Split-grade printing - first attempt

Griz · Jul 26, 2012

Thomas Bertilsson said:
This picture will likely not print very well with just a straight shot of high contrast filtration and low contrast filtration respectively.

The contrast of the scene is fairly high, and there's not detail in the hottest highlights, as well as the darkest shadows, which means the negative was underexposed and overdeveloped.

So, you must employ the full strength of the split grade printing technique, and take advantage of the fact that you can burn and dodge at different contrast filtration. This is the true strength of printing this way, and if you're anything like I am, I sometimes use three different filters for my burning to get it just right.
And, I must disagree that the high contrast filter has little to no effect on highlights - it can have a very dramatic effect. Especially in something like an overcast sky, for example, to create texture in those areas, to accentuate the small differences in tone that may be present there.

Good luck!

Hi Thomas, yep, still lots of room for improvement to my work prints, which is fine with me, I need the practice! These negs were the result of a perfect storm of obstacles. P&S camera, direct sunlight, heavy shadows, very light skinned subject, tri-colored hound, and the list goes on. I wasn't processing my own negs back in '95 when these were taken. The local "pro" shop developed the negs, and I had them do a 5x7 print for me. VERY disappointing results, with the highlights completely blown, so now that my own darkroom is up and running, it was the perfect opportunity to try to improve some prints, learn some new techniques, and have some fun, all at the same time!
Thanks for your response. I'll be sure to post some new scans when I manage to complete a couple of final prints.

Cheers!
Griz

DREW WILEY · Jul 27, 2012

Yeah ... if you expose and develop everything correctly, you shouldn't need to split-print. Shouldn't
need to dodge/burn either, or change you f-stop. Just politely ask the sun to maintain the correctly
ligthing ratio for you every time. And while you're at it, make sure the scene illumination compensates for the illumination falloff of your enlarger bulb, diffuser, and lens. Real simple. Yeah,
sure.

ic-racer · Jul 27, 2012

DREW WILEY said:
And while you're at it, make sure the scene illumination compensates for the illumination falloff of your enlarger bulb, diffuser, and lens. Real simple. Yeah,
sure.

Exactly. I remember back on the 1980s when I first saw the light falloff curve for my enlarger lens. After that I realized there was nothing 'wrong' with the observation that many of my prints benefited by some edge burn. Prior to that I had been caught up with trying to show the world "as it is" with no dodging or burning.

Thomas Bertilsson · Jul 27, 2012

DREW WILEY said:
Yeah ... if you expose and develop everything correctly, you shouldn't need to split-print. Shouldn't
need to dodge/burn either, or change you f-stop. Just politely ask the sun to maintain the correctly
ligthing ratio for you every time. And while you're at it, make sure the scene illumination compensates for the illumination falloff of your enlarger bulb, diffuser, and lens. Real simple. Yeah,
sure.

Why not post a sarcastic reply instead?

DREW WILEY · Jul 27, 2012

Well, I got a little ticked by the expression, "have your cake and eat it too". Sometimes the way I think, that means deliberately breaking the Zone rules by overdeveloping a "normal" scene ratio to
expand the midtone and highlight gradation, and then punching in the delicacy of the extremes using
either unsharp masking or split printing. The latter is easier.

Griz · Jul 27, 2012

Michael R 1974 said:
A very relevant point. One thing I haven't seen mentioned here is a proper assessment of what's in the negative before making the decision to print using a particular technique, split grade or otherwise. Particularly with a negative that looks like it could be tricky, I suggest always starting with a very soft proof (as Adams and many others have always recommended) especially if you are a less experienced worker. This will allow you to see what's in the negative. Which parts of the shadows have good detail, do the highlights have detail etc. Then decide how to proceed.

Makes good sense, Michael. I knew going in that these were poor negatives, unfortunately they are some of the best shots that I have of one of my favorite hunting dogs, so I'm trying to make the best of the situation. There is relatively good shadow detail in the negs, at the expense of the highlight detail. The prints will never be excellent quality, but I think I can get them good enough to add to my memory wall, and get in some practice at the same time.

Thanks for taking the time to respond, and for your suggestions!

Griz

Thomas Bertilsson · Jul 27, 2012

DREW WILEY said:
Well, I got a little ticked by the expression, "have your cake and eat it too". Sometimes the way I think, that means deliberately breaking the Zone rules by overdeveloping a "normal" scene ratio to
expand the midtone and highlight gradation, and then punching in the delicacy of the extremes using
either unsharp masking or split printing. The latter is easier.

I agree with you that sometimes a negative of higher than normal contrast makes for a better print. Both because of the midtone separation you mention, and because it makes me work harder in the darkroom.

Split-grade printing - first attempt

Griz

DREW WILEY

ic-racer

Thomas Bertilsson

DREW WILEY

Griz

Thomas Bertilsson

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