Split Filter Printing: How It Works and Why It's Brilliant
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- Опубликовано: 22 апр 2018
- The darkroom technique of split grade, or split filter, printing explained! This tutorial shows what happens when you change contrast filters, and why two (or three!) is better than one. Avoiding extra dodging and burning, creating amazing local contrast and having the ability to control highlights and shadows separately - sounds amazing. Let's see how it happens!
/ linabessonova.photography
T shirt from / photographytshirts
Finally i found a youtuber that speaks my language and level of technicality. thank you Lina for making these videos
This is literally the best explanation of split-grade printing I've seen on RUclips. Thank you
Thanks for the clearest explanation of split filter printing I've seen! Welcome back!
Really liked the comparision with the single filter print; first I thought they look almost the same but like you said, micro contrast is so much better on the split grad print! Thanks very much for your videos and showing darkroom techniques to a younger, new generation!
Thank you so much for sharing this. I’ve just tried it and it’s brilliant !
Yay, she’s back :) Loved the video, look forward to the next one.
Ok that is just great sharing and super technic to avoid all those flat images ! thank you !
Thanks a lot for another very informative video! I just gave it a first try, and as you promise - loads of local contrast, and nice control over highlights and shadows. So, another learning curve will start...
Awesome! Best explanation of split grade printing so far!
Thanks for this super helpful brief video, I am new to fine art darkroom printing although I made prints decades ago in school but technical only. I've been having fun trying combinations of filters with various negatives and it can really improve the prints. More please!
Oh my goodness, really great video. Thank you for being such a great teacher!
Thank you very much! Lots of work and experience went into this video. But you were wrong: the video was NOT boring at all! Much appreciated!
Your explanation is great, and the diagram at 6.49 crystallises it perfectly. Great work.
Thank you thank you thank you! Finally someone explains split grade printing in a way I can wrap my head around! And with a lovely accent, to boot.
You just got yourself a new subscriber!
Happy you liked it!
Thank you for one of the best and practice related tutorial to this technique!
In my first lab decade before almost 25 yrs I used multigrade only in single shot, but we didn't had the internet...
great video and tips , thank you Lina so much
Awesome tips and results! Thank you!
This is amazing, thank you. The comparisons were so useful!
Lina, thank you for the video explaining split filter printing.
That's so cool! You make me anxious to rebuild my darkroom soon!
Great video Lina.
Thanks for sharing your technique, I'm going to give it a try.
Fantastic!!! Thanks for sharing your experience.
Almost made it to the end of the intro before I realized your shirt design is a camera. Great tut - I just last heard about this technique and this explains it well. Thanks!
Thanks for the clear understanding of split filters.
I love your french Accent - thanks a lot for all these videos about analogic process that i love to learn a lot - Take care from
France
Great video and seriously good timing. I was in the darkroom this morning trying out split grade printing. Its tough to get my head around but your video made so much sense and answered a lot of questions I had. Cheers, Jon
Glad it was helpful!!! Best of luck!
Thanks a lot, great video! Didn't get the whole split grade thing until now! 😅
Wow! Super helpful explanation, thanks!
Great explanation on this topic!
Wow! Thank you Lina for your very informative video. I've been trying split fiter printing with little success. This is going to help so much!
Best of luck!
Wow the video that I need, but now I have to try on my dark room and.... I belive that it will not easy. Thank you to show us.
Thanks for this video, great stuff!
i love this detailed video
Hi! thank you very much for posting this video, you clearly explained the split grade printing and can't wait to test it with my prints! :)
Good luck!
That's so clear! Thanks!!!
nice work! very helpful
Very helpful, thank you!
Thank you so much for explaining this. Finding good tutorials on this stuff is really hard
Yep, I checked all the possible tutorials, and most are awfully confusing!
Just tried this way of printing and you’re right, I’m never going back to one filter. Never really got my head around split grade until watching this so thanks for making the video. Like the comment below I was also wondering during which exposure is the best time to do any d&b ?
Glad you enjoyed the video! I do d&b during both, just for different subjects. for example, if you want to brighten a face in a portrait, you dodge during the low filter exposure. This way, you keep all your shadows and face outlines in place.
Depending on the subject, you just decide what makes sense :)
Lina Bessonova thanks Lina
So helpful, thank you!
Watched this several times to try and get my head around the process. Fortunately she isn't difficult to look at. Can anyone explain the reasons for using a 1 and 4 as apposed to a 0 and 5 combo in a straight forward way?
