+1
Exactly. There’s a little overlap, but each one is about the same, just different areas. For me, the darkroom is more a fun hobby where I can take my time. For digital prints, it’s less expensive per print, and quite a bit faster.
A high-quality digital print is neither faster nor cheaper. High-quality digital printing is a serious craft that takes many years of experience. And even then, one print can take many hours of fine-tuning. As for the cost.... the cost of good paper and ink is significant. E.g. a sheet of Hahnemuhle Fine Art digital paper costs as much as a sheet of Ilford MGWTFB. Good ink is way more expensive than darkroom chemicals.
I wasn't talking about myself. I've done quite a bit of printing with an Epson sc-p600 and many different papers over the past few of years, say 1000 prints or so, mostly for books and exhibitions. I consider myself still a beginner and amateur.if it takes you many hours of fine tuning, then you must not print very much.
I wasn't talking about myself. I've done quite a bit of printing with an Epson sc-p600 and many different papers over the past few of years, say 1000 prints or so, mostly for books and exhibitions. I consider myself still a beginner and amateur.
But I happen to know one of the best (maybe the best) digital printing professionals in my country. He makes a living making high quality prints for musea, galleries, artists etc.. He has his own workshop with the best large format Epson printers and all the professional image processing equipment you can think of. And making a high (i.e. museum-) quality print takes him hours. It's not so much about the technique, it's about interpreting the image and the artist's intent and translating that into the best possible print.
It's virtually impossibly to burn 2 prints exactly the same. If I burn and dodge in the computer, all the prints will look the same.
I enjoy printing in the darkroom and I enjoy holding a chemical print even more.
I understand the productivity value of printing digitally. As for fine art, do you think it each print being exactly the same devalues the print? For other fine art print mediums like etchings and lithographs, what makes them special is each is slightly different and made the the hand of the artist. Prints made by Adams are more coveted than prints made by his assistants. What's the difference between ink jet digital prints vs offset litho prints printed by the thousands?This is why I like making inkjet prints from my wet plate negatives. They can be very difficult to interpret correctly in the darkroom, but once they've been processed digitally, they make identical inkjet prints every time. That is a huge asset.
Fine art litho prints are not exclusively (or even usually) made by the artist. But they are made under the supervision of the artist. Lithos stones and etching plates wear and there is a limit to how many prints can be made. Also, etchings sometimes have stages, where the artist will go back to the plate and add to it, changing the prints as the edition is run. Conversely, photo prints made on an inkjet ("giclée"!, "archival pigment") usually are identical. Darkroom prints can vary depending on how much and involved the process is--dodging and burning, masking, bleaching, toning, etc--and can vary throughout thee edition. The one thing for all multiple print runs is the number of prints in the edition, be it fine art etching, lithograph, silkscreen, inkjet or darkroom wet print. The fewer there are, the more valuable each one will be.I understand the productivity value of printing digitally. As for fine art, do you think it each print being exactly the same devalues the print? For other fine art print mediums like etchings and lithographs, what makes them special is each is slightly different and made the the hand of the artist. Prints made by Adams are more coveted than prints made by his assistants. What's the difference between ink jet digital prints vs offset litho prints printed by the thousands?
What's the difference between ink jet digital prints vs offset litho prints printed by the thousands?
Fine art litho prints are not exclusively (or even usually) made by the artist. But they are made under the supervision of the artist. Lithos stones and etching plates wear and there is a limit to how many prints can be made. Also, etchings sometimes have stages, where the artist will go back to the plate and add to it, changing the prints as the edition is run. Conversely, photo prints made on an inkjet ("giclée"!, "archival pigment") usually are identical. Darkroom prints can vary depending on how much and involved the process is--dodging and burning, masking, bleaching, toning, etc--and can vary throughout thee edition. The one thing for all multiple print runs is the number of prints in the edition, be it fine art etching, lithograph, silkscreen, inkjet or darkroom wet print. The fewer there are, the more valuable each one will be.
Here's a question about digital vs analog prints. Digital files could be copied then printed. The quality between the "original" and the "copy" is the same. However, it's not true with analog processes. An analog print usually involves the original piece of film in the process. The piece of film was also present when the image was created. Does this add any value to a print or not? Or it just depends on the viewer of the print?Prints with believable "limited editions" may be more valuable than prints with unlimited editions...by some photographers. On the other hand, prints "by" people like HCB were virtually never made by him. His images are more valuable in reproduction rights than as pieces of paper....probably true for most of Ansel's prints.
The darkroom is harder to get a good print. Digital is harder to get the perfect print.
Here's why. In the darkroom, the skills sets required are limited, but many. There are a lot of variables you can play with, but they're pretty much all stuff you can do by hand. Dodging and burning. Adjusting the contrast. Adjusting the development. All of that stuff is pretty intuitive, though it takes some patience, experience, and skill to get really good at. But the concepts are easy to understand, even if their execution isn't.
In the digital realm, it's as easy a hooking up a printer, loading paper, and clicking the print button. However, if that print isn't satisfactory to you, then you start down that rabbit hole of the behind the scenes technical mumbo-jumbo. Next thing you know, you're comparing perceptual vs. relative colorimetric, with and without blackpoint compensation, ICC printing profiles (at both the printer level and document level), calibration sets, drivers, RIP software settings, yadda, yadda, yadda... It gets crazy complicated really fast. Half the time, I give up and just print one that looks okay, and then try to correct the print at the file level with Photoshop rather than going through the all of the driver level settings and all of the behind the scenes stuff (which is what I probably should be doing). And even then, messing with curves tool in Photoshop can be a nightmare sometimes. You either spend years with your head in technical jargon books, or learn to tolerate "good enough".
So that's my take. The darkroom is harder to get good at. The digital printer is harder to master.
My friend and former colleague whom I worked for graduated from Brooks. He was a great printer but didn't like it in the darkroom. He had a long career as a photographer. He took digital photography like a fish to water. He worked for a university for decades and when digital imaging technology became mature, he never shot another roll of film. For me, I still like film. I don't print enough in the darkroom to be good at it.I never really enjoyed darkroom printing, but I prefer to process my own film and print digitally.
Digital printing can be beautiful no matter what anyone says. Just like darkroom work, it has a learning curve.
I taught photography for decades and saw first hand how some passionate photographers were not good with computer skills.
If you enjoy using computers, monitors, software and understand how to tweak for your own preferences, you will get good results.
If you have it in your mind darkroom prints only matter, than stick with darkroom printing.
There are people that are tone deaf visually (like there are musically tone deaf individuals), and they never get it.
Patience and the desire to learn is what makes a great craftsman IMO.
Hi Darlene,I never stopped shooting film. Currently working on a 6x12 project with my Cambo Wide 650.
I just love the look. Film + digital imaging is my favorite look printed.
I digitize all my film via cameras now and print with Epson printers.
A great time to be a photographer!
Best to you,
Darr
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