I finally worked my way through all the posts so far in these threads,
and have a few random thoughts and observations:
What were significant and interesting questions are less important now.
Whether a 30D is better or worse than film, in resolution or any other
aspects; whether the E-1 is better than film or some specific other
older camera in resolution, etc. etc. really don't mean much any more.
Specifically with the 5D, and probably with other 10+mp cameras,
resolution is equal to or better than any films that are ordinarily used
for day to day photography by anybody here that I know of, using methods
normally available to us to get them into the digital realm.
For an increasing number of photographers, the preferred medium of
display of their images is a screen, not a print or a slide. Arguments
about the appearance of the final prints as determining which capture
medium is better aren't meaningful to them.
Testing lenses against each other with the same film, films against each
other with the same lens, etc., is relatively straightforward,
especially when using slide film. Comparing digital sensor systems
against each other gets trickier, as the amount and kind of processing,
both in camera and post, has such a huge effect. It gets even worse with
film, with scanners involved or the need to compare prints. Test images
in JPEG from from two cameras may show one as the winner and
standardized RAW processing give the reverse result. Then RAW and post
processing done by the same person to get the best possible result from
each RAW image may again reverse the result, or not. I honestly don't
think any absolute result is possible, at least at this time.
Just as MF film could resolve more detail than 35mm, MF and LF digital
backs will continue to be able to out resolve FF 35 mm DSLRS. However,
this occurs on a plateau enough higher than with film that there will
fewer specialist practical reasons to use the larger formats.
We all grew up with film grain. Some of us simply like the way it looks
and will never be really satisfied that digital is as good as film for
that reason alone, whether we are aware of it or not. Others see the
lack of grain and low noise of digital as removing the veil of grain
between them and the image. This is a matter of internal taste not
subject to the appeal of reason or argument, although it may be subject
to change with time and experience.
Digital has some other qualities that are simply different than film, to
date not identified and quantified, that appeal to some and don't appeal
to others.
I'm pretty sure that one of these differences is color linearity. The
response curves of the color layers in film are not the same, so the
same color in the subject, in varying brightness of light, will vary
subtly in color on film. This seems to me to be a difference
conceptually related in some way to the phase shift problem AG talks
about, but in this case favoring digital. IT8 profiling for scanning
should reduce this effect, but it is neither common nor applicable to
all our old films.
Whatever these differences are, they make a significant difference in
prints. When I bought my first digicam, a 2mp P&S, after much research
and thought, and with some trepidation, I was shocked! I was hoping it
would make half decent 4x5 prints. Instead, 8x10s, even with significant
cropping, were wonderful! Look at them close up, and the detail is
clearly limited. Look at arms length and they look great. Put them up on
the wall along with some prints from film and ordinary folks seem drawn
to then and comment on how good they are.
Undoubtedly, some here would hate them, but that's show biz. In any
case, there is a difference that goes beyond resolution.
To an amazing extent, the advent of the digital darkroom has led to a
revolution in what the ordinary photographer can do to realize their
vision of the image they captured. In that sense, whatever the other
aspects of the digital image revolution, it is a golden age for many
people. To the extent that it leads to results that don't follow the old
norms, it will not be pleasing to some and will be a step forward for
others.
Moose
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