Early Riser said:
Charlie, I know the difference between diffusing the highlights with a soft filter or soft lens and diffusing the shadows during enlargement. I actually make my living by doing that exact thing.
Early Riser,
Golly Gee Wizz, am I overwhelmed! Just what in the hell have I been doing for the past 55 years ???? You seem to exude an attitude in your posts that
you have more experience and knowledge than any one else on this forum.
The information and facts you have posted have been common knowledge to all of us since the mid 1940's. I said in my earlier post that you had totally missed the point. Once again, you prove me to be correct by trying to convince me that I am wrong. Ha, If you had 1/10th of the knowledge of picture making that you profess, you would understand why the post was made in the first place. Also you would acknowledge that with all the techniques for diffusion you mention, none under any circumstance can deliver exactly the same "look" as a true soft focus lens. You are only deceiving yourself and customers by using such tricks.
I know before I go out on an assignment what lenses and equipment are necessary for me to deliver to my client the best photograph possible. If an editor or art director wants sharp, I know it from the get go. If they are not sure what they want I will give them a choice of images to pick from. But I will never diffuse a sharp image to be a soft one, as the results are in my opinion "crap".
Any knowledgable photographer or viewer of a photographic print can tell at a glance how it was achieved. The "spraying" of shadows into highlights and the reverse are instantly detectable. As is the mechanical look of photo shop diffusion. Someone on the list did a diffusion image recently trying to fool the list, it did not make it past the first viewer that saw it! If that is the kind of crap that is acceptable to you, then have fun doing it. Those of us that know the difference will continue doing it our way.
I Am sorry you have taken all this so seriously, but there are others of us who have been able to attend the best schools, workshops, Winona, buy the latest and most fashionable equipment, put food on the table, pay high dollars for a homes and automobiles, and still send the kiddies off to college on 100% direct earnings from Professional Photography.
My unsolicited advice for Early Riser, is "Chill Out" a bit. None of us know all the answers, but as a group, we are awsome!
Charlie.............................
Charlie, where have I made any denigrating comments about people here? Why do you seem to take this so personally? So please don't tell me to "chill out" when you are the one who has gone off the topic of photography and have entered the area of personal remarks.
First not everyone who reads these threads have the vast experience that you have, 55 years is a long time, and I'm sure that after 55 years of doing photography you must be an acclaimed master at it. (Where are you showing I'd love to see your prints?) But for those that are more novice at photography I attempted to point out some things that they might not be aware of.
If I come across as "... seeming to exude an attitude in your posts that you have more experience and knowledge than any one else on this forum."
it's because I've taught photography in the past, at the School of Visual Arts in NYC, and have taught countless assistants, and I might come across "lectury" as i also lecture on photography. The reality is that I probably have more photographic experience than the majority of people on this forum. It's not just the 30 plus years I'm doing this professionally, it's who I learned from, who I assisted and the level of clientele and competition I worked with.
I feel the best way to get a sense if someone knows what they're talking about is to merely view their work. Talk is cheap after all. People are free to view my web site and your personal gallery and decide how much credibility they are going to give us.
I don't know how you made your living as a photographer, but there are many ways to make money in photography, some involve doing very high end work that comes under tremendous scrutiny by extremely demanding and experienced clients, and some jobs are for less discerning clients with lower expectations but whose money is just as green. I'm not the one who has used making money as an indicator of how skilled a photographer is, you have. Although it's gratifying to know that you have a nice home and automobile and have been able the send your kids to college.