Large Format Landscapes

[Havoc]

Balancing exposures across the whole image can be difficult, learning exactly where to meter, a friend once suggested that the inside of our camera bags is grey for a reason and makes the perfect thing to take meter readings from. The other thing worth considering would be a set of ND Grad filters, never leave home without them myself.

Well I used incident metering. But I really should also take a photo with the phone or other, just to compare afterwards. This was a very sunny day and maybe it was just clear blue sky. But as this was taken weeks ago I can't say for sure. On the other hand using an ND grad filter would be sensible.

Would a Yellow or Yellow-green filter be helpful in this case? I do have those around.

[Sergei]

camera FKD 13x18 cm paper unibrom 1986. development with inversion

[mmerig]

Well I used incident metering. But I really should also take a photo with the phone or other, just to compare afterwards. This was a very sunny day and maybe it was just clear blue sky. But as this was taken weeks ago I can't say for sure. On the other hand using an ND grad filter would be sensible.

Would a Yellow or Yellow-green filter be helpful in this case? I do have those around.

A yellow filter would darken the sky, but if there are no clouds, then of course there will be no detail. The shadows indicate a hazy sky, so the blank appearance of the sky is not surprising. Although they can be used effectively, ND gradation filters can cause strange boundary effects when what you are trying to filter is more complex than a seascape horizon. They are more like a last resort for color, and not usually needed for black and white.

If there are clouds, even an orthochromatic film (like Ilford's) will render them to some extent. Burning in during printing can enhance them further. Here is a pair of photos, taken a few minutes apart, with Ilford Ortho Plus with no filter, and Ilford FP4 Plus with a medium yellow filter (K2, or Wratten 8). These are straight prints, cropped from 4 by 5-inch negatives, with no burning-in or dodging. The "O" and "P" in the file names indicate orthochromatic and panchromatic film.

[Havoc]

Thanks for the help. Time for more tries then.

[Tri Tran]

Smith River.
8x20 Aqueous Pigmented Print

[sheel]

Sinar Norma 4x5
Kodak Ektar ISO100
Fujinon 90mm F8


Sheet 28 - Drum
by Sheel Kapur, on Flickr

The photo was originally taken in 2016.

This scan is basically straight off the scanner (Scanmate 5000 drum scanner), but I originally scanned this photo with my Epson v800 and wasn't blown away by the results. I figured the photo itself simply wasn't inspiring and that I failed to capture the beauty before me at Yosemite. I was wrong, and the Scanmate 5000 revealed all the amazing details that were hiding in this negative.

I've had my Scanmate 5000 for over 2 years now and I'm continuing to learn so much about it, including maintenance items and tuning. I recently replaced the aperture motor, SCSI communication board, IT8 calibration, tuned the aperture, and a number of other items. It's a pain in the ass, but the results are well worth it. Compare it with the original Epson scan, and you can immediately see the depth and detail the SM5K picked up.

As far as I can tell, one last thing is left to take care of - there appears to be banding in some scans. I suspect a dying bulb or bulb connection. Fingers crossed!

I could not have done this without the help of @Pali K., the most knowledgeable individual on these scanners.

See the original Epson scan here https://flic.kr/p/G1TfWS.

See the drum scan prior to IT8 and Aperture calibration here, which required lots of post processing to correct colors, and it has lots of grain https://flic.kr/p/27rkrgH

[pbien74]

[pbien74]

[pbien74]

[Merg Ross]

Sunrise, Vancouver Island, 4x5
FP4+, Metol Acetone, Ilford Classic