On Jul 10, 2005, at 5:20 PM, Joseph Tainter wrote:
1) Will you be making darkroom prints directly from the negs?
I expect so, but I may have the negatives scanned too. I don't
remember whether my Nikon LS 2000 can scan b/w negatives. I know it
won't scan Scala.
I'm sure your LS2000 can scan any kind of B&W negatives. You just
need the right software. Nikon's scan app was crummy when I tried it,
Vuescan ran it perfectly.
3) Will you process the film yourself or have a lab do it?
A lab will do it. I still have the equipment somewhere, but haven't
used it in 35 years.
If you're not going to do your own processing, all bets are off with
traditional silver halide emulsions. Use a C41 process film instead.
When I process B&W film myself, I use XTOL 1:1, HC110 (Dilution F),
or Patterson FX50 with my own processing techniques applied.
I would like these to be good, but they don't need to be perfect.
My colleagues in archaeology wouldn't know one way or the other.
The quest for low grain and nice tonal range is mostly for myself.
Use C41 process B&W film:
Ilford XP2 Super for printing on B&W materials in the wet lab.
Kodak Portra 400 or T400CN for printing on color materials.
Both print beautifully as above in the wet lab.
Both scan beautifully with any scanner *I've* ever used ... Coolscan
LS2000, Sprintscan 35E/S, Minolta Scan Dual II, Epson 2450 are what
I've used the most, but I've worked with about a dozen others.
Godfrey
