What is this?

[csant]

I am a bit confused about something I noticed on a recent shot. First of all, the shot itself (in a lith print here):
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2487/4136634904_e16236ac41.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/csant/4136634904/)

You could look at it larger (http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2487/4136634904_e16236ac41_b.jpg), and study the focus plane - notice it's a rather shallow depth of field, and the part in focus extends from the base of the glass forwards: basically the whole front "face" of the glass is in focus. The bottle is placed further back, and lies completely outside the area in focus.

But now look at this scan of a detail of the negative:

http://www.largeformatphotography.info/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=33705&stc=1&d=1259344737

Notice those light speckles on the bottle? And that "smudge" bottom right? They have completely defined lines, quite sharp! And way too sharp for the plane of focus they are located in… What are they? I doubt those to be development problems, so I am wondering - could a mark on the lens glass leave something like that, under certain light circumstances? Any other suggestions?

[jb7]

My guess is that those drops are imaging the drops on the other side of the bottle...

[csant]

Joseph, thanks - but those are not drops, they are air bubbles in the water (just like those in the glass)… Also, it doesn't explain that smudge bottom right corner of the negative scan I attached - or does it?

[jb7]

Well, yes, same thing, water/air or air/water, still refracts like a lens-
just an opinion anyway-

perhaps that smudge is the same thing, smaller bubbles?

Though I can't really make it out...