On Apr 7, 2005, at 11:10 PM, Shel Belinkoff wrote:
I came across this plug-in the other day - I think Mike Johnston mentioned
it in one of his columns/rants. I checked it out and was impressed with it
for a number of reasons, in part because it will work on 16-bit TIF and PSD
files, it works for Mac and PC's (different versions), allows you to adjust
exposure for both the "negative" and the "print", allows the use of
contrast filters, and it has some other neat features as well. I've only
used it for a few test images thus far, but based on what I've seen it's
definitely something to consider. It's intuitive to use, although may be
easier for someone who has a solid background working with conventional B&W
films, but even a novice should be able to get good results after a time
with just a trial and error approach.
Look for the 30 day free trial download for "ConvertToBW Pro" here: http://www.theimagingfactory.com/download/
I'd love to hear your comments.
I experimented with The Imaging Factory plug-in a while ago, might be an earlier version of course. It does a decent job ... but I prefer to do the B&W rendering myself in Photoshop. That way I have full control of what I'm doing, don't depend upon a black-box tool to do the work for me.
I usually render to B&W this way:
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1- Use Camera Raw to process the capture to a fully expressed RGB image as best possible.
2- Use a Channel Mixer Adjustment Layer with "monochrome" output checked and R=20%, G=75%, B=5% settings (as a starting point ... slide the settings around to obtain the best data that meets your need). Save As to an RGB layered .PSD file.
3- Convert to Grayscale 2.2 Gamma profile, merging the layers. Save As to a B&W work file.
4- Edit and adjust tonalities selectively with Curves Adjustment Layers and masking, iterating until you get exactly what you want.
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This process allows me to obtain spectral rendering in monochrome similar to B&W films and tailored to specific scene needs. I have an expansion on this technique where I use Curves Adjustment Layers and masks under the Channel Mixer Adjustment layer to modify the spectral response selectively.
And, most important to me, I have 100% control and knowledge of what I'm doing and can manipulate it a different way any time I want.
Godfrey
