Process for obtaining a color image with improved resolution

A method for producing a negative image which comprises:

• (A) providing a photosensitive element which comprises, in order from top to bottom
• (i) a strippable, transparent cover sheet;
• (ii) a crosslinked layer, which comprises a polymer having phenolic groups;
• (iii) a color layer, which comprises an organic binder, a photopolymerizable monomer, a colorant, and optionally, a photoinitiator, wherein the binder is present in sufficient amount to bind the color layer components into a uniform film, wherein the optional photoinitiator, when present, is present in sufficient amount to initiate polymerization of the photopolymerizable monomer, wherein the photopolymerizable monomer is present in sufficient amount to provide image differentiation when the element is imagewise exposed to actinic radiation and wherein the colorant is present in an amount sufficient to uniformly color the color layer;
• (iv) a photoadhering layer, which comprises a photocrosslinkable polymer having ethylenically unsaturated, photocrosslinkable groups and a molecular weight greater than about 3,000, a photopolymerizable monomer having at least one ethylenically unsaturated group, and an optional photoinitiator, wherein the optional photoinitiator, when present, is present in sufficient amount to initiate polymerization of the photopolymerizable monomer and the crosslinking of the photocrosslinkable polymer and wherein at least one of either the color layer or the photoadhering layer contains a photoinitiator;
• and
• (v) an optional thermoplastic adhesive layer;
• (B) imagewise exposing the color layer and the photoadhering layer through the cover sheet to actinic radiation, thereby producing a latent negative image;
• (C) thereafter laminating the photosensitive element via the photoadhering layer and optional thermoplastic adhesive layer to a receiver sheet;
• (D) peeling apart the receiver sheet and the transparent cover sheet with the crosslinked phenolic layer, retaining unexposed areas of the color layer on the crosslinked phenolic layer of the cover sheet, and transferring the exposed areas of the color layer onto the receiver sheet via the photoadhering layer and optional adhesive layer, to thereby form a colored negative image on the receiver sheet;
• and
• (E) optionally repeating steps (A) through (D) at least once wherein a latent negative image from another photosensitive element having at least one different colorant is transferred onto the negative image previously produced on the receiver sheet.