Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2008/09/07
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]On 07/09/2008, at 1:19, Yama Nawabi wrote: > What information should I know to start printing? Despite all the things you have heard from some people banging over darkroom, silver printing is an art itself, and as every form of handcrafted art is time consuming and leads to frustration if you're in a hurry for results, skills take a while to come and get sorted into your mind. Digital printing means production, silver also can be done for production with the right stuff, but it's mostly pointless nowadays for such target: if you're not going to get the last bit of whatever you're doing, or your plans are just a few prints now and then, and mostly snaps, better spend your money on a good printer. If you stand with silver, start on a community darkroom before spending money. Take care that none of the modern chemicals smells (at least none of the required ones), and fumes aren't dangerous as long as you care for proper ventilation (as much as you do for light insulation), there are a lot of myths around this (as well as they are a lot of myths about digital processing). I do have extensive experience with darkroom and digital (which I started to experiment-learn due my former job in the early-mid 90's), and I cannot recommend any: at present time I print all my BW, which is very personal, in the darkroom, and color (either film or digital) digitally. The choice is only yours but I do not think (sorry Ric, Daniel) that having your bum sitting in front of a computer is different (either socially or from you family point of view) than going into the darkroom, only might be preferred by some :). I feel better, to hell with photography, art, women, and all E. Weston, 1924 ----------------------------------------------------------------------- http://luis.imaginarymagnitude.net/