Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 1998/12/29

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Subject: [Leica] Re: digital photography - a BIG frustration
From: Jim Brick <jimbrick@photoaccess.com>
Date: Tue, 29 Dec 1998 18:08:03 -0800

The simple answer is that you cannot compare a projected slide with either
a scanned image on a computer screen, or a print of the slide. A projector
shines white light THROUGH the transparency. The dynamic range is huge. You
can see in the shadows and the highlights, everything looks beautiful. When
you scan the slide on an ordinary scanner (even a Nikon 2000) you lose
visual dynamic range. If you print the slide on Cibachrome, you lose
dynamic range. If you have deep shadows and bright highlights (both of your
submitted pictures have this - especially the road and rocks against a
bright sky) you will not be able to hold everything. If you were printing
this slide, you would have to make a contrast reducing mask to pull the
dynamic range into something that print paper can see. And you still might
not get it all. Same with a scanner. A dynamic range acceptance of 3.4 or
3.6 just can't cut it. The Silverfast scanning software does a much better
job than scanner supplied software, but to get what you want, you really
need an expensive high end drum scan.

Those images that scan best have a limited dynamic range and a rather flat
gamma curve.

What can I say. Other than film can record far more than an ordinary
scanner can capture. But you can see it all with a "slide projector." This
is why Leica color images look so good projected.

Jim


At 02:15 PM 12/29/98 -0700, you wrote:
> Alexander wrote:
>> >
>> > Hello dear LUGgers,
>> >
>> > can someone tell me what is the purpose of using the best lenses, waking 
>up at odd hours, standing in the rain...etc... to get that super picture, 
>when at the end, if it is to be published digitaly (i.e. web) the results 
>are mediocre at best?
>> >
>> > I have tried to scan some of my slides for countless hours using PS5 and 
>tried all kinds of "tricks" but the results can never capture the original 
>sharpness and contrast. And the brightness? Well forget about that, not even 
>photoshop's brightness option can save you.
>> > Not to mention having to compress the resulting files in order to 
>achieve an acceptable download time...
>> >
>> > Is there a solution?
>> >
>> > here are 2 samples I tried, If you have the time, check them out.
>> >
>> > http://www.mediadyne.gr/photos
>> >
>> > -A frustrated Leica user... :(