Digital BW, The Print

--- In DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com, "djon43" <djon43@...> wrote:
>
>   While I would 
> > > like to think it would be dust free I know that is effectively 
> > > impossible. 
> > > ~Mary
> > >
> > 
>   I gave up on silver film, partly 
> > because of the dust problem. 
> > 
> > Harry
> >
> 
> It doesn't take much skill to eliminate "dust problems."
> Use of a lab will inevitably result in scratches, no matter what
> you're experiencing at the moment. 
> 
> 1) use distilled water, not filtered, for the last change or two of
> water (agitating...you do of course use a stainless reel because you
> can't properly clean plastic). You can use relatively clean tap water
> to mix chems and to do the initial rinses. 
> 
> 2) use distilled water, not filtered, with 3 drops Photoflo per 500cc
> for a few second dip before hanging.
> 
> 3) hang to dry in a low dust area...in my case, that's a casually
> cleaned bathroom, hanging from clips on coat hangers hung in turn on
> the shower curtain rod.
> 
> Any small amount of dust that remains can be cloned out in
> moments...in extreme cases (carelessness) it can be eliminated with
> the lightest Photoshop dust/spot setting (which will conserve some
> film character that XP2 and color neg films totally lack to begin
> with). IMO if you resort to XP2/color neg you might as well go digital
> because your detail resolution and tonal scale will be
> better...assuming more than 10mp on APS-C and assuming you don't use
> inexpensive zooms. 
> 
> An important trick is to avoid polyethlene negative sleeves.

Then I guess I lack the "skill to eliminate 'dust problems.'"

No Lab involved; I develop my own Ag-based films.  No scratch problems whatsoever.  SS 
tank?  Check.

Photoflo rinse?  Check.

Hang to dry in closed shower stall?  Check.

Distilled water rinse?  Uh oh.  Haven't tried that.  Since I have a roll of TMax in the tank, I'll 
give it a try.

Another problem I couldn't solve was film curl.  Created scanning problems in my Nikon 
4000 ED.  The C41 film I get from the local (pro) shop is dead flat.

I use PrintFile neg holders, and, indeed, they are polyethlene.  The manufacturer claims 
they are archival and better for not attracting dust.  What would you recommend as a 
alternative?

Might as well go digital?  Bite your tongue!  (As I fondle my M7.)

As for tonal scale, my feeling is that the printing workflow may have a greater impact on 
*my* images.  I use K7 piezo inks on (typically) HPR in an Epson 2400.  And since I don't 
do landscapes, perhaps I'm just not seeing the loss of tonal range.

(Also, I had originally mentioned the exposure latitude of XP2 which I find valuable in fast 
shooting situations and tricky lighting.)

Nonetheless, I do appreciate the comments/suggestions.  I realize there are some heavy 
hitters (ncluding djon43) here with vastly more experience than I have.

Harry