Archive for May 27th, 2008

Workflow #2

Published
by
Rob
on May 27, 2008
in Technique
. 0 Comments

Keep it simple.

Pre-game

This really only applies to my film workflow, as digital is basically set from the moment you turn it on. I always have two film bodies on hand and a stack of film at the ready. This way, when I click off that 36th or 16th frame a fresh camera with a new roll can be handed off immediately, with the spent roll being replaced by a new one and ready to go. This principle also works with digital, although a second body is really unnecessary given the speed with which one can swap CF cards. I shoot tethered, so this isn’t an issue.

Film

Once everything is souped and ready to roll, my process begins at the light table. There’s something about the feel of being huddled over a spread of chromes with a loupe and grease pencil that, for me, is really hard to let go of. Once I’ve made my selects, I scan both my 35s and 120s using an Epson flatbed photo scanner which, while not quite as nice as a slot-scanner, does a beautiful job for my needs. The largest my work prints is usually 11×14″, so the difference is negligible if not entirely unnoticeable. After everything is turned into zeros and ones, I archive the film in binders for easy access as well as the digital files on both my working drive and my RAID array.

Digital

I always shoot tethered as the ability to see the captures on a large calibrated display the moment they’re made is an absolute boon to the entire team. I shoot directly into Capture One PRO, where quick adjustments can be made to the RAW processing on the fly and retained for the remainder of the session. For example, if I were shooting a set destined for black and white reproduction, I could capture my full color RAW files but have C1 display them as tweaked black and white images as they’re transferring. I don’t use Capture One for my actual processing, however, as its algorithms have been far surpassed and version 4 is still three years late. After the shoot has been wrapped up, all files are archived on the working drive as well as the RAID. Next, the session is loaded into Lightroom where I can quickly run through, make my selects, and export them for retouching.

Retouching

After the captures have been archived, all of my retouching is done in Photoshop with the aid of a WACOM tablet. The only third-party plug-in I use is Alien Skin’s Exposure, and only very sparingly. Nothing more than a quick conversion to T-MAX 100 (my favorite black and white film stock, which it does a startlingly good job of emulating) or an overlay of Kodachrome 25 crunch for a bit of contrast before the image goes out to print. Beyond that, it’s all just a lot of gentle coaxing and an even greater amount of experience. I will be going into more detail on this subject in future posts, and will be sharing a lot of my personal knowledge and techniques. Once everything is press-ready, all files are archived to the RAID array.

Printing

Depending on the image’s final destination, I’ll either print from Photoshop to a large-format Epson inkjet or send the files out to be run on a Noritsu. While the Epson does a really incredible job, especially on my beloved premium gloss paper stock, you just can’t beat the astounding quality of a top-end lab machine. Once everything is on paper, a set of prints is archived (seeing a theme here?) in light-tight boxes and the rest are dropped off or FedEx’d out to wherever they need to be.

Parting Thoughts

I wouldn’t trade my film process for anything. While most people simply abhor souping and scanning, I see it as a labor of love. The tangible aspect of it all is what really makes it special. You can’t hold a RAW file in your hands.

The digital side of operations could use some help. The software just isn’t there; it’s made by engineers who make a living selling software, not technicians who make a living selling a beloved film stock. We choose a film for its characteristics and quirks. As Pascal said in his recent interview with the New Yorker,

“Photography as we knew it, meaning film and Kodak and all that, was a very subjective process. With film images you had emotions. You used to go out and buy film like Fuji, because it was more saturated, or you liked Agfa because it gave you a rounded color palette.” With a ten-dollar roll of film, he explained, you were essentially buying ten dollars’ worth of someone’s ideas.

Software is much more objective and flat, focusing more on the features than the funk. This is likely due to the fact that features are what sells software, and those of us who really demand the quality fit into a fairly small market. They have to make money, and the general public is where that’s found.

This brings me to the battle between Aperture, Lightroom, and Capture One. Truth be told, I’d much prefer to be using Aperture for both my capture and processing. The interface fits my way of thinking and working (do anything at anytime from anywhere) very well and the processing as of version 2 is superb. Until they pick up support for Phase One files, though, I’m afraid I’ll be delegated to the sectioned-off, machine-like world of Lightroom. This is not to say that Lightroom is an inferior product, I just don’t like having to switch panels and do things in the prescribed order. Keyboard shortcuts make life easier, but after using Aperture it’s always in the back of my mind. Capture One is thus a necessity for tethering Phase One backs, as is Lightroom for effectively sorting and processing them. Word is that Capture One PRO 4 will have some great and long overdue features, but we’ve been hearing that for years now. We’ll see, and here’s hoping for some very pleasant surprises.

Finally, I can’t stress the importance of archiving your work as much and as often as possible. We’ve all lost work to faulty technology; if you haven’t, you will. Make sure it’s secure, and if you’re running out of space, buy more.

