+1! I love that image. The detail is superb, even in this size image. The full res scan must be amazing. More details on camera, lens, film, scan???
Gary
Thanks Gary, Lloyd, and Jim. I've not shown this one around much though the actual shot was made last year.
First the technical specs:
Camera: Chamonix 4x5N-1
Lens: 150 mm f/5.6 Symmar-N (or S I really never can remember
)
Exposure: About 1/4 s @ f/16
Film:Fujicolor Pro 160 S rated @ 125; no filtration at exposure
The camera was set about 18 to 20 inches off the ground on a slopping drive way at the scene. The location is in a old section of Atlanta which is a transitional area that has become a new center of art studios, design houses, galleries, and professional offices; an extension of what is known as the photo district.
The image is part of a series that I've been working over the last couple of years or so, some in B&W and some in color. Right now images that are printed as inkjet prints will eventually be reworked for tri-color gum for color (or pigment over palladium) or for mono one of the iron based processes such as gum over palladium, kallitype or straight carbon prints - who knows right now.
In this series my approach has been to make 2 to 3 exposures on 4x5 film for later stitching in PS. Once I conceptualize the composition I setup the camera and make multiple exposures at the same settings by shifting the front standard right, left and usually a exposure with no shift. This gives me plenty of overlap for high quality stitching. In a sense this motif is an a variation of view camera triptychs or dipytichs. In some compositions I make the decision at the scene about how the final comp should look which means that some cropping will take place in post. This decision is make at exposure time not later. I want to be as precise as possible with my framing, though I will allow for some wasted film space to be cropped later if the need is required because of limitation of camera placement, movements, etc. I don't go out with a preconcieved idea per se but I look at scenes with this possible treatment in mind. Some compositions are failures.
The scans are on a Howetech 4000 drum scanner at 2000 spi for each sheet. Thanks to Don Hutton (who was with me at the time this shot was made), my good friend here in Atlanta who does the scanning for me.
The final image dimensions after stitching: 7815 x 13420 ppi @ 2000 ppi x 16 bits.
Post processing the shot required a *LOT* of masks to adjust the color of various sections of the image. This was after making a global color correction neutralizing the midtones, specifically the grey gas meters. There is also a small section of the image that is syntisized in PS; or to put it another way the image presented is NOT a 100% literal translation of the scene photographed. Can you spot it? I hope not. I try to make my PS composites look natural and unmanipulated. My intent is to produce a surreal view of the scene without the viewer being aware of it. In B&W I'll often do this with local tonal manipulations.
I use Nik Sharpener Pro 3.0 for sharpening final output size to inkjet, the image you see here hasn't been sharpened. I've found that drum scanned images require roughly 50% LESS sharpening than say with digital captures for printed output. I proof on Ilford Fiber Gold and do large prints on River River Aurora White. I also really love Harmon Fiber Gloss and may commit to printing a small portfolio of large prints on that paper someday - Kaching!$$$
Okay end of brain dump, I'll post a small unedited version for you to compare later.
Thanks for looking,
Don
