Photo Archaeology
Here's a scan of a 37-year-old negative. If I remember correctly, I tried to print this one back in the day, but never got a good image out of it. The negative actually is fine, with a lot of detail. If I had to guess, I didn't have paper that was high enough contrast to do it justice.
I took this picture one Sunday at Penn Station in Baltimore, back in the days when you could wander around the platforms without causing anyone any anxiety. It was just a few days after I bought a Leica IIIc and a Canon Serenar 50mm f/1.8 lens.
Tonight, I scanned this negative, along with some others, on my Epson V500 scanner. I've only used the scanner for documents up until now, but its raw specs implied it would do a good job on negatives and slides. I cranked up the resolution to its maximum, 4800 dpi, and it yielded a 28-megapixel file. I noticed in Photoshop that it was 26" x 17" at 240 dpi. Just a little manipulation in Photoshop to adjust the blacks was all it needed to make a compelling image. I didn't even apply any sharpening, as the scanned image just didn't need any.
On-screen and on the web, I think the image looks great. I'll have an 18x12 print made from this file to see how that looks, but for the time being, I'm very happy with the film-scanning ability of the V500.
I took this picture one Sunday at Penn Station in Baltimore, back in the days when you could wander around the platforms without causing anyone any anxiety. It was just a few days after I bought a Leica IIIc and a Canon Serenar 50mm f/1.8 lens.
Tonight, I scanned this negative, along with some others, on my Epson V500 scanner. I've only used the scanner for documents up until now, but its raw specs implied it would do a good job on negatives and slides. I cranked up the resolution to its maximum, 4800 dpi, and it yielded a 28-megapixel file. I noticed in Photoshop that it was 26" x 17" at 240 dpi. Just a little manipulation in Photoshop to adjust the blacks was all it needed to make a compelling image. I didn't even apply any sharpening, as the scanned image just didn't need any.
On-screen and on the web, I think the image looks great. I'll have an 18x12 print made from this file to see how that looks, but for the time being, I'm very happy with the film-scanning ability of the V500.
Labels: Baltimore, Canon Serenar Lens, Epson V500 Scanner, Leica IIIc, Penn Station
7 Comments:
The scan looks great. Re: the image, a really nice use of converging lines, and a nice, vintage feel overall. It could have been a scene from the 40's :).
--Warren
Steve, are you still printing enlargements at home? Just curious.
--WT
Hi Warren,
Not lately - I want to calibrate my screen and printer - I have the equipment and software, but just haven't gotten around to it yet :-(
Meanwhile, when I need a really good print I go to my local Costco - they do an excellent job, up to 12"x18".
Steve, just curious, is 12x18 a standard print format? I haven't had big prints made lately, so I'm out of touch with reality on this :).
The sizes I know from the old days are:
4x6
8x10
11x14
16x20
are there more modern equivalent standard print sizes, and are standard frames available for the new sizes?
--Warren
forgot to mention 20x30...
I had a 35mm image blown up to 20x30 before too.
--WT
Hi Warren - 12x18 happens to be the size of paper they use at Costco. Before I blew up my larger Canon printer, it printed up to 13x19 - that seems to be a standard paper size you can get nowadays for inkjet paper.
Oh, I forgot to answer your question about frames for this size.
I took a $25 class a few years ago where I learned to cut my own mats. What I do with the 13x19 or 12x18 prints is to use a 24x18 frame (easy to find,) cut a 24x18 piece from a standard mat board you can buy at art supply places (I think they're typically 32x40 or so,) and cut a "window" for whatever the size of the image is.
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