Digital BW, The Print

Hey Paul,
Truth is some jobs are simply a challenge.. In the scenario I think your describing I typically scan in RGB as it slightly improves the ability to differentiate the tones then I use a mask to  separate the areas so that I can adjust each on appropriately.. I find that on critical images in both color and B&W images I make extensive use of masks these days to get where I want to go.. seems to work.. It seems rather timely but the more you do it the faster it gets..

jimbo
  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: paulmwhiting@... [DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint] 
  To: DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com 
  Sent: Tuesday, September 16, 2014 2:19 PM
  Subject: [Digital BW] scanning b/w negs vs converting color digital file to b/w


    
  I've been doing both and so far it's worked our rather well. I scan some of my old b/w negs, both 35mm and MF, and have been quite pleased with the results. Likewise, I convert my color digital photos to b/w using channels and can emulate different b/w filters. Am using PSE9, by the way. PSE9 doesn't have channels but am using the SmartCurve plug in.

  But a friend asked for some prints made from a couple of 6x6 negs. No problem I thought, they're well exposed, good range of tones, clean. But the subject in both is a large corrugated roof, one shot a barn and one a quonset hut, both against a clear blue sky. Turns out the metallic grey is very close the gray of the sky and I didn't use a filter. I find it difficult to make a b/w print delineating these two areas. 

  Lesson learned - use filter when shooting b/w film - I got lazy. Had I converted a color digital file of those two scenes, I could have used channels R,G, and B to differentiate the greys. But these were shot BDE (Before Digital Era).

  However, back to the present issue - anything I can do differentiate those greys in my b/w negatives? Maybe I'm overlooking something very simple.

  Thanks all,

  Paul






  
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