Re: Re: Digital Negative Etiology

If you need color accuracy, Photoshop is the best about five years ago. My
work at one time was very related to digital imaging, so I know that you
could find a new technical article in imaging science in a technical
journal, for example, and soon you could find Photoshop implementing it.
They never revealed their exact algorithm, of course, you could tell by the
terminologies they used (and things like 27x27x27 matrix).

 Now that five years have passed and imaging science, as applied to
photography, has more or less mature, maybe some other imaging software like
Corel's PhotoPaint might have the same separation algorithm, but I haven't
followed closely lately.

Of course one still needs to have some technical knowledge in color
separation, ink sets, balancing, etc. to produce good separation, but given
that silk screening is also a commercial process, you might be able to find
better references/resources in this area even though your application might
be in fine arts.

Dave S

----- Original Message -----
From: <res1dvao@verizon.net>
To: <alt-photo-process-l@sask.usask.ca>
Sent: Monday, February 28, 2005 10:32 AM
Subject: Re: Re: Digital Negative Etiology

> If you are doing color seperation what program are you using? I want to
> do some serigraphs and color seperation is the weak link in the process.
>
> George
>>
>> From: Dave Soemarko <fotodave@dsoemarko.us>
>> Date: 2005/02/28 Mon PM 12:40:43 GMT
>> To: alt-photo-process-l@sask.usask.ca
>> Subject: Re: Digital Negative Etiology
>>
>> It went long long time back, so I don't think we can really trace it
>> back.
>>
>> When people use halftone screen to make negative and contact prints to
>> make
>> plates for printing, they were using digital negatives. Although they did
>> not use computer or imagesetter to produce the negatives, the negatives
>> were
>> in fact digital (or more accurately, binary). The use of computers make
>> the
>> process simpler and quicker, but there is nothing really new about it.
>> Just
>> like when people created computer software to do accounting, they did not
>> invent anything new in the field of accounting itself, but they did make
>> accouting simpler and faster, of course.
>>
>> One might say that is not alternative process as we are discussing, but
>> the
>> principle is the same. Note that in platemaking (in the earlier type and
>> some current ones too), the plates were coated with gum arabic, you
>> expose
>> it with UV light, then you wash out the unexposed area, etc. If instead
>> of
>> using metal plates, you use paper as the base, you have gum bichromate
>> prints, in principle.
>>
>> Digital color separation, however, can be considered something new. This
>> is
>> because in the traditional 4-mask or 12-mask system, you still cannot
>> completely color correct the whole gamut. In digital color separation,
>> the
>> process is not simply speeding up the 12-mask system, for example. It is
>> actually using numerical analysis and interpolation algorithm to do color
>> characterization and to create the separation, so technically it can be
>> considered different or new.
>>
>>
>> Dave S
>>
>> ----- Original Message -----
>> From: "PhotoGecko Austin" <gecko@photogecko.com>
>> To: <alt-photo-process-l@sask.usask.ca>
>> Sent: Monday, February 28, 2005 3:02 AM
>> Subject: Digital Negative Etiology
>>
>>
>> > Greetings all,
>> >
>> > Just a late night rambling curiosity (. . . but these things matter,
>> > don't
>> > they? -- otherwise there would be no OED): Who first (according to
>> > reliable objective sources) came up with the idea of making digital
>> > negatives for contact printing on whatever strata? Can anyone on the
>> > list trace it back. . . . ?
>> >
>> > (Note to D.B.: If you claim this you'll need LOTS of witnesses.)
>> >
>> > It just occurred to me (while politely cajoling a few transparencies)
>> > that
>> > I should know. But I don't have a clue.
>> >
>> > Curious minds want to throw.
>> >
>> > I hope you are all well and prosperous,
>> > John
>> > __________________________
>> > John Campbell
>> > PhotoGecko Studios & Gallery
>> > 1413 South First Street
>> > Austin, Tx 78704
>> > (512) 797-9375
>> >
>> > www.photogecko.com
>> >
>> >
>> >
>>
>>
>>
>
>
>
Received on Mon Feb 28 10:14:24 2005