The Scanning Project-4: Editing Black & White

With color slides you can make a fairly quick assessment of quality and edit out hopeless causes (or dupes, etc.). This is not always the case with black and white. True, you do not have issues of color to deal with, and this in some ways makes it easier to separate the good from the bad and the plain ugly. You do, however, have to understand and work with density, the "thickness" or "thinness" of the negative. Those who have done darkroom work will have the advantage here in recognizing a "good" negative, but even if you don't you will quickly gain an understanding of this issue.

Here's an example of a "thin" negative. There is very little shadow detail and the contrast required to bring detail up will be excessive. If you definitely need to scan such a negative do not attempt to fix the contrast in the scan, but do so later in an image editing program. 

You also should consider quality issues such as the possible deterioration of the film base onto which the emulsion is laid (cracking, splitting, severe curvature due to roll-up storage). Other possible destructive forces can be poor processing (failure to clear hypo properly, thus staining and even loss of original converted silver) and the use of destructive storage materials or containers. 

This is a "thick" or overly dense negative that resulted from overexposure and/or overdevelopment. My suggestion is to batch these and work on them as a group as you will be using certain tools to hopefully cut through that density, although larger and unpleasing grain and contrast problems will be present.  Not all dense negatives are lost causes, but they will be challenging.

 As one of my mentors, Bob Schwalberg, used to say, “density defends density,” which means that old negatives which have been processed and exposed properly and have a rich range of tones will always do better in the long run. Well, there isn’t much you can do about that at this point, but it is self-evident that rich negatives will always yield a better scan than “thin” negatives, since the thin get thinner as time goes on. There is a another caveat: if the material was grossly overexposed and/or over-developed (thus making for a “thick” negative), many scanners may have trouble penetrating the silver (density) and harsh and possibly useless scans may result. There are ways around this (multi-scanning is one), which will be covered in the step-by-step scanning posts, but opaque negatives will always be bothersome.

Here's an example of an excellent negative that has been properly exposed and developed and shows no deterioration. This will yield a very good full tonal print and poses little challenge to get right. Shot on Tri-X 400, the scan was made using that film's "profile", a topic that will be covered in the step-by-step scanning sections in later postings. Photo copyright George Schaub.

If you have made satisfying prints from some of your negatives in the past you might think that scanning the “positive” print will deliver a better result. The problem is that darkroom printing always and necessarily compresses the full tonal values available in the negative. If the negative is truly poor or if you have only prints remaining this is the obvious way to go, but in my experience a decent negative scan will usually allow you much more creative leeway (and yield a better result) than a scanned print from that negative.

Of course, if only the print has survived and you don't have access to a negative you will be doing flatbed scanning to make a digital copy. Post scan processing can often do wonders with original prints, but in all cases you will get better results should you have access to the original negative, given that it is in good shape. This photo of "doughboys" from World War I was found in an old postcard album purchased in a flea market.

Depending on the film used or the way it was processed, you may run into grain issues. This is something you have to live with, although there are certainly ways to reduce unwanted grain when scanning and later. However, keep in mind that all grain reduction methods (called “noise” these days) entail a certain amount of image softening. Check your negatives with an 8X loupe to see if that grain will be ruinous. (It can of course be “charming” as well.) Keep in mind that scanning etches grain unlike anything you might have seen in your silver printing days, especially if you printed via a cold light head. Scanning, like a magnifying mirror, can be cruel.

Another issue to consider when editing is dirt and scratches embedded or etched into the emulsion surface. Unfortunately, many dirt reduction procedures and software programs do not work on black and white (although they do work on color film, except for Kodachromes). Retouching this stuff can be tedious, but it can be done, and in some cases you might be able to remove the objectionable material from the film itself by rewashing or using a kind of fluid as a kind of diffusion mask on the frame when scanning, a technique we’ll cover later. You might consider using a chamois cloth to clean surface dirt off the negative, and while this can help you should be very careful so as not to scratch the film in the process.

Every film type has a certain characteristic curve, and identifying the type of film you have is very helpful when making scans. Using this "profile" when scanning can eliminate a number of steps in the process, particularly with contrast selection. This is a Kodak Tech Pan negative of ice flows on the Long Island Sound. The film yielded very low grain and high sharpness. However, it tended to develop out with higher contrast than other panchromatic films, so setting its profile when scanning can eliminate guesswork later. Photo copyright George Schaub.

