin but answer different artistic intentions. VP bromoil, with its gelatin matrix sensitized by VP N°03 and revealed by VP N°06, is inked with a foam roller using Charbonnel intaglio ink after re-humidification. It remains editable for several hours and allows manual intervention by the practitioner on each zone, comparable to an engraver working a plate. VP carbon transfer, based on VP N°05 pigmented gelatins ready to expose after sensitization with VP N°03, fixes the image definitively at transfer without retouching. Carbon transfer offers the highest dMax among alternative processes and a superior multi-century permanence. The practitioner will choose bromoil for interpretation and gesture, carbon transfer for archival depth and maximum tonal range.
What skill level does bromoil require?
Bromoil Vision Picturale sits at a confirmed intermediate level and is not recommended as a first alternative process. Foam roller mastery demands fine coordination between pressure, speed, and angle, comparable to learning intaglio engraving. The practitioner should have completed at least twenty cyanotype prints and ten Aquaprint prints beforehand to understand VP N°03 sensitization, Luminograph exposure, and VP N°06 development. Ten-minute re-humidification at 20°C requires precise control: too short, the matrix won't accept ink; too long, the differential vanishes. In addition to the VP kit (VP N°05 gelatin + VP N°03 + VP N°06), the practitioner must acquire a 100 mm high-density foam roller and a tube of black Charbonnel intaglio ink.
How permanent is a bromoil print?
A bromoil Vision Picturale print presents excellent archival quality, estimated at several centuries. The black Charbonnel intaglio ink used for inking is a pigmented ink with linseed oil binder rated maximum permanence by manufacturer Lefranc Bourgeois, historic supplier since 1862 to European engravers. The carbon black pigment forming Charbonnel black is chemically inert and UV-resistant. The underlying matrix, VP N°05 gelatin hardened by VP N°03 Universal Sensitizer, is as stable as classic silver matrices. The practitioner must ensure complete drying of twenty-four to forty-eight hours before handling, and mounting on neutral pH 7 to 8.5 board. Pictorialist bromoil prints from the early 20th century English school, preserved at the Royal Photographic Society Collection in London, attest to stability exceeding one hundred and twenty years.
Complete kit
Bromoil
VP Bromoil is a process where a gelatin matrix, exposed and developed, is rehumidified then inked with a foam roller using black Charbonnel intaglio ink. Tanned areas accept ink while water-swollen areas repel it. Each roller pass reveals the image a little more. The result sits between oil painting and photography.
An alternative
Want a bromoil, not ink it yourself?
The printers of Maison Picturale produce bromoils on commission in their Paris atelier, with Charbonnel intaglio ink on 640 gsm cotton paper. Each print is hand-inked, gestural signature included. Vision Picturale supplies the kit to practice the gesture; Maison Picturale signs the final work.
Order a bromoilMaison Picturale · Paris 20e
