Is digital appropriate?

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Is it appropriate to talk about Digital Black And white printing on this forum?

-- David Hodgson (davidhodgson@mindspring.com), February 14, 2001

Answers

Response to is it apprate

David, there used to be a digital category on this forum, but it disappeared. I would hope it would be appropriate, since I think quite a few of use 'weave' in and out of the digital and wet darkroom.

chris

-- Christian Harkness (chris.harkness@eudoramail.com), February 15, 2001.


I hope so! ;-)

http://members3.clubphoto.com/johnny243937/Black_and_White/

-- Johnny Motown (johnny.motown@att.net), February 15, 2001.


I think it would be particularly appropriate for us to include discussions of how to make digital negatives. As things stand right now, most digital prints are not as archival as conventional photographic prints, so it makes a lot of sense to do as much manipulation as possible in making a digital negative, which can then be printed by conventional means. I have noticed that the people who are doing alternative processes are getting the best prices for their prints, but people don't seem to care how they make their negatives.

-- Ed Buffaloe (edb@unblinkingeye.com), February 15, 2001.

Ed, for Christmas I received a copy of Dan Burkholder's "Making Digital Negatives For Contact Printing.' A fabulous book and a must have if you are interested in that subject. I have not been able to make a digital negative to my liking, but I am still in the 'Stone Age' with my Epson Stylus 600. I love the quality of the digital prints I get with it on Arches cp, but negatives seem to be another matter. I do think that the desktop printing software and hardware is just about there, and this way of working will become a standard for many b&w photographers.

Cheers - chris

-- Christian Harkness (chris.harkness@eudoramail.com), February 16, 2001.


Can someone explain what is meant by a 'digital negative'? At first, I was thinking it was just the image itself that would be sent off to be printed but I'm getting the feeling that it is not that.

-- Johnny Motown (johnny.motown@att.net), February 16, 2001.


Johnny,

A digital negative is a full size negative of the photo with which to make a contact print. The advantage of the digital negative is that it incorporates all the dodging, burning, contrast adjustments, etc. etc. that one needs to make to ones prints in order to have them shine.

Basically what you do is edit your photo in Photoshop, then invert it to make it a negative, and then either print it on your desktop printer or send it out to a service bureau to be converted to a negative.

So, now you have the perfect negative, and in order to get that perfect print, all you have to do is contact print it.

chris

-- Christian Harkness (chris.harkness@eudoramail.com), February 17, 2001.


Very interesting. Thanks Chris! I had no idea that you could get a perfectly good negative from a digital photograph. I guess that is certainly one way to get an archival print! Thanks for the info!

-- Johnny Motown (johnny.motown@att.net), February 17, 2001.

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