Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2002/03/24
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]on 3/24/02 9:15 AM, Austin Franklin at darkroom@ix.netcom.com wrote: > Hi Doug, > >> I have a question related to the digital vs. wet darkroom. How close can a >> digital B&W print get to a wet darkroom print? > > They are two very different mediums...but, that said, I can print inkjet > prints that are very close to my wet darkroom prints...but I don't want to. > What I CAN do with digital is two things important to me in image quality > that I can't do with a wet darkroom (at least near as easy). One is > setpoints, which means I can set the black point and the white point...and > all my valid image data lies in between. Second is tonal curves (which is > similar to dodging and burning plus a whole lot more), for example, I can > "bring in" my shadow detail, yet leave the rest of the entire image with the > same tonal ratios. > > I actually prefer, for B&W, the digital methodology, though I spend the past > year 30 years in a wet darkroom! > if I may butt in... what Austin has described about the setpoints and tonal curves applies 3x with color images. The degree of control over the image is FAR greater than anything I could ever do in a darkroom. No way I'll go back to the traditional printing process. Doug Herr Birdman of Sacramento http://www.wildlightphoto.com - -- To unsubscribe, see http://mejac.palo-alto.ca.us/leica-users/unsub.html