Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 1998/11/13

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Subject: Re: [Leica] Early Summitar
From: Walter S Delesandri <walt@jove.acs.unt.edu>
Date: Fri, 13 Nov 1998 20:59:10 -0600 (CST)

Beautiful area, Bill!! 
Been there, generally don't like California, but your area 
makes it worth the trip!

Yeah, I've heard that when coated lenses came out, the 
"old-time" 35mm journalists didn't always like them.   Even though
the transmission was higher, the contrast went up, and you 
didn't get the "fog" in the lower values (hence "raising" the 
threshold!!)  They thought the new lenses were actually slower 
at times without this "fill"!!

Way before my time, but I had an 80 year old instructor who 
had spent 33 years with Time/Life, mostly in central and 
South America.  He told me the above story, and MANY others!!
(BTW, his name was Peter Anderson, from Scotland, and he went 
to the big city desk in the sky in l986--It was a privilege to 
spend a coupla years knowing him and some shooting with him--
Great STORIES.....)  He liked SPs and Fs tho......gave me hell 
about my "jewelry" -- M4 etc.....

Actually, I understand they used to fog film sometimes, with a 
controlled safelight, to accomplish the same thing-- offset 
press people still do -- on halftones.  Brings up the threshold, 
effectively increasing "speed" and bringing the contrast range 
down..... sound iffy, never tried it on "real" film....

Thought you might like to give it a try -- maybe we could turn
back the clock a few decades and do some "real" journalism??

Have fun and let us know what develops -- bad pun,

Walt