Digital BW, The Print

>E Neilsen wrote:
 >Have you ever toned with Sepia toner; sulfide stinks. It may be more 
 >in reference to smell than taste; like or dislike.


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It was always a staple in my darkroom, as were blue and (to a lesser 
extent) red toners-- and I wholeheartedly agree with you that they stank 
to high heaven, but they weren't alone in this.  Aromatic unpleasantness 
was pretty much part and parcel of many of the other chemicals with 
which we regularly worked. 

Face it, a traditional darkroom, for all the beautiful imagery we were 
able to produce, was not exactly an idyllic environment in which to 
work-- minimal light, dangerous chemicals, high levels of toxicity, the 
hazards of operating paper cutters and print dryers in that minimal 
light, the time and expense of making tests, the necessity and 
inconvenience of numerous paper safes in multiple sizes... sitting today 
at my desk, in a very comfortable leather chair, processing my digital 
negatives (RAW files) within Photoshop and turning out exquisite prints 
by doing scarcely more than lifting a finger, I feel no nostalgia 
whatsoever for the twenty-odd years I spent in a chemical darkroom.

Don't get me wrong-- I'm very grateful to have come to photography in 
the early '70s and learned the discipline of film and the art of  
traditional processing-- but I'm happy to use that knowledge and 
experience today to create digital prints of my work, with considerably 
less aggravation, effort, exhaustion, and expense. 

Best wishes,

Shoshanna
Gold Beach - South Coast of Oregon
http://www.pbase.com/shoshanna
http://mindworksunlimited.com/shoshannaspeak/





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