 Like all film, each type of black and white film has a “characteristic curve” and gamma, which means a certain contrast, density and relationship between tonal values. For example, Panatomic-X and Ilford HP5 have a distinctly different character. When editing, it is wise to batch all similar film types together. Even though there may be variations in different stocks (dates of manufacture) this allows you to set up various responses to maximize the film’s character when scanning and certainly helps in the time spent in setting up each frame. Many times a film type is not shown on the frame edge. There are web sites that track these numbers (http://www.taphilo.com/Photo/kodakfilmnumxref.shtml is one of them) although you may still have to make an educated guess in some instances. I’ll go over the importance of ID’ing film types in the step-by-step posts later.

There are other types of black and white film you may have in your collection, including black and white positive film, chromogenic film, IR film, high-speed (at the time) surveillance film, Polaroid “Instant” B&W, etc. While some of these can be challenging they can be managed, so do not disregard them in your selection process. However, they don’t usually respond in the way a “regular” panchromatic film does to scanning, and require some special setups, so batch these as well in your edits.

There are many tools you can use when scanning black and white, as well as those you can apply when processing the image in image-editing software later, so do not be discouraged if you have some marginal negatives or prints. I encourage you to work with those negatives you think are lost causes and see just how far you can take them. However, understand that they may require considerably more effort and work. Start your work with "rich" negatives and then move on to those that are more challenging.

Next posting: Color Negative Film Edits

The Scanning Project-3: Editing: Color Slides

While you might think the first thing to do is run out and buy a good scanner (I’ll go over different types of scanners and their benefits in a future posting) the most time-consuming and crucial part of the process is figuring out what you want to scan.

There's no question that some types of slide film hold their color and density better than others. This scanned Kodachrome, shot in 1992, still retains all the tone and color from the day it was processed. Photo copyright George Schaub

 The benefit of starting with past work is that you have had time to “digest” whether that work still holds meaning for you. This helps in the editing process as hopefully you have become more discerning in terms of image quality as well as considerations of what image content stands the test of time. In some cases, for those who shot film way back, the physical condition of certain types of film will play a big role in this process.

As to what images to choose that is a very personal matter and I will not make any suggestions here. All I can say is that if you have dupes or similars of a particular shot do take some time to pick the best of the lot. This might seem like it goes without saying, but editing means making choices, and getting involved with scanning means that you will be making decisions about picking the best of perhaps four or five shots of a particular scene. Just plant your flag and go for it!

Color Slides

The first step is to think about, and choose, slides that will yield good scans. As you work you will learn what might work, what will require extra effort to get right, and what slides are just not going to turn out right. You can fight city hall to an extent, thanks to software, but there are simply some slides that will not work out. You can try a few poor quality slides to see how far you can take them, especially if they are of precious moments or memories, but don’t expect much from them except having a record and a snapshot of them in their current condition.

Here's a scanned Ektachrome exposed and processed in 1994. The original was color rich and had textural whites, even in the bright clouds in the sky. While there is certainly some diminution of the color, the biggest problem, and that which will dash any hopes of getting a good print from the full frame, is the loss of density in the brighter areas of the clouds. Note the burnout of the cloud edge above the beer mug. This cannot be properly burned in and although very experienced software users might be able to get some texture back, overall it might just not be worth the time required to get it right. Photo copyright George Schaub

Of course, one option is to crop out the offending area. That's what I did here, but by doing so I got pretty much right to the edge of acceptable sharpness, and would opt to make this a considerably smaller print than I might otherwise like. I also cloned some of the blue into the upper right edge to get rid of some burned out sky. Knowing what you can and cannot accomplish and making edits accordingly will save you time and perhaps wasted efforts later.

One of the worst kept secrets in photography is the poor keeping qualities of certain types of slide film. A good read is Henry Wilhelm’s “The Permanence and Care of Color Photographs” (http://www.wilhelm-research.com) in which he rightfully chastises certain manufacturers for the poor keeping qualities of products that promised to be “the memory keepers.”

Even with optimal storage conditions, many types of transparency film will, by their very nature, begin to deteriorate way before one would anticipate, or hope. If you have not looked at your old slides of a certain breed for many years you might be shocked at what you discover—color shifts (mainly towards magenta), surface deterioration and density loss (blacks becoming mottled, whites and highlights blanking out). This is nothing new. Commercial photographers found this out many years ago when trying to salvage their E-3 processed Ektachromes.

