[Leica] Re: Question---Filters for B/W

[firkin at balhpl01.ncable.net.au (firkin)]

What a great summary: of course you need a Rabiner translator, but after a 
few years of lugging this is 'easy' ;-) Thanks Mark 

Mark Rabiner writes: 

> On 4/14/05 10:41 AM, "Scott McLoughlin" <scott@adrenaline.com> typed: 
> 
>> Yellow-green has become my standard B&W filter, although in
>> some filter sizes I still only have a medium yellow.  Y-G is a good
>> general all-around effect, IMHO. 
>> 
>> Scott 
>> 
>> Didier Ludwig wrote: 
>> 
> Perhaps it is good you mentioned what film you are using although it's rare
> I think of black and white filtration as a film specific thing so much. 
> They
> give you a sheet with each film or you now you download the pdq as to how
> that film specifically relates to filters but that stuff can just drive you
> crazy and I tend to ignore it. They are all pretty close to each other
> mostly.
> That said the C41 monochrome films seen to have a built in yellow green
> filter in them. Plenty of tone in the sky. I can leave mine off.
> Shoot bare naked glass. It's very refreshing.
> A big new trend in cinematography I hear. Really.
> Tri x benefits even more from the use of a yellow-green filter as it's kind
> of red sensitive.
> Yellow-green is said to restore true panchromatiosity to the film.
> (don't bother trying to look that one up)
> Which says its panchromatic.
> But ain't. 
> 
> PANCHROMATIC means the film sees all the colors equally. Or the way you'd
> think they'd see them as translated to grays. While most films are very
> blue, cyan or UV sensitive. And slightly red insensitive.
> Making for skies which block up quickly going dead white unless you expose
> for them.
> Placing them at zone VII or VI even.
> But the yellow-green cuts though the phlegm. Making those little wispy
> clouds in the horizon come out. And so on.
> A black and white print with no tone in the sky is a wash out.
> You need at least tone. If not a hint of texture. (clouds I'd think for the
> most part but whatever's up there) 
> 
> About the only filters which you can use when those pesky people creep into
> the shot are the yellow green.
> Light green.
> Green I guess.
> Ok dark green (it's hard to be green)
> And that's it.
> Anything else is death. Or near death. 
> 
> Yellow despite what many will say (and do) you can't just leave on your 
> lens
> like a UV filter which does something. It makes for real pasty skin tones.
> Almost like when you are shooting indoors with tungsten light but not quite
> as bad. As there is no magenta in it. 
> 
> So you need that green the the mix to make it yellow green (B+W 060)
> I sure got that number memorized. 
> 
> Oh and a polarizer is also ok for skin tones as well as skies and works 
> nice
> if you ever happen to have color film in your camera. Or a charge coupled
> device. 
> 
> The rest of the filters I think of as what they do to the sky.
> How cutting and contrasting an effect you want. 
> 
> Green and dark green have the advantage of not only cutting through all 
> that
> UV phlegm in the sky quite a nice bit not not darkening the foliage like 
> all
> the other filters would. Which is a bad thing.
> Lightening the foliage works out so it's usually good.
> It's my first reach for landscapes.
> Dark green is always an option for even more of an effect. Which really 
> does
> not look like an "effect".
> And you can be the only one on your block using one.
> You usually have to order them and wait.
> But such a thing (any filtration at all) really makes the negs easier to
> print. 
> And gets people thinking you're the new Ansel Adams if your shooting a
> landscape and maybe your neg. is bigger than 35mm.
> No filtration at all and my such prints never come close.
> Don't know what it is. 
> 
> Red
> Is the biggest cutting effect for the sky.
> Bringing out texture (clouds) you didn't dream were there.
> Almost as much of a nice surprise as using IR film.
> Which you need a red filter with anyway.
> If not a dark red. Which is also very nice with normal film.
> Red makes foliage go black.
> This can look real bad real quick.
> Unless you like the backdrop of the Mona Lisa. Which looks like the moon.
> So you  want it to be mainly a sky oriented shot or a shot where the trees
> are way off in the distance so they look less weird black. 
> 
> If pesky people types creep into the shot their lips will be white.
> Like that Linda Ronstat album cover in which I'm sure was done with a red.
> Maybe she had zits that week. Zits look great white. It's better than
> Clearasil. 
> 
> Orange is for slightly less of an effect than red.
> And all the other quirks apply. 
> 
> Yellow and dark yellow is for slightly less of an effect than Orange.
> But does not screw up the foliage quite as bad. Just the shadows next to
> them.
> The shadows next to rocks tend to be cyan blue and this filter sucks the
> juice right out of them. Making for what looks like an underexposed shot.
> As your not getting the detail in those shadows that you'd expect to see 
> and
> had planned for.
> The filter thinks anything cyan blue is the sky and darkens them.
> Even if they are nice shadows you want to see into.
> So while yellow might seem nice only absorbing a stop or less it has less
> use than it might seem.
> And as I said make people looks like "Will the real Martian please stand
> up". 
> 
> In the Ansel Adams photo series he talks about using a blue to make stuff
> look further away.
> Right.
> I've experienced with using a cooling filter with black and white and it
> makes for neg. which needs Agfa Brovira #6 which they don't make any more 
> no
> matter how long you soup it.
> I doubt Ansel really used a blue filter for his black and white.
> He claimed there as one shot and showed it in the book.
> It's not one I think they ever put on one of his calendars or postcards.
> Forget blue. Or cooling filters for black and white.
> They are death. 
> 
> 
> Mark Rabiner
> Photography
> Portland Oregon
> http://rabinergroup.com/ 
> 
>  
> 
> 
> _______________________________________________
> Leica Users Group.
> See http://leica-users.org/mailman/listinfo/lug for more information
 


Alastair Firkin
www.afirkin.com
www.familyofman2.com