She is right when she implies that a perfect print with all information is boring and clearly there is a trade off between having a print with punch and impact vs one with all tones and maximum detail expressed
Tried split printing for the first time today (also my first time with Gen V Ilford MGRC) and holy cow! It's a thing of beauty
As I saw the demonstartion photo I clicked like.:)
Hi Lina , I Am Luigi, we meet each other at the presentation of Roba Apposta kit last saturday. I had no try this method yet becouse I have three sons and is not easy for me to take the right time for spend some time in the darkroom, but I really appreciate this tutorial, and I want to try as soon as possible this method. Best regards, see you soon. Luigi
Some years ago I bought a Heiland splitgrade controller and LED cold light source for my LPL enlarger. It comes with a light sensor measuring the lightest and darkest section of the print at printing aperture and calculates the times at blue and green light - since it uses LEDs, it uses the direct colors.
It was quite expensive. But it almost immediately brings you to the final result shown here. Of course you still need to burn and dodge afterwards, but it safes a lot of time and paper.
Holy crap this is brilliant!
GRAZIE! come sempre ci regali info perfette 🙏
Maaaa che lampadine usare????
Great video, do you know if this method works if I'm using the filters before the lens ? I'm using a Fujimoto enlarger end filters goes first then the negative and finally the head with the lens (i have made a lot off tests but it seems it doesn't work for me 😕.....thanks for inspiring all off us💫
Very intuitive
Hey great video! What enlarger/timer do you use ?
Is there a link for the second part if this video that you mention at the end, about dodging and burning on split grade printing?
Excelent video!! Thanks for the information! The only problem with doing this seems to be the amount of paper used, because paper prices are really high where I live hahahahah
Thanks for that and the back to back drying trick! I will watch that again and again for sure!!!
Now the only thing I need is to separate the room with the fixer because last time I got something like the flu after a printing session. Ugh.
When I work with selenium, I often cover the tray with a piece of plexiglass to avoid the smell! Could be a solution for your fixer issue too!
@@linabessonova I just watched that video again, and again, it's a great help! I'm just doing things instinctively to get the feel of the whole thing, but seriously, next thing I try is that! Especially because I can't afford loosing paper when I'll work in my final setup, artisan paper and Rollei Black Magic.
A cover is definitely a trick I'll make too. I solved my fumes problem by setting my darkroom in the living room, except for the fixer and washing that is kept apart in the bathroom. Makes sense! Do you now if the light of the stars will fog the paper? I really want to try printing on the fresh air outside!
@@linabessonova The print I really want to get properly is this one : instagram.com/p/BrENJZAAq1m
To be able to get the shine I think only split grade printing will work. That, and a darkroom internship :D
I need some help, I just bought 8.9 x 8.9cm ilford multigrade filters but it seems like they are 1mm to big to put them in the enlarger (in the slot ment for filters). Any thing I can do? Was thinking about cuting off one edge but they are brand new... I don't think there are any smaler sizes? Is it an option to use the papers under the lens?
I really should have watched this video today while i was mucking around in the darkroom it is very well explained i must have been missing the point about just enough white and just enough black, that is an important bit.
I use two trays of developer. The first with hydroquinone based for the blacks... and then the second tray for the lights is a soft developer with the metol. I've found that the results are much much better.
Good videos
Hi Lina...
Technically, this video is uncorrect.
Split printing this way may give problems to those following it.
Proper split printing has the following steps:
1 - Test strip with filter 0
Chose time for highlights.
2 - Expose the whole sheet with 0 filter and the chosen time.
3 - Run a test strip with grade 5 on that same sheet.
4 - Chose time for the darkest areas.
5 - Make the print with the two selected exposures, now the order doesn't matter anymore
There are very serius technical reasons to operate this way and not another.
Technical reasons are those that certain ratios of 00 and 5 filters correspond to regular 1, 2, 3 etc filters. So changing ratios can really fine-tune the contrast to 1/12th of a grade. Which in theory is wonderful, but often leads to overly flat prints.
If we are to be seriously technical, the steps listed aren't necessarily those. You can do two separate test strips and deduct a certain fraction of a stop from highlight OR shadow exposure time, depending on whether you care more about keeping shadows open or having textured highlights.
My method works with any negative, except underexposed ones, but even in that case a 3,5 and 5 combo sometimes works wonders. I've tried this specific method with mine and student's negatives, printing over a hundred photos with great results.
Since you live nearby, you are welcome to come to my lab and examine mine and my students'/workshops participants' prints, which were done exactly like in the video ;)
@@linabessonova , I am not saying that you cannot make nice prints with your system.