No excuses.

Workflow #1

Published
by
mustafah
on May 27, 2008
in Technique
. 4 Comments

Here at MJR, we’ve got a pretty diverse line-up of dudes. So this week, we’ll be outlining our workflow from start to finish. Feel free to ask questions. As my focus is documentary photojournalism, please keep in mind that everything below will reflect that. All links are to show you what the heck I may be using.

1. Gearbox

Mainly, I use a Canon 5D with 24-70 f/2.8, 35mm f/1.4 and 50mm f/1.4 lens’. For film, I use Canon EOS-1V and EOS-1N cameras. Fuji Superia is my color film of choice, Kodak Tri-x 400 for b+w.

2. Desk

Since 90% of my work is now digital, all my photographs are funneled onto my laptop, a Apple MacBook Pro. I use redundant external hard drives by Seagate and Western Digital. I’ve experienced solid results from both companies, even in larger capacities. While on the road, I use a portable external HD to backup my files and a private FTP and one from MJR for selects. I scan at Philadelphia Photographics, who do a good enough job albeit abhorrently overpriced.

I use PhotoMechanic to sort, categorize and caption, Adobe Lightroom to import, edit, and export RAW files and negatives, and Adobe Photoshop CS3 for any resizing and b+w conversions. Oh, and I rock out to iTunes and procrastinate via Twitter.

3. In the field

Now for the good stuff. In a lot of my images, you’ll notice a wide range of tones and exposure control. I like to see a difference in lines and textures; some people dig flat black+whites and don’t get me wrong, all the power to them. But it’s not my cup of tea. So when I’m shooting, mainly in color, I employ a somewhat modified version of the infamous Zone System with a final objective being a well-toned black & white image.

This process starts from the moment I eye up my subject to the final output via LR and CS3. Because of the nature of digital, it is often difficult to yield certain results. Often times, the selection and specific usage of various films can be the palette from which a photographer projects their authorship. Since in digital, the palette is defaulted to the sensor, so to speak, I’ve decided to use everything from exposure to perspective to produce my vision. This what makes my images mine.

The sensor on the 5D is pretty amazing, and so it’s given me the ability to use a wide range of exposure combinations to work with. I’ve had the fortune of really growing within photography using digital (for news, commission and personal work) as well as film for the same. This has taught me some of the limitations and possibilities that the digital SLR sensor can produce. Understanding this, and how far you can push your files, is paramount in my photographic process. This is much akin to film photographers understanding how to push and pull their film to suit both their vision, content, and final output.

Since there’s not a bit of sense in using anything but RAW, go for it. Hard drives are getting cheaper by the month and since all are bound to fail, backing up in multiple sources and making prints can make that problem a more easily navigated transition.

4. Process

Once backed up, I sort through my take using PhotoMechanic (PM), a wicked fast program that’s light on the system. They’re marked as Winner (overall), Winner Alt (best of overall), and Superior (best single selects). Then they’re imported as RAWs into Lightroom (LR), given a blanket set of exposure corrections and color corrected, then exported as hi-res JPEGs to be resorted and captioned in PM. These JPEGs are what I mess with and print from.

Once the pic is in JPEG, it’s pretty basic. I try to avoid dodging and burning unless I need something specific, and when I do, it’s nothing too fancy. Levels and Curves are my friend, both in LR and PS. This allows me to more finely control the exposure of my photographs in a way I aimed for in the moments leading up to the shutter being clicked.

With this picture, I was aiming to get good shadow detail, but also a good amount of contrast to show difference between the cage and the police and coach. So in my final b+w edit, I’m lightly dodging the faces to differentiate. To do so when taking the picture would be to use flashes, something that isn’t my fancy.

By the time the conversion happens, the image has just the right edit for my final picture.

Then everything edited is backed up again and I’m pretty much done. Some photographers lecture for TIFFs. That’s awesome, but since I have the original RAWs I see no reason to have yet another set of images in a space-consuming format. If something is mighty special, I’ll put them on gold archival DVDs. But only if the image is whispering sweet nothings in my ear. Otherwise, to the HD with it.

When shooting negs, I’m using the same Zone System with a mind for the final image. This image, taken in Buenos Aires, is an example of my process. From the negative, it’s scanned as the highest-resolution that can be done (usually yielding a 50MB+ file) on a range of scanners: Minolta DiMage, Pacific Scan, or a Imacon I pay by the frame.

This was Kodak Tri-x 400 rated at 250 then developed at normal rating in Rodinal, hence the brown tint. And this is my process using Superia 100, rated at 160. Chemicals are typical store stuff.

Nothing special. My workflow with film is rather basic. So, there it is. Let the questions rip. Just remember that this is about the process, not about how crappy my negatives are. Sand+film = no good, dudes.