From: Nick Makris (nick@mcn.org)
Date: 11/13/01-11:24:22 AM Z
John Campbell sent this to me off list - I feel it is important to anyone
following this thread.
Nick
What material/media do you use?
--Pictorico OHP Transparency film. And I wasted a lot of UV and material
along the way, believe me.
Where do you purchase this material?
--From Pictorico’s web site http://www.pictorico.com/roll.asp
What are the minimum/maximum sizes/prices of the material that you are aware
of?
--I buy the 17” x 66’ rolls, which cost $249.00 plus shipping.
Using this material, which process(es) do you successfully make negatives
for?
--Several at once. My two primary contact print modes are Centennial POP
(11x14) and variations on Pt/Pd up to 16x20.
What printer do you use? What ink do you use in your printer?
--I have an Epson 3000 loaded with Piezography BW inks. I produce direct
prints onto heavy stock with this configuration and am just too lazy to
change it out for diginegs—besides, the results are fine. I get really good
tonal separations and quick process times. There has been some conversation
in the group about the fragility of these negatives. I don’t really see any
problem. I coat each negative with Krylon and treat them with care—I mean,
they are negatives, right? If treated with the same care as film negatives
they will last just as long or longer.
Briefly describe your workflow (Photoshop/Epson Driver/Piezography/minimal
resolution/paper settings/etc.):
I shoot everything in 35mm or 4x5 and scan into my system at 2700 dpi. I do
minimal editing with PhotoShop in the original size and then save each one
using Genuine Fractals. When I’m ready to print (whether positive or
negative), I open the image to the size I need with Genuine Fractals and peg
the resolution at 750dpi. I’ve gone as low as 420dpi and as high as the
original scan resolution. Somewhere around 750 seems best to me, without
sacrificing either detail or memory at either end.
If I’m running a negative, I run an adjustment layer with a Platinum curve
and then I filter with UnsharpMask very slightly (100/1.5/0) before
inverting to the negative scale. I then export to Piezography and always use
the Epson Glossy media configuration. I mean ALWAYS.
For what it’s worth, I did a LOT of experimenting with different media and
combinations of settings before landing on this constant configuration.
I hope this helps!
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