December Offers

process two or more black and white films processed and get free CD !!

ref-bw2cd 
 
photography resources

Individual Photographers (B/W)


Landscape - multiple artist sites

Landscape - colour


Black and White Photography

Top of Page - Gallery - Buy Prints - Commercial Photography - Contact / About Us - Info & Articles - Home

Infra Red photography and effects


Printing

Supplies


Techniques


Scanning

"I scan my negatives and save at 16 bit Greyscale. In Photoshop I do most work at 16 bit convert to 8 bit for printing. It may take up a load more disk space but you can get far more out of images.

I try and capture as much information at the start and lose only what won't show up on my print. I find the ability to stack several masked layers of adjustment most useful since the underlying data is only changed when you flatten the images.

I use a Grey Gamma 2.2 space for the files, even though the Mac standard screen gamma is 1.8. Note that 2.2 is the file gamma and matches that of Adobe98 which is the RGB colour space that my images get converted to if I'm printing using Small Gamut Inks"

If the above seems a little technical, have a look at some of the suggested links on Colour Management below.

With the arrival of Photoshop CS (aka Photoshop '8') you can now perform many more functions in 16 bit mode, although Keith has found extensive 16 bit use a pretty good indicator of when your computer is starting to lack in horsepower / disk space... and with CS2 you can start filling it up even quicker with 32bit HDR files :-)


Colour Management

It's definitely worth getting to know the principles, as Keith comments:

"I've found that an understanding of colour management (even if you don't have the equipment/software to do it 'perfectly') helps no end in the creative process. I'd suggest that getting your monitor right is an essential first step. Whilst it is true that to do it properly requires either an expensive (self calibrating) monitor or some external hardware, there is much to be gained by starting with doing it by eye. If nothing else, you will realise some important things about the human visual system. For myself it then becomes important to get the printing right - having profiles for ink/paper/printer combinations will go a long way towards getting consistent results. The 'default' or 'canned' profiles that are available are often good enough for marked improvements. The less you are concerned with the technicalities, the more time you have to think about your images. You also understand when the technology is a limiting factor. For example, that really powerful bit of colour in an image that just can't be represented with your particular ink/paper combo"

Keith has written a brief article covering an Introduction to Colour Management and

Other related colour management on this site includes:

Other colour management resources


Digital Imaging


Dust - Digital sensor cleaning (at your own risk)

  • http://www.cleaningdigitalcameras.com/index.html
    Very comprehensive collection of cleaning info and advice on sensor cleaning. Covers tools and materials. Also includes links to camera manuals for many cameras - well worth noting just for that
  • http://www.pbase.com/copperhill/ccd_cleaning
    Good step by step info on the process os sensor cleaning.
  • http://www.bythom.com/cleaning.htm
    A view of the cleaning process, and what to watch for.
  • http://www.luminous-landscape.com/essays/sensor-cleaning.shtml
    The CO2 cleaner shown is similar to the Tetanal ('tetanal anti dust mini') that Keith uses to get big bits of dust off his 1Ds sensor. Note that by big here we mean 'visible to the naked eye'. Be very careful with any compressed gas solutions, since many of them contain solvents or impurities that could make things worse. If you are still not sure, try them on an old filter and look for any residue. Watch out also for cooling effects, ie don't put a nozzle too close to what you are cleaning
  • http://www.prime-junta.net/pont/How_to/a_Brush_Your_Sensor/a_Brush_Your_Sensor.html
    The cheap way to find the right sort of brush to clean your sensor - the sort that you could pay $100 for if you were not careful
  • http://www.photo.net/equipment/digital/sensorcleaning/
    Clear concise article on cleaning sensors.
  • http://nikondigital.org/articles/ccd_cleaning.htm
    Bad dust - an account of what snowflakes on the sensor is like.
  • http://www.pictureline.com/newsletter/2004/june/dslrclean.html
    More cleaning advice.
  • Blu-Tack or similar (aka in the US, Tac n' Stik made by Ross, or Duco's Stik-Tack)
    This was suggested by William Curwen on the ProDIG list.
    "Open a fresh packet, and peel back the grease-proof paper without touching the BluTak. Cut a thin needle shaped sliver using a scrupulously clean pair of nail scissors and attach to a matchstick. Make a couple of dozen, and use a small-point light source to show up any dust on the sensor. Just align up the Blutak needle with a speck of dust and gently stab it once. That is, just tap it as gently as you can - once, and put the BluTak needle down, and pick up another one for a stab at the next speck of dust. I hope I explained that properly."
    Brilliant idea - We've not had need to try it yet, but it might be worth having some practice attempts on an old glass filter first. The bits of Blu Tack are also useful for picking up dust elsewhere in your camera before they get onto the sensor.
    Another useful idea suggested, was to keep double sided tape on the inside of your lens and body caps. The idea is to catch dust before it gets into the camera body.
  • Advanced Camera Services in Norfolk, UK - did a good job giving my equipment a thorough clean after a few weeks travelling. Although I clean my own sensor with wide swabs and Eclipse fluid, it helps to give equipment a good clean and service every so often. They also sell a wide range of cleaning products as do CameraClean.co.uk - who's site also has lots of useful cleaning tips and info.


Camera Drivers and software
 
b&w processing l discontinued b&w films l 120 b&w films l sepia prints l c41 blach&white films l photography resources