Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2000/08/28
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]"B. D. Colen" wrote: > For those of you who think digital printing is just a passing fancy... > > Just went down to Unisom, one of the best B&W processing and printing places > in Boston, to get a half-dozen 16x20s made. Well.....as of August 1, Unisom > is now all digital. No more processing. No more wet printing. Period.<<<<<<<<<<<<< Hi B.D., The top line lab here in Victoria still do D/Room colour prints, but have installed a digital printing machine and are pushing it by hanging colour prints in their offices. Incredible results from all kinds of negs and slides. It's something like "you have to see it to believe it!" They made 10X12 prints from some of my Europe slides that absolutely amazed me. The prints were so good it was an improvement on the original slides shot in heavy forested area under very contrasty sunlight. (worse kind of light conditions working in any forest!) If this is the kind of quality available with digital printers I don't see why one requires a colour darkroom. Or as I suspect a B&W darkroom. At the moment I have an EPSON STYLUS 750 photo printer that is very interesting, however I haven't got serious with it to this point. (grandson's more efficient than I. ) But will do so in the next few months, as I have a number of B&W negs that require computer photoshop "repair from aging and mishandling over the years." And I'll be trying them in the machine. I enjoy working in the darkroom very much, just an old dog at it, that learning new electronic tricks I find very time consuming and disappointing when they don't print the way I can make them look in the darkroom. The improvement may come with lots of computer/printer practice. But there isn't any doubt in my mind the darkroom as we know it today will vanish as younger photographers with excellent computer and photo skills wont require the DR. There'll still be wet darkrooms, but not many in the professional photo operations. When I see the quality of colour prints made by a machine without chemicals, like you, I believe the future is here now! And certainly with the Leica transparencies they printed, it's truly amazing how the quality held of what a Leica lens does to film! ted Victoria, Canada http://www.islandnet.com/~tedgrant