Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2003/11/24
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]Mark, your message is extremely interesting to me at this moment in time. For the past three months I've been playing with getting softer images in a number of ways. The almost century old Kodak discs are quite different than anything else I've used. I'll experimenting with them. I had never heard your explanation of using diffusion on the camera's lens vs. the enlarger's lens. P.S. The CV 75mm is not THAT soft wide open! Sam S Mark Rabiner wrote: > sam wrote: > >>You LUGers frightened me into being less than forthright. I jump in my >>seat every time someone writes "Don't put junk in front of Leica glass" >>(meaning a $59 B&W double-coated glass filter). So intimidated was I >>that I omitted the specs of the photo in question. Not from dishonesty, >>but from fear. The truth is much worse than any UV filter in front of >>Leica glass: >> >>Camera: M6 >>Lens: 75mm CV >> >>(Not too bad yet, but...) >> >>Ilford Multigrade #4, pearl surface. >> >>Kodak Diffusing Disc #1 (circa 1912) used over the El-Nikkor enlarging >>lens). >> >>Print was flatbed scanned to obtain an image for the net. >> >>The #1 disc really only lowers contrast; starting with disc #2 real >>diffusing begins to take place. >> >>Sam S >> > > > > With the 75 you'll probably miss your focus if you shoot wide open > anyway and you'll get all the softness you need! And plenty of Bokeh > with vital nutrients! > > Sam, diffusion of the enlarger spreads the darks into the lights. > When you have it in front of your camera lens it spreads the whites out > which is a nice happy thing although pretty much not in style. > Having the darks spreading is like the evil stuff is coming out of the > cracks. Bad vibes. Has a negative feeling to it. Plus you loose your > grain structure. Not good. It's not often done and most printers would > advise to avoid it. You could pretty much call it a No No. As Maxwell > Smart would say. But I did it once on a rough forehead of a girls > portrait with a slightly dirty piece of saran wrap on a cloths hanger. > For about a third of the total time of the exposure. > But people have told me stuff like that and I've told them all to go > screw themselves! > > I've replaced enlarger lenses which had gotten ever so slightly cloudy > on the inside with a new fresh one (Nikons do that) and boy what a > difference! Most would recommend the highest clarity possible in an > enlarger lens. Ansel said if you don't dust off your lens you loose a > grade of contrast! I'd call that a stretch. In an early photo series The > Print book. > > Again if you really feel you need diffusion most would advise doing it > in camera NOT enlarger. > > Mark Rabiner > > Portland, Oregon USA > http://www.rabinergroup.com > -- > To unsubscribe, see http://mejac.palo-alto.ca.us/leica-users/unsub.html > > - -- To unsubscribe, see http://mejac.palo-alto.ca.us/leica-users/unsub.html