[Leica] More comments: how do you use your images

[firkin at ncable.net.au (Alastair Firkin)]

Great summary Norm, and well worth the read. Thanks.

On 12/07/2005, at 11:54 AM, Norm Aubin wrote:

> Alastair, et. al.
>
> I went through the progression of sizes and types of cameras over the 
> last
> 30 years, going from 35mm to 2.25 to 4x5, and the progression of print 
> sizes
> as well, 8x10 to 11x14 to 16x20 to 30x40 as the negative permitted.
>
> I have long been a student of the Ansel Adam's school of print quality,
> likewise of the late Barry Thornton's techniques, so to me the 
> negative was
> the limiting factor in terms of picture size.  I won't settle for 
> grain in
> an image, it disturbs me, like noise on a stereo recording.
>
> I do print a size appropriate to the image though: if it calls for 
> jewel box
> size, i.e. 5x5, then so be it.  Likewise, if the image needs to be 
> really
> big to have the right impact, then 30x40 it is.  This means that many 
> of my
> favorite images are made using large format. Then again, I love my 3.5 
> x 4.5
> daguerreotype images too!
>
> It should be noted that I do recreational photography, landscapes and
> architectural work, (ferns and rocks as Ted would say), so for me the
> tonality and detail must survive the translation to a large print.  
> Most
> 35mm negs, even scanned at 4000 DPI, don't get you there.
>
> I bought the Leica M6 for one simple reason: I want to have a camera 
> with me
> at all times, one capable of recording the technically highest quality
> images in the most compact package possible.  It is capable of 
> producing
> images of very high quality, up to around 12x18 or so, and that is 
> quite
> satisfactory for a majority of my work, and it also leaves me with a 
> record
> of the scene to go back and work on with a large format camera later.
>
> Why is another story altogether . . . I photograph to see and to speak.
> Sometimes to share with others what I've seen.  I have a career, I 
> create
> for money in other venues, and in those venues I have some small 
> effect on
> the state of things in the world.  When it comes to photography I get 
> to use
> the other side of my brain, and also to make nice things.   To 
> paraphrase
> Ansel Adams: I'm not interested in recording ugly things, there's 
> enough of
> that already, I want to create pretty pictures.  If some day some 
> pretty
> picture makes someone happy, then I've done well.
>
> I love the wet darkroom for making large B&W prints, but it has gotten 
> more
> tedious as I get older.  Digital has opened up many possibilities for
> printing, and the quality of digital B&W is fast approaching that of 
> silver
> based printing, so it's time to get on the train . . . for color the 
> train
> is already moving at high speed!
>
> Just some random thoughts while the salmon bakes . . .
>
> Norm
>
>
>
>
>
>> Date: Mon, 11 Jul 2005
>> From: Alastair Firkin <firkin@ncable.net.au>
>> Subject: [Leica] More comments: how do you use your images
>
>> I am hoping to stimulate a bit more discussion on this topic: why do
>> you take the images, what do you do with them, how big do you print,
>> how do you print, why do you print etc
>>
>> Cheers
>
>
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>
Alastair