Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 1999/04/19
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]>>Could some of those who are "scanning" their prints enlighten us in regard to the >>quality provided by "scanning" versus prints from Tech Pan or Kodachrome negatives >>enlarged using Focomats, Durst L1200's or other really good enlargers with APO >>enlarging lenses. It may be that "scanning" does not do justice to high quality >>camera equipment so there is no need for Leica to provide equipment that so >>awesome that prints and slides from Leica equipment is discernible with the eye >>from the equipment of other manufacturers. Scanning and digital work is one way to go for great finished prints. Though its certainly not the only way. There's lots of retouching, refining and even complete construction of images that can only happen digitally. And all this technology does not suit every eye or mind. Today the best desktop scanners and printers can do a very fine job of making accurate, faithful prints that can be sharper, crisper, fuzzier, smoother, blurrier, better, worse (or whatever) than darkroom prints. In any event, some human has to actually do the work and make the decisions. When one leaps to the "very best" scanning and digital output done with machines costing several hundred thousand dollars the possibilities grow even more. I think here, anything can happen if you have enough money. And yes, there still must be a human (you) involved. If you're interested in digital workflow give it a try. Don't take my (or anyone else's) word for it. If you just don't feel the call to digital , that's OK too, you probably won't miss anything that'll matter to you. Here are a few ideas of what to look for if you're interested. Some you can buy and run and some you'll probably want someone else to pay for:) Epson (and other) inkjet printers Archival inks for inkjets Iris printers Quadtone inks for Epson inkjet printers Polaroid and Nikon 35mm film scanners Fuji Pictro printers Kodak Pro PhotoCD Durst Lambda digital printers I want even more >>equipment that so awesome<< (from above quoted text) Have fun! Henry Ambrose