John Paul spelled out the digital darkroom B&W options brilliantly here, wish I’d thought of doing it! Many including myself look for the best way to convert our images to B&W and as JP points out, there is no one way since B&W is such a romantic medium. We need to mix in the digital darkroom as per the heart! With that said, he’s compiled a comprehensive list and IMHO is spot on. And like JP, my preferred method for B&W conversion for some time now has been as he states:
The only thing I add to this is at times is Nik’s Pro Contrast at the start of the process and then at the end of the process Levels. The key to the methodology described above is its Quality and Flexibility and Speed. And this is important when a clean Black and a clean White is essential along with the mixing of the heart in the final B&W image
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What you see above are some of the possibilities by just cycling through the drop down menu in the B&W Adjustment Layer. In order you see above I have applied: Original, Blue, My Finished B&W version, Green, Infrared, Max Black, Neutral Density, Red and Yellow. Below is a screen grab of the Layers for the B&W version below, the one I like the best for this image (rarely is any two images have the same mix). How do YOU learn what works best for YOUR B&W? Go through the list JP was so wise to generate, using all those methods on at least three different images. Save ALL those files and then print them all out. That is what I did, I have a good feeling that’s what JP did and it’s what you should do. Oh, what about those B&W plugins? You might have noticed they aren’t advancing but digital is. To me, that’s a huge hint to master what we’ve got and what we know is advancing, Photoshop! Have fun and enjoy the very romantic realm of B&W!
Monitor Calibration, ever noticed there’s a little bit of confusion out there about this very necessary part of digital photography? I was talking about it this weekend and it occurred to me, I’ve not posted about it for quite some time so wanted to get on my soap box for a moment and talk about it. As you can see, I’m a i1 fan, using the i1Display for my Cintiq, iMac, Retina and iPad and I do this NOT so my monitor matches the print! The word “match” means two items are equal and there is NO way you can match a transmitted light source (the monitor) with a reflected (the print) light source. Physics tells us that. Ya, they can get close but they can never match. So why then calibrate our monitors?
That’s real simple and to me, obvious, consistency. How do we know our photographs are getting better, how do we establish our own quality standard for exposure and color, how do we send out the same quality product to our clients over and over again, these are just some of the important reasons why we must calibrate. The Cintiq gets calibrated every Tuesday morning. The iMac & Retina every three weeks and the iPad every four weeks. Personally, I don’t want to be showing a client a presentation on my notebook or iPad and have them place an order only to learn back at the Cintiq the photo really doesn’t look the same as they saw it. I can’t send dark images to a magazine one month and bright images the next month, they’ll stop calling. We need an established, consistent benchmark for our digital files, that’s why you calibrate. And from that you can learn how to produce the print if that’s your end all goal for your photography that matches your HEART which is the ultimate calibrator.
“Why the P800, why add it to the office?” Printing is a major part of our business, the learning and refining of my craft and the simple making of money. Both of these require the best in paper and printers (and the skill to drive them). So, why did we add the P800 to the Epson 7900 and Epson 4900, here’s why.
The hottest thing in printers hit the office yesterday and I’m so excited! The Epson P800 (repl for 3880) printer is at this very moment madly printing as I put it though its paces. There are lots of advantages to the P800 when it comes to printing and I want to test them all. And it would seem I’m not the only one with the P800 as getting them is a challenge, supply is limited. Speed, Reds, and a number of other assets could possibly make it the best printer you can buy. Stay tunes, more to come!
I have a really good friend, a really good photographer, who I spend a lot of time shooting with, Harry. We spend a lot of time together in large part because of the fun and passion we share in photography. Harry thinks of himself as still learning cause he’s only been shooting seriously he says for four years. In this we play “The Game!” After we’ve done a shoot, we’re back in the vehicle and merrily going down the road, I ask him, “Now Harry, how are you going to finish that image?” Harry wins 95% of the time, verbally going through the steps he is going to use to finish his photos. This is probably why his photography has gone so far, so fast!
What’s the point of “The Game?” It started in my frustration of photographers going into the Digital Darkroom and just throwing this or that slider around praying they have a photograph. I hate, hate the saying, “I’ll know if I got the photograph after I finish it in post.” I mean, do you want your doctor to just go slicing away during your surgery hoping it turns out well? How about that carpenter building your home? A saw cut here and a nail there and hope the house stands when he’s done? When you’re taping the imagination, exciting the mind and playing with the heart, why should photographers not take the same care in their craft? It’s in that spirit I did this video which brings to light a tool that many are making a big thing to “fix” their images. I truly want to encourage you to know you subject when you click the camera so then in post, you are finishing and perhaps thinking about this new feature in a new way. Thanks Harry for playin!
Want to make money from your camera, your passion and keep your camera and your passion in the process? Sharon & I will be hosting in our office and home a three day Photo Biz Weekend. What is covered? We will cover the one aspect of photography that still makes money, editorial. This all important aspect of photography encompasses the essential aspect of a successful photography business, the image! The photograph is a big part of the weekend, so is writing, making contact and a submission. We will also be covering printing from A-Z as that’s a big part of it as well. You’ll learn how to pick the image for editorial and print. Learn how to make the print and present it to the client (we don’t cover weekend art shows!). And just how do you find clients? How do you know how much money to charge? Want to know if you should be in the business or just waisting your time? What about the web, fabled land of plenty? Just what are the myths and the truths of the business? All of this and so much more is covered in the three days. You will be responsible for submitting one week prior to the weekend a 1500 word article with supporting illustrations. And the hardest thing you have to come with, a passion and desire to make the greatest industry in the world your home. Interested? We’re accepting just six folks for the weekend of 20-22 November, 2015. It will be in Mammoth Lakes, CA that you can easily fly into and find a ton to photograph if you want to stretch out your weekend. The price is $995 due in full (non-refundable) at time of registration. Price includes instruction and HUGE business/marketing packet. Give Sharon a call 661.204.1506…FAST!
