Digital BW, The Print

Hahahaha..."mortgage your home, send your kids to work at Safeway..."
Are they lenses really THAT expensive? I've no idea. What would 2
basic lenses run me?
:)

  Yes, talking about film and darkroom stuff does make me nostalgic,
too. (SIGH)
  About FG7. As bad as it was with TX, it was truly superb with
Ilford's FP4. It gave gorgeous results. Very fine grain. Lovely
tonality. I think I was one-shoting it at 1:15.
 If you ever want to play around, try Xtol and TX. I was quite
surprised with how good the results were. (I still think HC-110 is
better, tho) I was diluting it 1:1 and had an ASA of 600+(!), with a
developing time of 6 minute, 50 sec. My HC-110 developing time was
only 4 minutes, 30 sec. What I find really fascinating about Xtol is
that Xtol IT is one of the few developers that does not contain
hydroquinone. It uses derivatives of ascorbic acid (vitamin C) and
Phenidone as developing agents. Claimed advantages include low
toxicity (important for environmental reasons as well as occupational
safety), easy mixing, and an unusual combination of fine grain with
high film speed (true shadow speed, not just push-processing). Xtol
(1996) is the only significant B&W deveoper introduced by Kodak since
HC-110. (1965 or so)

  Thanks for all the added paper info, Clayton. BTW, Heavyweight Matte
is available in 11x14. I don't know of another Epson Matte paper that
is found in 11x14. Premium Glossy, too. (But, I don't print B&W on
glossy paper.)

  I also own 2 of the modified Pentax Spotmeters. Superb tools! I used
to own one of everything until, while on vacation and shooting a lot
out West, my 6X7 body locked up. Duh! I actually had to rent a decent
camera from the local store.
 Since then, I own 2 of my most essential equipment: camera body and
spotmeter.
  <G>

Best Regards
Ginny
 


--- In DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com, "Clayton Jones"
<cj@...> wrote:
>
> Hello Ginny,
> 
> >Why do you print on both sides? 
> 
> I'm not doing any double sided printing, but when I'm working on the
> last little tweaks for a first-time final print of a new image (or the
> first time on some paper) I often make some test prints.  All of these
> go back into the box and are reused for future test prints.  Also,
> with the 2400's ABW system I often make a lot of tests with a new
> image to determine the best color tone for it.  Over time this can all
> add up to a lot of paper, so a double sided paper does save some
> money.  Kayenta is also 2-sided.
> 
> 
> >I'm not sure what the Paper Chase article is.
> 
> Article #5 at the link below is called "The Great Paper Chase", and
> lists 26 matte papers and their attributes, such as weight, cotton
> content, OBA content, paper color, cold/warm tone (how it renders
> carbon inks), dmax, etc.  It's a good way to get a quick overview of
> the popular papers.
> 
> 
> >Yes. I remember the first time I tried TX. I used FG-7 as the
> >developer. Ugh! So much grain. 
> 
> I remember FG-7 <g>.  It made a pretty good two-bath developer, but it
> couldn't beat HC-110 for sheer beauty.
> 
> >>I then took a darkroom seminar with Fred Picker. He spoke about 
> >HC-110 (1:31) and the testing needed to find my own personal ASA 
> >valid for my shutter, and, also how to calculate the true develpment 
> >time for TX with my equipment. He said that Kodak was over-
> >developing the film to push the ASA up.  Well, the ASA I wound up 
> >using was 280 or so. And, the development time was a minute or 2 
> >less than what Kodak specified. (They were pushing the ASA by 
> >overdeveloping, hence, more grain) Viola! TX became a fine grain 
> >film! The difference was amazing, breathtaking!
> 
> Fred Picker's teachings had a huge effect on me (his practical
> approach to testing and simplification has been a direct influence on
> my path into digital printing).  I read his book and newsletters, and
> did all as you describe (also used his modified Pentax spotmeter, a
> great innovation).  I ended up using ASA 200 and HC-110 at 1:48 as I
> did mostly landscape and wanted to pull even more most of the time.
> Occasionally I would mark a roll for special treatment, but the dilute
> HC-110 gave a very nice long scale negative.  No other film/developer
> combination I tried came even close to what it would do (this
> conversation is making me nostalgic <g>.
> 
> 
> 
> >Hmmm....I could afford the 5D. But, what would a couple of basic
> >lenses cost me?
> 
> Well, mortgage your home, send your kids to work at Safeway...
> 
> 
> 
> >Is it just me or is it hard to find 11X14 paper nowadays? I really
> >like that size and would use it a lot more if I could find it! 
> 
> I've only seen one paper in that size (something from Epson in
> CompUSA), but I would use 13x19 anyway because I want some border
> paper around the image.  I no longer trim off the borders and dry
> mount.  These papers don't ripple like silver papers, and most don't
> curl either.  They can be held flat and smooth by the window mat.  I
> now hinge the top of the print to the back of the window mat, and
> hinge the top of the window mat to the backing board.  This speeds up
> the matting enormously.  The window is cut larger than the image just
> like with a mounted print, but the mat is now pressing down on the
> print's border paper, holding it flat.  It looks the same as a mounted
> print and the signature is now on the print instead of the backing
> board.  Dry mounting is one of the things I was happy to leave behind.  
> 
> 
> 
> >Can you recommend a good supplier?
> 
> Dourian and Aurora must be purchased from Red River, MerNat and MerSm
> from Hawk Mtn.  I get PR from Shades of Paper.  VFA and Kayenta can be
> found lots of places, just look for good prices, sales, etc.  Before
> ordering any Kayenta, be sure to read the Paper Chase article about it
> - there was a bad batch out there that may still be on vendors' shelves.
> 
> 
> >what does K3 stand for? I know it refers to the inkset
> > but not sure what it designates.
> 
> It refers to the three shades of black or gray (K, LK, LLK).  It
> differs from the 2200 UC ink which has just K and LK.  The 3rd gray
> ink is one reason for the nice smooth tones it produces.
> 
> 
> 
> >Thanks for the wealth of info Clayton and the nice sharing of 
> >your early years in photography.
> 
> You're welcome.  It's nice to read your story as well and find kindred
> souls with similar backgrounds.  There are quite a few forum members
> who used Fred Picker's methods.  I've had a lot of nice email
> correspondence over the past few years.
> 
> Regards,
> Clayton
> 
> 
> Info on black and white digital printing at    
> http://www.cjcom.net/digiprnarts.htm
>