Re: [Leica] Color vs B&W

[Johnny Deadman <john@pinkheadedbug.com>]

on 2/10/00 5:20 pm, Alastair Firkin at AlastairF@bhs.grampianshealth.org.au
wrote:

> This fact brings into question whether shooting on
> b&w stock for digital use has any future at all, or whether it would be
> better to shot everything on colour stock (possibly tranny) and then let the
> 
> end use or maybe the subject matter dictate the format (if that is the right
> 
> word) that it is finally output as.
> XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
> Gerry,
> 
> This was exactly my thought as I looked at the images. Shoot colour, and
> decide later. As Johnny has shown, even an aweful negative can be rescued to
> make an outstanding print with enought electronic wizardry. I have been
> doing this with my travels for some time with Kodachrome, and making b/w
> images later via the computer, via photo CD scans. I don't have the fancy
> printers, inks and paper, but the results have shown that it is quite
> feasible. For street shooters, however, print film with its enormous
> latitude will probably allow even more freedom to grab the decisive moments.

I think bw stock has a lot of future, actually.

I find certain kinds of tonality impossible to achieve on non-monochrome,
non-silver grain films.

Also you just *have* to be clear in your head whether you're shooting black
and white or color. Of course you can tell yourself this color roll is
actually being shot for bw, but can you really fool yourself that well?

Finally, unless you want to shoot reversal, with all the latitude and
contrast problems that implies, you are not producing archival negs if you
shoot color emulsions. Arguably, scans are archival, I know.



- -- 
Johnny Deadman

http://www.pinkheadedbug.com