| look much richer and
show more detail than can be achieved with a print.
This has to do with
basic physics. When a slide is
projected, light passes through it just once.
The emulsion absorbs that light once and reflects it back to your eye
off the reflective surface. However,
when you view a print, light must pass through the emulsion on the surface of
the paper. It is then reflected
off the paper backing and back through the emulsion to your eye.
Therefore, with a print the light has been twice degraded and so the
image appears darker and shows less detail.
When you view
your slide with a light table you will see an image more closely to the way it
will appear in print. Do not use
a loupe at this stage because you have the same issues of light as described
above with a projector. When you
select a light table be sure to select one that has been fitted with the
“proper” lights. This means
you do not want a light table that has incandescent bulbs.
Incandescent bulbs will make your slides look too warm.
Instead, select a light table that has been fitted with special
fluorescent tubes such as the General Electric Chroma 50 or an equivalent
brand.
| While deciding
which slide to enlarge be sure to look for an image that has over all
rich colors. If your image
has shadowed areas, see that the blacks are pure black.
Taking an old processed image and looking at the black boarder
that surrounds the image can determine pure black.
With pure black you will set the bottom end of the tonal scale
and your image will display a wide range of shades and hues.
If you select an image that doesn’t show all the detail you’d
like and you lighten the shadows to compensate for this weak detail, you
will degrade the maximum blacks to less than pure black.
This will result in an unsatisfactory image with more detail but
with colors and shadows that have lost their contrast and appear grayed
down and fogged. |
Note black boarder around photo.
"Fall
Reflections", ilfochrome, A.Winstanley-Roark
|
Now your loupe
comes into play. Be sure to use a
“good” loupe because you cannot tell if your images are in focus without
one. Focus is crucial for a good
image unless you are deliberately going for an out-of-focused look. So be sure to check your focus!
Lastly, be sure
to inspect your slide for any dirt or scratches.
The best way to insure your slide does not get dirty is to protect it
right from the beginning. When you first
develop you slides, or get them back from the lab, the emulsion is still soft
and has not yet hardened. It
takes about a week for this hardening process to set in.
Therefore, as soon as you have your processed slides be sure to place
them in a Mylar sleeve. Once you
have them in this protective sleeve place them into a Mylar sheet for easy
storage. Without the Mylar sleeve
surrounding the slide you many damage your slide when you insert or remove it
from the slide pockets of the sheets. If
you inspect the slide and find dust first try to remove it with compressed
air. If you do not have an air
compressor you can purchase compressed air in cans.
Be sure to hold the air far enough away from the slide so it does not
“spit” any liquid onto your slide. This
air should remove most loose items found on your slide.
If not, try a camel hairbrush such as the Staticmaster.
It will not only remove most loose dirt but will place an antistatic
charge on the surface of the film that will help reduce the chance that the
slide will pick up more dirt or dust. When
all else fails, there are cleaning liquids that can be purchased at most
camera stores. Take heed and be
very careful to follow the instructions closely as these liquids can damage
your film permanently! If you’d
rather not chance cleaning the slide yourself and are having it enlarged at a
lab, ask the technician to clean it prior to printing.
|
ART
FACTS
