C-print

A C-print (C-type print, chromogenic print) is a photographic print made from a colour negative or slide on chromogenic photographic paper. Such paper has several emulsion layers sensitive to different parts of the spectrum; during development the chemicals react with dye couplers to form a full-colour image from cyan, magenta and yellow dyes. The name "C-type" comes from Kodak's chromogenic paper "Type C" (1955). This was the principal technology for colour photographic printing throughout much of the twentieth century, from amateur snapshots to large-format artworks. It was on chromogenic paper that the masters of the so-called Düsseldorf School and many strands of contemporary photography printed their large-scale works, seeking saturated colour and a museum-quality format. Although the organic dyes can fade over time, the C-print remains the classic analogue method of producing a colour print and an important part of the history of the photographic medium, familiar also to Ukrainian photographers of the analogue era.