The point is that the closest the contrast grades are, the more is their influence on the other side of the tonal range. This causes what you say at the beginning of the video when you select the dark tones... not too dark, making this choice a bit of a lucky one since you cannot Exactly predict of much darker they will be after the second exposure. This guessing can of course be fixed with experience and practice, but it is also what will be confusing for beginners.
Generally split printing, though easy, has this issue (even using 00 and 5), by selecting grades that are closer you are making it greater and more difficult to manage.
If you make two separate test strips, one for each grade, you will not taking into account the influence of grade 00 on the shadows: print will be over-exposed. You cannot make that. Well you can, but then once printed you will see the issue and you will need adjustemnts. Again you will be guessing,
I made dozens of thousands prints with my students in more than 20 yrs of film photography teaching, and that doesn't include the years spent printing for others, and the almost 40 spent in the darkroom doing my work. ;)
Thank you for the invitation. We will meet. :)
@@AndreaCalabresiSilverprint Your years of experience printing a certain way don't equal my method being incorrect (which you haven't even tried).
Minor exposure correction needs to be done with 00 and 5 too, so what's your argument? That making exposure corrections with 2 and 4,5 is "harder" for some average "beginner"?
Separate and combined test strips are both valid methods used by people more experienced than us both combined, so it's not worth a debate. They have their place and time, my next video will actually be mentioning that.
@@linabessonova Never said that.
In 40 yrs i tried so many things that you cannot really imagine, surely I tried also what you suggest. It's an old common trick of the old times when amateurs who did not really know what's happening to the paper or how MG papers work, used to fix their unability to chose contrast properly.
Anyway, If you do split printing properly you will need, and not always, only minor adjustments, even if the negatives are very, very soft, a rare case, and you can always avoid the issue doing 5 first. So that's the reason that makes the separate strips or split printing with two close contrastst uncorrect.
The reason to do test strips is to avoid guessing and subsequesnt adjustments as much as possible. If a printing method does not take guessing away as much as possible is uncorrect and especially NOT suited to beginners. That's my point.
@@AndreaCalabresiSilverprint & Lina Bessonova it's cool to see you two debating this in the comments. I've been doing a lot of home printing, and have watched a number of both of your videos. It's helpful to read people debating the technique, I'll be giving it a shot soon.
Great video, and I'm going to give this a try. I've never understood split grade printing before, and this makes a lot of sense. For dodging and burning (if still needed), though, do you usually dodge with the #41/2, and burn with the #2? Or dodge and burn with both as needed?
Dodging and burning are during any of the filters! Whatever makes sense. Burning in snow or light skies is logical with a lower filter. Opening up shadows works if you dodge during the high filter, then the deepest blacks will be "lifted. etc
and what about dodging and burning with similar filters to better improve the areas you want to highlight i wonder???
Hi Lina. Great video!!! What under the lens holder are you using?
It comes together with the Ilford multigrade filters!
здравствуйте Лина. а разве мультиконтрастная бумага ильфорд не засвечивается при красном свете?
May i Ask.... do you know if this method works if I'm using the filters before the lens ? I'm using a Fujimoto enlarger end filters goes first then the negative and finally the head with the lens (i have made a lot off tests but it seems it doesn't work for me 😕.....thanks a lot for inspiring all off us💫
Hi! It works wherever you put the filters - behind or in front of the lens! And it's best with Ilford papers. Which papers did you use?
Hi Lina, could you explain what goes wrong with using LED bulbs in enlargers? In specific I was looking at them for my Leitz Valloy II as the head gets very hot and conventional bulbs are getting harder to find. Thanks!
The light spectrum is different from old light bulbs, and filters and paper were designed to interact with those old spectrums. Some modern light bulbs are ok and give results quite close to the norm, but ...... no guarantees really
Thank you for your reply and great video!
Hi Lina. Would you recommend dodging and burning with the lower or higher contrast filter? Also, is there an order to print - start with the lower contrast then go for the higher or vive-versa? Thanks!
Hi! The order of filters does not impact anything. Choosing to dodge and burn with a certain filter depends on the subject. If you are burning in very light skies, a lower filter is better. If you want to add depth to the shadows, but keep the highlights - a higher, more contrasty filter is the right choice!
@@linabessonova grazie! Ciao!
My question is how are your exposures so short? What do you typically set your enlarger lens to when you are printing a good negative?
Oh it depends a lot how high or low the enlarger head is, and what's the light source, LED or old light bulb... But I would say my average exposures are between 5 and 12 seconds per filter. I try to stick around f11-f16
I've tried this on tricky negs. The only thing is take a lot of time and ton of test strips. I think the biggest the is to properly expose film and develop film correctly to avoid tricky negs. But sometimes it's hard to avoid.
