28
Jul
2010
Month: July 2010
18
Jul
2010
COOL WHITE. . . MAN
Seem things continue to change at an alarming rate. Several years ago, maybe 12-15 to be honest, I bought some supposedly daylight balanced fluorescent lamps for the kitchen fixture. They put out this really annoying, kind of brownish light that I just could not stand. They were eventually banished to the garage where they finally burned out and were discarded. It was back to the old standard Cool White fluorescent lamps and that awful color cast they generate. Fast forward to our current world and I saw some information about a Compact Fluorescent (CFL) lamp that is 5,000k and touted to be Full Spectrum. Wow! Now that is more what I was looking for.
I bought a CFL lamp that is dimmable, 5,000k and Full Spectrum for another project I was working with. I was so impressed with the light that I searched out some four footers for the kitchen fixture. Once installed I was really impressed with the fact that the room no longer had that sick green/blue light I have become so accustom to from the run-of-the-mill Cool White lamp. The kitchen light looked so good compared to the ones in the darkroom, I knew they were next.
I did take the time to look at a few photographs under both lights and the difference is remarkable. It is always difficult for me to judge print color cast under fluorescent light. These new Full Spectrum lamps deliver a much more natural light that I really like. If you haven’t looked into these new generation lamps, you might just get a pleasant surprise.
Little else to say, other than the latest batch of Full Spectrum fluorescent lamps are impressive and I really do not want to go back to Cool White. . . Man!
JB
11
Jul
2010
DUST. . . A Four Letter Word!
Yes, the number one adversary of the LF photographer is DUST! Dust is a four letter word in the world of photography. Seems we are always fighting Dust. It gets into everything. The one place you absolutely can not tolerate the pest is on your film. A tiny speck of dust or lint in your film holder will always find its way onto that one area of smooth even texture.
So, the question is how to battle dust? One thing to do is, as mentioned in my previous post titled “Wax On. . . Wax Off” is to wax your equipment. Waxed surfaces are easier to keep clean. Also, vacuum out all of your bags, cases and packs regularly. Before every outing, take the time to disassemble your camera and clean it. Remove the bellows and vacuum out all of the folds, inside and out.
Next comes your film holders. Before you begin loading, dust the table top. I like to go over the surface with a damp cloth just to be sure. Your best friend when it comes to your film holders is a good vacuum. We travel and have to deal with film loading in all sorts of, less than desirable situations. Our number one tool is a small portable vacuum.
I first saw these small commercial vacuums being used by copy machine techs years ago. The vacuum they carry is a small, self-contained, field service vacuum and the most popular seems to be one made by 3M. We searched around and bought a 3M SV-497AJM vacuum on that auction site years ago. One of the best purchases we have made for sure!
A little searching on the Internet turned up this from 3M, “Designed by 3M Corporation for its own office products service department, this durable, reliable vacuum cleaner set the standard for all others. Designed specifically for cleaning toner from copy machines, it also is great for cleaning printers, floors or just about anything else a field engineer might encounter.” The unit is self contained with hose and attachments housed in the top and is 17″ x 6.5″ x 7.5″ weighing 9 pounds.
Our 3M field service vacuum has logged many miles with us over the years and we would not consider travel without it. It is also great to have around the darkroom to help keep dust under control.
JB
04
Jul
2010
INDEPENDENCE DAY
