Imprint "Highlighting"

I'm curious as to what people are using to highlight the imprints on their pens to make them show up better when they take images of them. I see them in white and red mostly. I've used all sorts of things, but I'd love to know what others may be having better success with.

Thanks,
Michael Quitt
www.charmcitypens.com

I can't find the thread at FPN where I posted on this, so if this seems like a repeat, it largely is.

I am really not a fan of filled imprints. For photography, careful use of raking light will make imprints stand out nicely -- that's all I ever use for my catalog listings.

I have a couple of objections to filling of imprints. One is historical: in very few cases were imprints originally colored in, so highlighting them gives them a prominence that rather drastically alters a pen's appearance. The other is aesthetic: there is something nicely sculptural about an unfilled imprint, akin to a well-carved inscription in stone. Infilling turns three dimensions into two -- the imprints might as well have been printed on, once the element of relief is lost.

Whenever I get a pen with filled imprints, one of the first things I do is to clean them out.

I can't find the thread at FPN where I posted on this, so if this seems like a repeat, it largely is.

I am really not a fan of filled imprints. For photography, careful use of raking light will make imprints stand out nicely -- that's all I ever use for my catalog listings.

I have a couple of objections to filling of imprints. One is historical: in very few cases were imprints originally colored in, so highlighting them gives them a prominence that rather drastically alters a pen's appearance. The other is aesthetic: there is something nicely sculptural about an unfilled imprint, akin to a well-carved inscription in stone. Infilling turns three dimensions into two -- the imprints might as well have been printed on, once the element of relief is lost.

Whenever I get a pen with filled imprints, one of the first things I do is to clean them out.

I am wondering what raking light is exactly?

I am wondering what raking light is exactly?

A Glossary of Archival and Records Terminology
RICHARD PEARCE-MOSES





© 2005, Society of American Archivists
raking light
Syn:oblique light



Definition

n. ~ Illumination using rays of light almost parallel to the surface.

Notes

The extreme angle of raking light reveals subtle changes in the shape of a surface, which may result from uneven stretching of a canvas, warping of a support, or cracks in paint or emulsion. It can also indicate how an artist applied or changed paint.




----





A Glossary of Archival and Records Terminology
RICHARD PEARCE-MOSES




© 2005, Society of American Archivists
oblique light
Syn:raking light



Definition

n. ~ 1. Illumination from an angle to review the relief of a surface; raking light. – 2. Optics · A technique of illuminating a microscope specimen from the side, rather than by transmitted light.

Notes

Oblique light¹ is not necessarily at as extreme an angle as raking light.

I don't highlight imprints, especially since the imprints on the pens I buy are already well worn. I have talked to some people who use a white china marker. It rubs off easily.

Carl

David: In other words when I am down on my hands and knees looking for a small part from a pen that has fallen on the floor that I can't find and am shining my flashlight parallel to the floor I am using raking light ?

A white grease pencil or crayon work perfectly. Color all over the imprint, wipe the barrel down with a paper towel (not cloth with a nap that will remove the filler) and your done..