18 18 April 2020I http://www.amateurphotographer.co.ukI subscribe 0330 333 1113
Technique DIGITISING BLACK & WHITE FILMWhynotjustshootdig ital?
If theend-goalof shootingfilm
is onlytoscanandshareonline
thenwhynotjustshootdigitalin
thefirstplace?Thisis a good
questionthatmanyask.
Evenwithoutdarkroom
printing,theprocessof shooting
filmis stilla differentexperience
todigital.Thelimitationsof
frames,theaesthetics,the
choiceof formats,the
opportunitytoprocessfilm,the
tangibleoutputof a negative,
thedelayandanticipationof
seeingyourimages,the
necessitytothinkin black&
whiteortheparticularcolour
paletteof yourchosenfilm
stock,theneedtounderstand
thelatitudeof thatfilm,theway
it slowsyoudownandcanmake
youmoreconsideredin your
choiceof shotsandsoon...
Allarecompellingreasonsto
workwithfilmwhichis whyso
manyof usstillchoosetoshoot
it. Film is still hugely rewarding.workflowthatmakesthe
processasquickand
efficientaspossible.Beginby
usinganairblowertoremove
thedustfromyournegatives
beforemountingintoa holder.
If usinga flatbed,checkthe
glassis alsocleanfromsmears
anddust.Dustandmarkscan
oftenbeclonedoutintheedit
butcleannegativescouldsave
youconsiderableeffort.
If usinga camera,tweakyour
apertureandshutterspeedto
matchyoursetup.A good
startingpointis thecamera’s
lowestbaseISOandshootin
apertureormanualmodeand
eitherautoormanualfocus.
Focuspeakinginmirrorless
camerasis a greathelpwhen
usingmanualmode.Trya
startingaperturesomewhere
aroundf/5.6togivean
optimumbalanceofdepthof
fi eld and brightness while
aimingfora fastshutterspeed
toavoidanycamerashake.
Theabilitytotetherthe
cameraandcapturedirectto
yourcomputerwillalsohelp
yourworkflowandif shooting
largeformatconsidertaking
multipleimagesacrossthe
negativeandusestitching
softwaretopieceit together for
maximumresolution.
Finally,don’tforgetto
includestorageandnaming
conventionsforyournewly
scannedfiles.If yourimages
endupinLightroomit is also
worthspendingsometimeto
addkeywordssuchasfilm
stock,cameraused,location,
datesandevenpush/pulland
developmentinformation.Editingyour
black&whitescans
Thedigitisationofanynegative
willalteritslookandis
determinedbythehardware,
softwareorboth.Thismaybe
moreprevalentincolourfilm
butit stillimpactsblack&
white negatives, particularlycontrast,sharpnessandtone.
Editingyourscanssimply
ensuresyouaredetermining
thefinallook,notthescanner.
Despitethisanongoing
debateragesovereditingfilm
andthedegreewithwhichit
is acceptable.Personally,I like
toremainasfaithfulas
possibletothecharacteristics
ofthefilmstocksokeepediting
toa minimum.Thebenefit of
thisis a relativelyquickand
s i m p l e w o r k flo w.
I limiteditstospot
removingdustandscratches,
straightening/ croppingas
wellastweakingexposure,
contrast,highlightsand
shadows.I mightadda light
touchofclarity/ dehazeif
neededbutI avoidsharpening
andnoisereductiontoolsasI
findthesetendtoimpactthe
grainmorethanthestructure
oftheimage,particularlyin
35mmscanswheregrainis
alreadymorepronounced.
Afterall,evendigitised,I still
prefermygraintolook
like grain, not pixels.IlfordDelta100,OlympusXA3,
scannedwithCanon550D,
Tamron90mmpriortowhite
balance adjustment
IlfordDelta100,OlympusXA3,
scannedwithCanon550D,
Tamron90mmconverted with
Negative Lab Pro
IlfordDelta100,OlympusXA3,
scannedwithCanon550D,
Tamron90mmafterwhite
balance adjustment
Alongexposure
pre-sunriseshot.
IlfordHP5Plus,
Rolleiflex f/2.8 F