Digital BW, The Print

--- In DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com, "Djon" 
<westsidemaurice@y...> wrote:
> In my journey to fine B&W from Nikon V-scanned B&W negs I've been
> playing with an image that never printed well in 1975 using a fine
> Durst and Agfa Brovira...Tmax (never liked that stuff). Important
> personal image. 
> 
> So far I've gotten best results scanning as POSITIVE, then inverting,
> filtering dust & scratches (PS7), applying light USM, increasing
> contrast (the pos scan is very flat). Print QTRgui/2200.
> 
> I'm getting more life (midtone separation) in shadow-sides of faces
> than I have so far when scanning as negative...the overall image
> appears sharper, with less USM, because certain tones aren't muddled. 
> 
> Scanning B&W negs as pos is often suggested... helps with this
> image...any idea WHY this works, if in your experience it does?

Hi; I too have a Nikon scanner, and scan as positives; this gives you 
all the information from the scan which you can then massage to your 
liking. If you scan as a negative, the software sets black point/ white 
point and contrast curve, and for a B&W neg it just doesn't work well. 
does a bit better for color negs though.

Steve Karafyllakis