IMO even with good negs, split grade increases micro contrast and makes the print "pop", like if it was in 3D.
I agree that split filter printing is the way to go, but it is not always that easy. The #4 1/2 filter also affects the mid tones, so if the neg is not that contrasty, the mid tones will be darkened as well. Other wise a great video.
This was one the first things I learned when I first began darkroom printing, it made dodging and burning so much easier. Check out "Darkroom Dave" an ex Ilford tech for great info. Great video, thanks for sharing Lina.
Glad you liked it! I watched the mentioned video, just like all the videos I could find on split filter printing, before doing my own :)
May I ask: The paper has different speeds whether (1) no filter, (2) filters 0-3.5 and (3) filters 4.0-5.0. You make no mention of this. I've seen a similar video by a different author and she made no mention of this either. Q1: Is there a reason why this is not mentioned? Q2: What is the practical effect of the differing speeds in the methodology mentioned in your video?
She's picked up the time for every filter separately by picking a black point and a white point of image. Time factors of filters is need when you take one stripe test and then decide what contrast should be. Hope my explanation in english is understandable, haha.
why're you really so pretty?!
Whoa! Is there a workshop on this?! ;-)
like your hair :)
Лина, здравствуйте. Вы не могли бы добавить в это и предыдущее видео субтитры. Так то всё замечательно, только я не успеваю переводить и в некоторых местах совсем не понимаю. Заранее очень извиняюсь и желаю вам успеха в этом замечательном деле
Постараюсь в ближайшее время сделать!
Interesting method. I have tried both Dark Room Daves method and Les McLeans method (www.lesmcleanphotography.com/articles.php?page=full&article=21) and have settled on an adaptation of Les' method. I expose using a colour head @ grade 0 and grade 4.5 on Ilford papers. I can only assume that you have tried using a colour head before? Do you find the under lens filters give you a better representation?
While I will probably use the wider range, I think I will experiment with the same method that you use to determine your base exposures with my next printing session.
Cheers and thanks for the tutorials. These are really good and very easy to follow and understand (& don't worry about them being technical - dark room printing needs to get technical from time to time!)
Now I wish I had a darkroom ... and time ... and money :-D
Printing with a colour head enlarger where you combine yellow and magenta filters gives you the same results.
yeah, I just find it sooooo sooo annoying fumbling with the color head. But I know printers who work like that easily. Guess it's habit
I think you overlooked the dirt on your arms
You're correct that split grade printing is the way to go though I do disagree with you about 00 & 5 filters. Do all the time with great results. I suggest you check out Steve Sherman who has been doing this type of printing over 20 years. Check him out at www.powerofprocesstips.com. He's also on RUclips.
Привет. Очень весело читается перевод на Русский)! Если не знать хоть немного о технике печати, то разобраться не реально. Жаль, что оставшиеся у нас в России мастера, не ведут подобные каналы. Мастерство печати умирает с ними...
Я постараюсь нормальный перевод сделать, а не автоматический )) Авто даже читать страшно))
Ciao, ti guardo da un po di tempo e devo dire che i tuoi video sono perfetti ... Sarei molto felice se anche tu guardi il mio canale e magari anche tu mi fai un commento :-)
Mi aiuterai tanto. Ti ringrazio molto per la vostra disponibilità e desidero molti più successi nelle riprese. Denisa Tv.
Andrea its incorrect and not uncorrect.
With respect, why don't you keep your grammar policing to yourself and stick to the subject matter; it's much more interesting.
I was kidding
I was advised against films with graded resin papers, a bit of advise I didn’t listen to.
Really hard to follow this vid.
Люди больные ВИЧ как правило болеют дерматозом который лечат метиленовый синий, но есть проблема цвет лекарства, чтобы это скомпенсировать женщины красят волосы в яркий синий цвет
А некоторые люди рождаются без мозгов. В отличие от дерматоза, это неизлечимо.
@@linabessonova ВИЧ неизлечи, а люди без мозга живут и здравствуют.
@@linabessonova ВИЧ неизлечим, а люди без мозгов как то живут
@@linabessonova дерматоз изличим, только не у больного вич
Love the vids, professional, creative and best of all, great personality. I would suggest to start doing seminars around the world, from basic to advanced techniques. Would be great to have u here in San Juan, Puerto Rico. So much to learn while having fun! Best regards to u Lina!
I'm doing workshops in Florence, but those around the world sound like an amazing idea!