Digital BW, The Print

--- "Brian" <brian@...> wrote:
> In your case, one thing you may have to 
> consider is that the optimum aperture for 
> digital cameras is usually between f11 and f16, 
> and stopping down further can cause loss of 
> sharpness through diffraction.

I hate to be contrary here, but although what you say may be true for 
consumer grade lenses, professional grade lenses (Nikon) generally 
perform very well starting at f/4.5 to around f/8. And some lenses, 
like Nikon's 85 f/1.4, 300 f/2.8, and 70-200 have great performance 
even when they're wide open. Now if I'm shooing a landscape, then 
sure, I'll try to set my camera at f/8 or f/11 to achieve maximum 
quality balanced with great DOF, but if the conditions warrant 
opening my lenses up a bit more, I don't worry about it when I'm 
shooting with professional glass. 

And as a final point, I don't find there is any difference in lens 
performance between film and digital cameras. It's the lens that 
makes the difference.

Rob Greer
http://www.robgreer.com/