Owner Eric Luden made a trip to Fall River last night to present his black & white program to over 30 photographers at the Fall River Camera Club. What I like most about speaking with photographers at these camera clubs is their passion about photography. They are doing this for fun, pleasure and education, and are not jaded by the demands of trying to make a living with their hobby.
I give an overview of the changes that have impacted black & white photography as digital methods have evolved since the mid- 90’s. I explain how photographers used an LVT film recorder to produce b&w; negatives and then made darkroom prints and then the evolution of inkjet printing. We discussed the evolution of digital enlargers, like the Lightjet or Durst Lambda and how we utilize the Durst Theta 51 to produce real black & white continuous tone prints.
Photographers are aware that black & white photography is making a comeback. So many digital tools are available to make this possible, including multiple plugins and other software. More than a third of the members already own Nik Silver Efex Pro and are eagerly awaiting the launch of Silver Efex Pro 2, which is due out at the end of this month. This plugin makes working in black & white so much easier and produces the cleanest files. When you combine this with our silver gelatin printing service, you get the best of both worlds.
Thanks to Lorraine for inviting me down to the club – you have an excellent organization and I look forward to coming back. Congratulations to Richard who won the raffle for a free 11×14 Fiber print!