Luckily, some of this loss can be ameliorated by software, but when highlights are gone in positive film there’s no bringing them back. In my experience this is a common occurrence with most slide films of a certain vintage, although Kodachromes, due to their unique construction and processing, do best in this regard. Other Kodak produced films turned out to be real dogs, including higher speed Ektachromes and especially older Ektachromes, even those with E-6 processing. Labels like Anscochrome and Agfachrome can be abysmal in their keeping qualities.

Here's an Agfachrome exposed and processed in 1990. The shift to magenta is apparent, and there has been considerable density loss. In most instances, scanning and trying to get something decent out of such slides might be a waste of time, although I certainly do not discourage your trying: that's how you'll learn about what should be edited in and out of your scan collection. Copyright George Schaub

One option of course is converting to black and white, which in one step removes the curse of the color shift and allows you more control over density and tonality. This is a good strategy for precious photos of family and friends.

 The proper storage for older film materials is not in the realm of this discussion, and again Wilhelm is a prime source on this matter, but common sense methods include storage in low humidity and low heat conditions, using so-called archival storage materials, and limiting exposure to light. (One interesting sidebar is that while Kodachromes generally stood the test of time much better than other materials, if you regularly projected Kodachromes you have substantially cut down on their life expectancy. That’s why slide trays of experienced presenters contained not original Kodachromes but dupes.)

Note the retained textural whites in the flag bunting in this scanned Kodachrome from 1984. Slides like this are easy to scan and yield excellent prints. When you edit, batch images with these characteristics for a productive and rewarding scanning session. Start with these so you can get some positive reinforcement about what scanning can do. Likewise, batch the problem slides and those with similar flaws together so you can develop a workflow plan that will aid in their recovery.

Photo copyright George Schaub

In any case, one of the first considerations of editing might be to choose and salvage as best you can those slides that are starting to go over the edge. They will be apparent to you as you edit your materials. Keep in mind that some may be irredeemable, but if the image is important to you, such as childhood photos of your now grown children, also keep in mind that you can always ignore the color shifts by converting the image to black and white or even rescue some of the “natural” color via processing. As to density loss (highlights gone blank) there’s nothing much you can do about that, although judicious cropping and some software work can help salvage something from your most precious shots.

Finally, batch your edits by film type as best you can, as you may be working with film “profiles” with certain types of scanner software as a way to get a ballpark read on the proper values for each type of material. This is especially true when scanning Kodachromes versus other types of slide films. In general, Kodachromes are usually “warmer” than other types, and their color layers are quite distinct in character. This segregation by type might be difficult if you have generic (non-brand labeled) mounts, but do the best you can.

Next posting: Editing, Black and White

Fujifilm X-T10 Technical Review

 The X-T10 is Fujifilm's newest X-series camera. The camera has an APS-C sensor made by Fujifilm (X-Trans CMOS II) and offers an image resolution of 16MP.

The X-T10 is less expensive and in some aspects a more “basic” version of the top of the line X-T1. The body is a little smaller and lighter than the X-T1, but it retains the “retro” look characterized by the clearly defined edges and the “prism bulge” on the top. The camera uses an electronic viewfinder system with a small LCD. This electronic viewfinder offers 2.36 million dots and shows a really brilliant and crisp image, but isn't as large as the X-T1 version with the same resolution: the X-T1 offers a 0.77x factor for the field of view yet the X-T10 viewfinder offers a 0.62x scaling factor. Nevertheless, working with the X-T10 viewfinder is very comfortable, with an overlay electronic leveling system and focus peaking, which aids manual focusing.

The camera has a lot of function elements and setup dials to get direct access to shutter speed, aperture size, EV compensation and more controls. Shutter speed can be controlled by a large dial on the top of the camera. It offers standard EV steps like 1/250, 1/500 and 1/1000 second. Intermediate shutter speed settings can be reached by pressing the setup dial on the back.

Using the “Q” button on the back starts a quick menu on the screen which allows for setup of the most important settings like image size, file format and more. Using the lens ring to change aperture size is as comfortable and intuitive as working with an analog SLR system. The lens ring of the Fujifilm X-T10 can be used for additional parameters as well.

