sharpness & grain
in [Darkroom]
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From: Christian Sulzer on 22 Aug 2007 09:22 Hi! I'm practicing darkroom work for about 5 months now as a hobby using Tri-X and X-Tol(1:1) as my film/dev combo, printing my 35mm Neg's on Multigrade RC-Paper from 18x24 to 24x30 (cm), so my experience is pretty moderate. When I look at pictures from my favourite Photographers like Larry Towell, Koudelka, Burri etc. i always wondered how to achieve this grainy, sharp look even at lower enlargement sizes. I tried pushing Tri-X to 1600 but it did not force grain size too much, and it is not always an option for photographing subjects. Since i want to stick with Tri-X as long as possible, i thought about trying another developer (HC-110/Rodinal?). I use a Meopta Magnifax 4A enlarger with Meograde. Maybe someone could give me a hint? Thanks in advance and sorry for my poor english, Chris
From: Lew on 22 Aug 2007 09:09 Other tries for the "look" are D76, D76(1:1), and/or Acufine. -Lew "Christian Sulzer" <christian.sulzer(a)inode.at> wrote in message news:1fb04$46cc34bf$53418c62$21998(a)news.inode.at... > Hi! > > I'm practicing darkroom work for about 5 months now as a hobby using Tri-X > and X-Tol(1:1) as my film/dev combo, printing my 35mm Neg's on Multigrade > RC-Paper from 18x24 to 24x30 (cm), so my experience is pretty moderate. > When I look at pictures from my favourite Photographers like Larry Towell, > Koudelka, Burri etc. i always wondered how to achieve this grainy, sharp > look even at lower enlargement sizes. > I tried pushing Tri-X to 1600 but it did not force grain size too much, > and it is not always an option for photographing subjects. Since i want to > stick with Tri-X as long as possible, i thought about trying another > developer (HC-110/Rodinal?). I use a Meopta Magnifax 4A enlarger with > Meograde. Maybe someone could give me a hint? > > Thanks in advance and sorry for my poor english, > Chris
From: Claudio Bonavolta on 22 Aug 2007 09:41 On 22 août, 15:22, Christian Sulzer <christian.sul...(a)inode.at> wrote: > Hi! > > I'm practicing darkroom work for about 5 months now as a hobby using > Tri-X and X-Tol(1:1) as my film/dev combo, printing my 35mm Neg's on > Multigrade RC-Paper from 18x24 to 24x30 (cm), so my experience is pretty > moderate. > When I look at pictures from my favourite Photographers like Larry > Towell, Koudelka, Burri etc. i always wondered how to achieve this > grainy, sharp look even at lower enlargement sizes. > I tried pushing Tri-X to 1600 but it did not force grain size too much, > and it is not always an option for photographing subjects. Since i want > to stick with Tri-X as long as possible, i thought about trying another > developer (HC-110/Rodinal?). I use a Meopta Magnifax 4A enlarger with > Meograde. Maybe someone could give me a hint? > > Thanks in advance and sorry for my poor english, > Chris Tri-X and Xtol in 35mm is a really nice combo but to good if you're looking for grain ... Tri-X changed a few years ago and is less grainy now, you may look at films like HP-5 that is a bit grainier or films from Eastern Europe or China (all these are easily available from webshops in Germany) that are much grainier. Another option is to use developers like Rodinal which gives really large grain and lots of acutance (edge sharpness). You may also push the film but keep in mind that doing so will increase contrast and may not suit your subject. Claudio Bonavolta http://www.bonavolta.ch
From: Nicholas O. Lindan on 22 Aug 2007 11:19 "Christian Sulzer" <christian.sulzer(a)inode.at> wrote > how to achieve this grainy, sharp look even at lower enlargement sizes. Often ignored in the clamour of 'my favorite developer' is the obvious - for sharp grain you need to make _sharp_ prints: o A very sharp lens; o Used at optimum aperture (usually 5.6); o Glass negative carrier; o No vibration; o Precise enlarger alignment. To find a very sharp lens you may need to try several samples as lens-to-lens variation is often greater than the difference between 'low-end' and 'high-end' lenses. -- Nicholas O. Lindan, Cleveland, Ohio Darkroom Automation: F-Stop Timers, Enlarging Meters http://www.darkroomautomation.com/index.htm n o lindan at ix dot netcom dot com
From: Richard Knoppow on 22 Aug 2007 18:07
"Christian Sulzer" <christian.sulzer(a)inode.at> wrote in message news:1fb04$46cc34bf$53418c62$21998(a)news.inode.at... > Hi! > > I'm practicing darkroom work for about 5 months now as a > hobby using Tri-X and X-Tol(1:1) as my film/dev combo, > printing my 35mm Neg's on Multigrade RC-Paper from 18x24 > to 24x30 (cm), so my experience is pretty moderate. > When I look at pictures from my favourite Photographers > like Larry Towell, Koudelka, Burri etc. i always wondered > how to achieve this grainy, sharp look even at lower > enlargement sizes. > I tried pushing Tri-X to 1600 but it did not force grain > size too much, and it is not always an option for > photographing subjects. Since i want to stick with Tri-X > as long as possible, i thought about trying another > developer (HC-110/Rodinal?). I use a Meopta Magnifax 4A > enlarger with Meograde. Maybe someone could give me a > hint? > > Thanks in advance and sorry for my poor english, > Chris A sharp grain image give the illusion that the entire image is sharp. Some developers do better at producing sharp grain patterns than others and some produce more of the effect called "acutance" (Kodak term), which is an exageration at the edges of transitions from high to low density in the image. A traditional developer for producing both sharp grain and acutance effects is Rodinal. Grain is greatest when used at fairly low dilutions (say 1:25), acutance becomes greater as the developer is diluted (say 1:50 or more) but, unlike some other developers, the grain gets finer with dilution. Rodinal was discontinued when Agfa went out of the photographic materials business but is evidently still being made by others. A number of other developers will produce the acutance effect when diluted. Even D-76 or Ilford ID-11 will produce it at 1:3 dilutions. HC-110 is another possibility. There are no really coarse grain films on the market now but the old rule that fast films are grainier than slow ones still holds so choose a fast, conventional grain film. The last means that tabluar grain films, like the T-Max series, or Ilford Delta series, have inherently finer grain than conventional cubic grain films of similar speed like Tri-X (although Tri-X is really a pretty fine grain film). Also, keep in mind that published pictures may have been subjected to manipulation. One can add grain patterns in printing or electronically and all digital image editors have some sort of sharpening function. Real sharpness in photographic prints depends on having sharp negatives and very good enlarging equipment. The enlarging lens should be of good quality (although it does not have to be the latest and most expensive) and the enlarger should be well aligned and vibration-free. Grain can sometimes add something to an image but I started in photography when grain was hard to avoid and have never been a fan of grainy images. -- --- Richard Knoppow Los Angeles, CA, USA dickburk(a)ix.netcom.com |