How to increase sharpness but minimize the grain in photos (Hp5+ in D-76)

[tlitody]

Will try to read on film scan work flow to fine tune the output, what a shame, I dont have enlarger at home or nearby my area, I would love wet printing rather than digitized photo :bang:

Another opion is to use a chromogenic film such as XP2 which scans much better and doesn't suffer so much from the sharpening causing grain.

 

[tlitody]

IMO all Tgrain type films (Tmax, Delta, Acros) are often too sharp for portraits so in that way I would avoid them for this purpose.

Well I can hardly believe that with a 2,0 lens you can not shoot an iso 100 film indoor, because the Leica M allows you much slower shutter speeds. 1/30S should not be any problem.

But you can also go to an iso 200 film: Fomapan Creative 200. You can shoot this film on iso 160 with Xtol/Fomadon Excel W27 1+1.

Here an example of this combination:
http://gallery.fotohuisrovo.nl/displayimage.php?album=12&pos=0

Yes but with a developer such as DDX which is bit granier than normal, the combination of very fine grain film and DDX results in very sharp grainless images. But I agree that sharp isn't always best for portraits.

 

[Fotohuis]

Yes, XP2 super is a good film for portraits. Even pretty soft. For a standard contrast shoot this film on iso 250 and develop with a standard C41 processing. You can use ICE for dust problems too.

 

[Chris101]

Thanks for all the replies and info.
Can I conclude that, nothing more I can improve the sharpness and reduce more the grainy effect if I stick to Hp5+ and D-76, am I right? The reason why I chose speed 400 because mostly shot indoor, and have poor light condition, so I have no choice. Just thought that, there might be some other parameter that I can play with.



Just normal USM, 120%, radius=0.3 pixels

Use D-76 stock instead of 1:1. Or choose a 400 speed film with flat grains like Delta 400 (epitaxial grain) or Tmax (tablar grain.) If you have CS2 or later, use Smart Sharpen instead of USM, with the same parameters, and fade shadow/highlight for the best effect. Reducing noise (and grain) sharpening is what SS is for.

 

[wooiloon]

Use D-76 stock instead of 1:1. Or choose a 400 speed film with flat grains like Delta 400 (epitaxial grain) or Tmax (tablar grain.) If you have CS2 or later, use Smart Sharpen instead of USM, with the same parameters, and fade shadow/highlight for the best effect. Reducing noise (and grain) sharpening is what SS is for.

Thanks Chris, will try it later.

 

[tlitody]

Also note that apparent sharpness is often a function of edge contrast. The more you develop the contrastier it gets and at the same looks sharper. But that is at the cost of additional grain too.
Filters can help with contrast without having to give extra development so grain is unaltered.

 

[wooiloon]

Im not really good with CS, that's one of the reasons why I moved back to film and furthermore, there was a camera shop has the darkroom for rent, and wet printing has so much fun than playing around in front the laptop for editing. Unfortunately, I was relocated due to new posting and here I can't find a shop to offer darkroom renting so have to scan the film for printing. Really appreciated all the tips , I will try to digest it!

 

[Chris101]

Im not really good with CS, that's one of the reasons why I moved back to film and furthermore, there was a camera shop has the darkroom for rent, and wet printing has so much fun than playing around in front the laptop for editing. Unfortunately, I was relocated due to new posting and here I can't find a shop to offer darkroom renting so have to scan the film for printing. Really appreciated all the tips , I will try to digest it!

Yeah, bummer. Rental darkrooms are getting very rare. These days the community college photo class is a viable way to get access to a darkroom. I do that, as do many others. Plus I find the discipline of taking a special projects class - Portfolio Development they call it - with it's deadline and critical review, helps me focus on projects rather than just taking pictures.

Oh, and I hybrid print too.

 

[Rob-F]

For the OP... "Sharpening" in Photoshop is a mathematical process that increases perceived sharpness by enhancing edges. Does it for everything including grain, so basically you are limited in using the sharpening tool if there is grain.

I think the solution is to do noise reduction first, which will permit you to sharpen afterwards. I do this on most all scans from film.

You'll do better with more fine grained film, but it's still an issue.

See Bruce Fraser, Real World Image Sharpening with Photoshop CS2. Yes, CS2. It's the best reference and still applies. He has details for working with scans from film.

With this in mind, could it be that the answer is to use less sharpening? Maybe much less?