Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 1998/06/07
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]>I need to know what is the maximum size a BW 35mm negative can be >enlarged before losing the edge. The edge? Meaning apparent sharpness? >As the lens chosen is important I wonder which is the >better of my ancient Leica lenses, They are. The enlarger lens also makes a difference. Rodenstock, for example, makes two types of 50mm enlarging lenses, one optimized for prints up to 8x10 and another (the G lens) optimized for larger prints. If you want to make big prints as sharp as possible then it would pay to get the appropriate lens. Of course you're unlikely to be using the same enlarger lens for the 6x9, and if you're comparing a small degree of enlargement (of the 6x9) with a large degree of enlargement (of the 35mm neg. to get the same final print dimensions) you're testing two different enlarging lenses at two different degrees of enlargement. What film will you be using? At what aperture will you shoot? If you use Technical Pan at f/8 you're going to be able to enlarge much more than with Tri-X wide open. I suppose that I tend towards the practical approach: pick the lens appropriate to the subject, choose the f-stop and shutter speed that suits the composition, enlarge it as much as you feel tolerable. - -Charlie