Another approach would be to make your perfect print of the sky -- JUST the sky -- using whatever time and contrast (paper/filter) works for you. Assuming you can do that, just merge the two.
Another approach would be to make your perfect print of the sky -- JUST the sky -- using whatever time and contrast (paper/filter) works for you. Assuming you can do that, just merge the two.
Flashing and burning with a #00 filter have essentially the same effect; to add density but not detail. If you need detail, you need to burn with high-contrast filtration.
It may be that the best solution is a combination of both. The tricky part, of course is dealing with edges and avoiding halos.
xkaes' suggestion to make your perfect print of just the sky is a good one. It may work out that a backward approach is best for this particular print; base everything on the sky and then dodge/burn the foreground.
Best,
Doremus
Thank you Everyone for the suggestions – I will give this another shot when I get back in the darkroom this week. Forgot that that analog enlarging takes a minute to get back into the flow!
Here's hoping that it's all worth it.
I'll try to post an update on whether I was able to get an improved result.
Having worked with similar photos, I suspect you can get what you want without any flashing. You might even discover that you can make it much better than you expected.
It’s worth noting also that Acros has much higher highlight contrast and densities than say TMX or Delta100. This is one of those double-edged swords. It can make it harder to bring bright highlights in on a print, but on the other hand they can stand a lot more compression without becoming too flat or losing detail.
good point...I initially shot a bunch of it planning to scan...it def shows a huge difference compared to Tri-x in terms of less shadow + Highlight detail, punchier contrast....at least in the analog contact sheets. The detail is there but hidden away.
I find enlarging 11x14 and 20x24 I'm mainly using filter 1 and 1.5 and that's with what I thought was very gentle development using HC-110 diluted 1 to 12 or 1 to 15 from the stock, which I think is closest to Dilution H.
On the flip side the grain is super tight on a well exposed neg at 20x24 and sometimes almost hard to see at 11x14.
Totally agree. Total detail in the sky is only possible when placed in Zone V which is mostly unnatural. The detail is in the crushed metal which is in fact the subject. You could vignet the whole image a bit. But locally, the tonal scale of the wet print is the best of all versions.
I would begin with flashing since if done properly it will have essentially no effect on the shadow and mid densities.
Thanks again everyone. I did end pre- flashing and burning with the 1.5 filter and while it still isn't as perfect in terms of the masking of the burning as I'd like, it is way better. I will try and post some pictures of the actual prints once I've flattened them in a few days. I think I combined suggestions from several of you. The grain in the sky isn't quite as beautiful as a drum scan when you are burning for 85 seconds wide open But it is a handmade object that is inside the paper now, so I'm happy.
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