Digital BW, The Print

I'm experimenting with the Caponigro black-and-white conversion(s).  
He writes:  "...you should keep the opacity of the layer at the 
highest setting needed for any one area within the image and reduce 
the opacity in other areas by adding density to the mask."

How does one add density to the mask?

Thanks in advance.

Norm

First you need a layer mask. If your layer doesn't have one already,
select the layer, click the "Add new mask" icon on the bottom of the
Layers pane.

Now click on the mask that was created in the Layers pane. Draw with a
paintbrush on the image (you're now drawing on the mask). White allows
the layer to show through, black prevents it from showing through.

Adding density to a layer's mask involves simply painting the mask
with black (or gray) to reduce the opacity of that layer.

-Pieris
digital darkroom blog: www.pmb.net/darkroom

--- In DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com, "nsams2002"
<normsams@w...> wrote:

> 
> I'm experimenting with the Caponigro black-and-white conversion(s).  
> He writes:  "...you should keep the opacity of the layer at the 
> highest setting needed for any one area within the image and reduce 
> the opacity in other areas by adding density to the mask."
> 
> How does one add density to the mask?
> 
> Thanks in advance.
> 
> Norm

The Gnu Image Manipulation Program (the GIMP) is an open 
source program available for windows (98+), Mac OSX, and 
Unix/Linux. 

Like Photoshop and Picture Window,  the GIMP has the ability to 
use curves.  I have tested paul's glossy carbon curve coverted by 
hand to the GIMP curve format, and it seems to print very closely to 
the same image printed from PS7. The GIMP seems to have a limit 
of fewer control points, but I believe that is not important for most 
curves. I think it would be a trivial exercise to write a program to 
convert the curve format, as the GIMP format is a series of text 
pairs. (I used Thomas Fors curvaceous.exe to find the values of the 
control points with a bit more precision than a mouse drag was 
able).

If there is interest in the use of the GIMP as an alternative, i would 
be willing to spend some time converting the curves and uploading 
files. I think this is an opportunity for those for whom even the price 
of PW is too high an entry point, but who want more control than the 
slider technique.  Please let me know (on or off list) if this seems like 
a worthwhile venture.

-matt
--
Matt Haber
dance, portrait and fashion photography
http://www.matthaber.com