The camera offers many individual settings and customer defined functions. The photographer can change the direction of the focus dial on the lens system, for example, because focusing of the lens is based on a servo system which allows the user to reverse direction for getting from “near” to “infinity setting. There are many other settings that can be defined by the user, so beginners may be a bit confused, although experienced photographers will enjoy the flexibility.

The camera doesn't offer an internal stabilization system and depends on optical stabilization in the lenses. Fujifilm offers some lenses with these systems, but many wide-angle lenses and lenses like the 56mm and the 60mm macro lack a stabilization system. Working with third party lenses that are mounted by an adapter system means that no image stabilization is available.

Comments on Image Quality

Color: The Fujifilm X-T10 showed a good performance in our color test. The colors in standard mode are highly saturated (117.5 percent). Some nuances are highly overdrawn like darker blue nuances and darker green tones, while red nuances and especially skin tones are shown with a more natural saturation. The automatic white balance system caused a shift of gray tones into the green and yellow area. This is noticeable in our test box shot (gray background) and our portrait shot (nearly white background).

Sharpness: Anti-noise filtering generates a smoothing effect on fine details. The X-T10 compensates this effect by additional sharpness filtering. This is noticeable in the hair of our model in the portrait shot. The high-resolution test result of 3124 of 3264 lines per picture height is accompanied by some overshot effects and “clipping” warnings in our ImaTest software. Due to this effect, hard contrast lines in the image may show a double contour line.

Noise: The Fujifilm X-T10 keeps luminance noise on a very low level. The y-factor stays far below 1.0 percent; even at ISO 6400 mode it is only 0.61 percent. The camera achieves this effect by  increasing anti-noise filtering. This filter system keeps colors noise on a low level, too. Color noise artifacts (smoothed by filtering) are only noticeable in images taken with ISO 3200 and ISO 6400, but are really inconspicuous.

The dynamic range results are a little disappointing for a Fujifilm camera with X-Trans CMOS sensor. The X-T10 achieved a maximum of only 10.3 f-stops.

Comments on Video Functions and Quality

The Fujifilm X-T10 records Full HD videos with 1920 x 1080 pixels and with high frame rates up to 60 frames per second (PAL mode: 50 frames per second). These high frames rates allow the user to take shots of fast moving objects (sports videos) that will retain a smooth look.

In addition, the Fujifilm X-T10 offers standard frame rates with 25 and 30 frames per second and is also able to record videos sequences in “cinema” mode with 24 frames per second. All videos are saved as QuickTime MOV files and use H.264 video compression.

The camera allows the user to make manual exposure settings when recording videos. The video recording button on the top is very small and located directly in front of the EV compensation dial. This location makes it a little difficult to activate video recording without camera shake, so the first frames may be a little blurred. The camera also allows for use of an external microphone for better sound recording. An interface for an earphone/headset is missing.

The video quality of the Fujifilm X-T10 can't be compared with its results in photo mode. The resolution chart was reproduced with only 448 of 1080 lines per picture height, which is a very poor result. However the video sequences still have a lot of aliasing and moiré problems. These results are caused by a very intense sharpness filtering that cause an unnatural or artificial video look. The camera uses very high data rate for its videos. The overall bit rate is nearly 37 Mbit/s and should allow for better results. The high data rate requires fast storage media. For video recording the photographer should use SDHC or SDXC cards.

The color reproduction in video mode is good. A lot of colors are highly saturated and the white balance system causes a little yellowish touch in neutral gray tones (just like in photo mode).

The camera showed higher luminance noise results in video mode than in photo mode. While the luminance noise factor is about 0.45 percent in images taken with ISO 200 in photo mode, setting the same ISO speed will cause a luminance noise factor of 0.98 percent in video mode. Dynamic range is nearly on the same level as in photo mode. The maximum dynamic range in videos was 10.3 f-stops.

Pro:

*compact system camera with high quality finish

*electronic viewfinder with very high resolution (2.36 million RGB dots), but not as large as the very big X-T1 viewfinder

*easy handling, a lot of filter effects including film simulation like “classic chrome”

*Wi-fi function

Con:

*swivel LCD not fully articulated. LCD an only be flipped up- and downwards

*due to the many functions settings the menu navigation may confuse or overwhelm beginners

*no internal image (sensor shift) stabilizer; stabilization depends on optical systems of the lenses

Test results and comments by Betternet, TIPA’s testing lab. I serve on the Technical Committee of TIPA and edited this test report for this posting. For more information on TIPA visit www.tipa.com.