Digital BW, The Print

In a message dated 12/22/2005 8:06:45 AM Pacific Standard Time,  
DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com writes:

Claude,


> ...
> The truth is that 30x40 landscapes  don't sell all that well ...Claude>>
<Yes, but they are fun to  make and look at.  Luckily, my "little" Bronica RF
645 with Tech Pan  in it can make nearly perfect 40 inch prints.>>
 
Yes, when tamed, Tech. Pan was the ultimate film. In 1980, I started using  
it (as SO-115) in 4x5, before they marketed it as "large format from 35mm" and  
finally, per my and others urgings, made it in 120. Great stuff. Highest res. 
 film they ever made in B&W and a real spoiler for slow ISO shooters.

<<Question:  What MP count is going to be needed for a  sharp 30 x 40 B&W 
print
from a digital camera?  I've been estimating  that at least 24 mp in a full
frame 35mm might be what I need to wait  for.  (I'm hoping my TP stash in the
freezer lasts long enough for such  to be affordable.)>>
 
My old Dicomed Scanback is equivalent to 5x7 film as a 42 Megapixel  capture 
(no mosaics or interpolation). Foveon showed 4x8 foot prints from a 16  
Megapixel monochrome, 22x22 mm chip shot by Greg Gorman back in 2001, at  Photokina 
that year. This cause quite a stir as most people thought it was as  good as 
4x5 fomat, but only represented 8 megapixels. I would say you can  stitch up 
3-6 shots from you Rebel and pretty much conclude that you are pretty  darn 
close at 24-48 Megapixels. The Anti Aliasing filter cuts your ultimate  sharpness 
in half, though, as opposed to the MF backs, which rely on  firmware/software 
tricks to remove color aliasing, and maintain full sharpness  in the luminance 
channel. Patience will reward all of us, but it will be  difficult and 
expensive to beat Tech Pan if that is your standard.
 
Claude


Paul
www.PaulRoark.com 





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