Leica Film Odyssey for a beginner

[gbealnz]

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OK, fair call, but if you are going to persist with copying with the S, then save yourself some grief, get a copy stand. This will keep the camera and the light-box on the same plane. Even an old enlarger column will suffice.

Gary

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[Guest NEIL-D-WILLIAMS]

Neil - why use that unconventional method?? Just buy a Hassy X1 and be done with it. You deserve the best.

adam

Unconventional has got Neil Williams written all over it

[Guest NEIL-D-WILLIAMS]

OK, fair call, but if you are going to persist with copying with the S, then save yourself some grief, get a copy stand. This will keep the camera and the light-box on the same plane. Even an old enlarger column will suffice.

Gary

gary I'm looking but can't find one I was hoping B&H would have one so that they could ship the light box and copy stand together, but I can't find it........ Do they call copy stands any other name

[gbealnz]

This is what I was talking about Neil, well, this sort of thing.

 

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/438353-REG/Dot_Line_RS_CS920_RS_CS920_Copy_Stand.html

 

Also here, plus a line of alternatives.

 

http://www.amazon.com/Adorama-RS-CS920-Deluxe-Column-Baseboard/dp/B000I1A0HY

 

 

Back a few years they were aplenty, now they are not so.

Gary

[EoinC]

This is what I was talking about Neil, well, this sort of thing.

 

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/438353-REG/Dot_Line_RS_CS920_RS_CS920_Copy_Stand.html

 

Also here, plus a line of alternatives.

 

http://www.amazon.com/Adorama-RS-CS920-Deluxe-Column-Baseboard/dp/B000I1A0HY

 

 

Back a few years they were aplenty, now they are not so.

Gary

+1 on what Gary says, Neil. I got a copystand from B&H. Your tripod will do fine, though, and you already have it.

[Doc Henry]

Don't forget that film photography is beautiful in printing on silver halide paper.

There is a vintage side style Henri Cartier-Bresson
For the scan, I'm not sure that quality is present through a digital camera ... and

then printing on inkjet
Neil buy an Imacon new or second hand

H.

[platypus]

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This discussion about scanning seems to be becoming unnecessarily complicated and a bit messy.

 

Surely there must be a camera club, or similar group, in KL with a community darkroom for the use and pleasure of members.

There they would have Help and Advice to offer a Beginner, plus all the equipment necessary to print b&w negs as they deserve be printed using silver halide paper, as Doc Henry points out in the post above.

Possibly even be a scanner would be available.....

[honcho]

This discussion about scanning seems to be becoming unnecessarily complicated and a bit messy.

....

 

Don"t spoil it!

[jaapv]

I may be dense, but wouldn't a Focomat with a Rodenstock lens, a couple of trays, a box of Ilford Multigrade, some chemicals and a few odds and ends be a much simpler - and far more satisfying solution?

I have always considered a hybrid workflow flawed. It will never get to the  esthetic  level of a pure chemical process and it can never attain the technical quality of a fully digital workflow.

[Guest NEIL-D-WILLIAMS]

This discussion about scanning seems to be becoming unnecessarily complicated and a bit messy.

 

Surely there must be a camera club, or similar group, in KL with a community darkroom for the use and pleasure of members.

There they would have Help and Advice to offer a Beginner, plus all the equipment necessary to print b&w negs as they deserve be printed using silver halide paper, as Doc Henry points out in the post above.

Possibly even be a scanner would be available.....

we have all of the above here in KL. but I like utilizing to members here. Better than any club or society

[platypus]

we have all of the above here in KL. but I like utilizing to members here. Better than any club or society

 

 

That's great!...and I quite understand your point, we all love the Forum....but one does not preclude the other. It was not the club or society itself I was advocating but rather the fact that they might perhaps provide a darkroom (plus scanner ?) for you to take advantage of.

 

The ability to make beautiful prints of your own work is one of the true joys of shooting b&w film, but it might not be for you, or you might not have space at home to set up a darkroom. A community darkroom would give you the opportunity to try out the

process and to pick up the hands-on stuff from other photographers who are more experienced.

[Guest NEIL-D-WILLIAMS]

That's great!...and I quite understand your point, we all love the Forum....but one does not preclude the other. It was not the club or society itself I was advocating but rather the fact that they might perhaps provide a darkroom (plus scanner ?) for you to take advantage of.

 

The ability to make beautiful prints of your own work is one of the true joys of shooting b&w film, but it might not be for you, or you might not have space at home to set up a darkroom. A community darkroom would give you the opportunity to try out the

process and to pick up the hands-on stuff from other photographers who are more experienced.

like I said already. we have all that stuff in KL. the shop that processes my film has a darkroom that you can use. There's also another place that rents out his darkroom and all that stuff. As of now I'm just happy doing my own thing with the help of the guys on the Leica Forum [emoji106]

[Guest NEIL-D-WILLIAMS]

+1 on what Gary says, Neil. I got a copystand from B&H. Your tripod will do fine, though, and you already have it.

Eoin

Mind we were talking about how film has up to 5 stops of play in it. Is that the same after it has been scanned or only when it is developed in a wet room?

[jaapv]

It will always be developed in a wet room. Look on the film as your raw file. It will always retain its properties. The scanning part in this analogy is your ACR.

[Guest NEIL-D-WILLIAMS]

It will always be developed in a wet room. Look on the film as your raw file. It will always retain its properties. The scanning part in this analogy is your ACR.

But if you take a RAW file from say a Leica S or D7000 you can't manipulate it 5 stops can you......... Confused mate[emoji854]

[jaapv]

I mean that the developed  film has its properties fixed. So you cannot express its exposure latitude as a function of the scanning.

[Guest NEIL-D-WILLIAMS]

I mean that the developed film has its properties fixed. So you cannot express its exposure latitude as a function of the scanning.

So in roughnecks terms the 5 stops is adjusted in the developing of the negatives

[jaapv]

Correct.

 

However, film ISO is a balance between the nominal speed rating and the developing technique. If you are using a specific film you need to experiment which ISO setting and developing will yield the best results, or alternatively read up about it on the internet, or ask advice from the bloke who will develop it for you, as he will know which developer, concentration, time, temperature and agitation he will be using.

All the above factors will determine the film's speed, contrast and graininess.

 

If you are unsure, expose a film at its nominal speed and ask for standard developing.

 

At a later stage you can start developing yourself and start using tricks like pushing or pulling it, develop for high or low contrast, fine or coarse grain, etc.

 

There are films that are touted as "multispeed" i.e. one can rate them differently per frame (analogy: a digital camera on auto-ISO), developed in the C41 process, but in my experience they perform best at one ISO value and any shift in sensitivity rating per frame will reduce the dynamic range and lower quality.

 

Colour negative film is a different story, as a beginner, don't touch the processing as you will spoil it, as an advanced user don't touch it either as it will drive you around the bend.

 

Slide film can be developed by the user, but it is not worth it.

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[Guest NEIL-D-WILLIAMS]

Okay got it mate...... Cheers

[MarkP]

WHERE ARE NEILS PHOTOS?

 

I'm bursting with anticipation.