Serge, that second shot is magic - pure art. I got a good chuckle when I looked it up online. The first line was this:
"After the “Puente nuevo” (New Bridge) fell down in 1741"...
James Markus wrote:
Serge, that second shot is magic - pure art. I got a good chuckle when I looked it up online. The first line was this:
"After the “Puente nuevo” (New Bridge) fell down in 1741"...
They just don't build 'em like they used to. But wait, after the new bridge fell down they rebuilt the old one?
James Markus wrote:
Saw a documentary on a baker. Everyone thinks his bread is perfect, the best, except him. He does the exact same thing every day, but only 3 to 4 times a year does the bread come out "perfect" in his opinion. Good enough is pretty much all we can expect.
I'll take a slice of that bread as soon as it comes out of the oven. But the problem I have with Darktable's negadoctor is that it seems to pick up the film color incorrectly. When I click on the select button and zero in on the edge film stock, it gives me a color that doesn't quite look like the original. When I open the file in MS Paint and select that color I get RGB values to compare against NDr's percentages. The relative amounts don't agree, and assuming the percentages are of 0-255, they aren't exactly correct.
OTOH I found another program Film.Scan.Converter.exe which does pick up the film color in agreement with Paint.
Some examples, much more realistic. One of these I posted before but converted with NDr.
I'll take a slice of that bread as soon as it comes out of the oven. But the problem I have with Darktable's negadoctor is that it seems to pick up the film color incorrectly. When I click on the select button and zero in on the edge film stock, it gives me a color that doesn't quite look like the original. When I open the file in MS Paint and select that color I get RGB values to compare against NDr's percentages. The relative amounts don't agree, and assuming the percentages are of 0-255, they aren't exactly correct.
OTOH I found another program Film.Scan.Converter.exe which does pick up the film color in agreement with Paint.
Some examples, much more realistic. One of these I posted before but converted with NDr.
Both shot with MFNG of course, on my Nikkormat ...Show more →
Jim, I spent most of my career trying to find good color correct conversions of color negatives. There are too many variables to make it a science. My deceased wife worked for a color correction company. That literally was all they did, because it was so vexing.. Doing it "by the numbers", drum scanners that cost a fortune - a man that worked with my dad in the space industry left to found X-Rite just a few miles from me - got huge, then moved somewhere else or was sold.
I messed around with v5.01 Dark Tables's Negative Doctor and it reminded me of the nightmare the grocery store cereal isle was to me. Too many choices, overly complex, too much control, and some unique terminology (hate that). A guy is making a stripped down version of Dark Table (in Alpha, but runs in Ubuntu MATE v25.10) called Ansel. Better GUI, less confusing clutter etc. It also has Negative Doctor.. Grain to Pixel is pretty slick, but you need Photoshop or Elements so you can create an action to launch it.
I really highly recommend Negative Lab Pro, but the price of admission is to lease monthly Lightroom classic.
James Markus wrote:
Jim, I spent most of my career trying to find good color correct conversions of color negatives. There are too many variables to make it a science...
I really highly recommend Negative Lab Pro, but the price of admission is to lease monthly Lightroom classic.
James, I appreciate all your advice and your experience. Thank you.
At this point I don't need to make my scans perfect. I just want them not to be obviously not perfect. I have not the time left in life, either globally or on a daily basis, to go off chasing the perfect loaf of bread. But now that I know the fundamentals and found a good program to do that much at least, I was able to convert an entire roll of film quickly to look more or less how I remember the scenes to be. I consider that a win! Without that capability I have no business playing with my old film camera, let alone the new-to-me 1972 F. So far it's been fun. The Z5ii takes better pics but it sure make the process easy. It's a tradeoff.
cadman342001 wrote:
Ah a Porsche man !
<great pics>
Your pics show some serious technology. Also more serious cost!
Porsche man? Ah yes, you could say that. I'm on my second. The first was a used 912 I bought back in 1973, a year or two after I bought my Nikkormat. Those were the good old days.
I'll pass on all that high-tech automotive stuff however. My dealership had a 918 on a rack once when I went in for service. When I went back a month later it was still there.
I must say my base model 718 Cayman, which I bought new in 2018, has been remarkable. Comfortable, fast, efficient, reliable, easily the best-built and best-engineered car I've ever experienced. I should post some pics but I have few taken with MFNG.
200mm f/4.0 Nikkor Q, about as old as my first Porsche would be. The lens survived. I'm sure the car didn't.
Fast Cars and Color, great pages recently. Ken, how did you light the Dicentra formosa (I had to copy that)? Fun shots. I’ve been wanting to play with off camera flash some more. I’ve been thinking about how to easily soften a small flash, you’ve got me thinking maybe I shouldn’t.
James Markus wrote:
Serge, that second shot is magic - pure art. I got a good chuckle when I looked it up online. The first line was this:
"After the “Puente nuevo” (New Bridge) fell down in 1741"...
Thank you, James.
One does not hear of bridges falling down too often. The builders did a grand job on the "New" and it is the main attraction of Ronda. I have a few photos that need to process.
Ballard wrote:
Violets and dandelions coming up everywhere. It must be spring. Both with 63/2.8 EL-Nikkor reversed on PB-4 bellows; D700. Poor job of stacking on my part.
Looks just fine on my screen Ken. Look forward to more postings from you.
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AdaptedLenses wrote:
Okay… we covered my initial feelings on the Zf, but I have to give credit where it’s due… slap a grip on it and it’s quite comfortable and enjoyable with larger lenses. Doesn’t fit well in my bag, but it’s enjoyable in the hand. And I continue to enjoy its SOOC color and sharpness, I could see having a JPEG mode on this camera and treating it like film.
A couple from the 105mm f/4 Micro.
Maybe even some shades of Df color (perhaps I'm just being influenced by the dials).
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kwoodard wrote:
Keeping on the EL train, I have the 105/5.6. Beautiful lens that renders details so damn well. 95mm of tubes. Reproduction ratio is about .4/1. You can see very fine spiderwebs on this spider plant bud.
James Markus wrote:
Saw a documentary on a baker. Everyone thinks his bread is perfect, the best, except him. He does the exact same thing every day, but only 3 to 4 times a year does the bread come out "perfect" in his opinion. Good enough is pretty much all we can expect.
cadman342001 wrote:
I think I would be happy just looking at it !
The people that buy these Hypercars are so rich they buy them for their collection or just drive them on Track Days.
You got that right. The owners rarely even visit their pretty machines, and if they collect enough of them - they hire "Biff" to run them once a week, and dust them, and look for oil spots on the concrete under them. Some turn their obsession into museums. I am surprised at how many serious collectors I have met.
Although I could never afford one, I’ve been a Porsche fan my whole life. When I was growing up in Germany, the landlord (who was a very famous soccer player) had a barn with three very top end for the 80’s Porsches. When I got my license, he let me drive “the slowest” one on the Autobahn. It was a 928 with two huge turbos on it. It cruised at 150mph like a Toyota doing 60mph. His two babies were a silver 959 and a near copy of James Deans 550 Spyder. I go to ride in both. His daily though, basic 911. He did not baby that one at all. I think that one was my favorite of all of his cars. Purest example of German engineering.
My dad got a bright yellow 914 - looked good, but sounded like a VW Beetle. At least Porsche does mid-engine cars right. You don't have to share the passenger cabin with the engine - like Lamborghini, or the Ford GT
Thank you.
Those were the good old days.
The builders did a grand job on the "New" and it is the main attraction of Ronda. I have a few photos that need to process.
At least Porsche does mid-engine cars right. You don't have to share the passenger cabin with the engine - like Lamborghini, or the Ford GT
