Printing B & W Tmax by Scan or Traditional Print

[morey_kitzman]

I have a river scene recently posted that has great tonalilty from

the scan. Should I print from the scan on a lightjet or go to

traditional wet chemistry? As a follow up, can I assume that the

traditional process will produce results similar, as good as or

better than the scan? Thanks.

[kevin gulstene]

I hope this isn't a troll asking if traditional wet prints will be as good as a scan!

 

Yes, if you know a good lab or a good printer then you will get great results from

traditional printing. Here are some caveats:

 

1. If you did not use good development and exposure techniques you may have

some issues. Scanners are much more forgiving of dense or thin negatives.

 

2. If you are not doing the printing yourself then you get the best that the lab or

printer can do -- so do some research and find one you like.

 

3. If you did a lot of manipulation to the scan to make it look like you wanted (

dodge, burn local contrast changes blah blah blah) then it may be difficult for a

printer to match the precision of those changes. Some things are easier in

photoshop.

 

4. The type of paper you print on will have a huge impact on the look of the print.

Make sure you know your options.

 

Lightjet prints, traditional prints and quadtone inkjet prints are all good ways to make

great prints. They are different from each other though. Each has it's own aesthetic

appeal, strengths and weaknesses.

[neil_poulsen1]

I've seen some beautiful quad-tone black and white printing done on an Epsen. But, given that one has a good negative and has done a good job of printing, nothing in my opinion done by digital compares to a fine silver gelatin print.

 

People speak about good printing, but the secret to good printing is to begin with a good negative, one that has been both properly exposed and properly developed.