Bob,
Agree.
I was disappointed that I didn't see more about adaptations they make for
very old film; and a bit more technical details about what happens to the
converted silver over time, and what needs to be done in developing to
accommodate those changes. Maybe they're trying to keep all that a secret.
I was also disappointed in the final images they produced. They probably
have more capability in some modern software than you and I have in the
darkroom, especially for dealing with extremely low contrast negatives, but
they clearly didn't make the most advantage of it in producing the images
they showed in the video.
Like you, I'm thrilled that they're making the effort to find, develop, and
catalog these films.
Thanks for sharing,
Bob
On Sunday, July 3, 2016, bobkiss caribsurf.com <bobkiss@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
wrote:
DEAR BOB,
Perhaps I am too techie but they made no mention of using either
antifog agent or low fog developers. Further, he used those plastic
ratchet loading reels which are most likely to damage old film. Simple
stainless "nikkor" reels are much safer. Lastly, even those images that
showed the least damage were reproduced flat; nothing but muddy greys. If
you or I had been making silver gelatin prints of those negs we would have
adjusted the exposure and contrast of the prints to get good blacks with
open detail, light highlights with texture and tone and a plethora of
midtones. You and I and he can do the same thing to the neg scan files in
Frotoshop but he just didn't do it. Hence, though we could see the
contents of the images, no respect for the beauty of each image seemed to
be given. Heck, even using "autolevels" would have been better than what
he did with those images.
So I am thrilled that he and they are doing this project, more could
be done.
CHEERS!
BOB
------------------------------
*From: *"Bob Younger" <ryounger@xxxxxxxxx>
*To: *"pure-silver@xxxxxxxxxxxxx" <pure-silver@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
*Sent: *Sunday, July 3, 2016 5:05:51 PM
*Subject: *[pure-silver] Re: rescued film project
Bob,
For me it was way too much about the process of recovering, and what a
wonderful contribution they make, and not nearly enough about the images.
I think it was a bit mis-titled.
And regarding the process, there was really nothing magical or technically
unique about the processes they used. They WERE meticulous about recording
the details and "chain of custody" information for each roll.
Bob
On Sun, Jul 3, 2016 at 10:56 AM, bobkiss caribsurf.com <
bobkiss@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
BOB,
You first!
BOB
------------------------------
*From: *"Bob Younger" <ryounger@xxxxxxxxx>
*To: *"pure-silver@xxxxxxxxxxxxx" <pure-silver@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
*Sent: *Sunday, July 3, 2016 10:51:59 AM
*Subject: *[pure-silver] Re: rescued film project
Bob,
What were your thoughts?
Bob
On Sunday, July 3, 2016, bobkiss caribsurf.com <bobkiss@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
wrote:
DEAR LIST,
A friend just sent me this on FB. I thought y'all might find it
interesting. I also wonder if you will make the same observations that I
did.
https://www.facebook.com/omeletocom/videos/vb.11445289493/10154253152919494/?type=2&theater
CHEERS!
BOB
