Using Ilford Contrast Filters for this print

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I thought I would show my method of using Ilford Contrast Filters for this print.
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MUSIC CREDITING

[@felixifloresrodriquez3306]

Mate you are awesome. I love your videos. They are easy to follow and to do what you recommend

[@johnpuga1982]

I've gotten into split-grade printing/toning on Ilford's matte fiber paper. I usually print with a 0 filter and a 5 filter. However, I'll throw in an extra 2 or 2.5 filter to control contrast. So a total of three filters. It can be a bit much, so patience is required when using three filters. But the results can be worth the effort and money.

[@jesperbent3685]

Love this stuff - great vid.👍

[@ShootFilmLikeaBoss]

Awesome, thank you!

[@largophoto]

this is the best video from the dark room series ....if I get back to IOW ..we will use Gaz as model ...and use a bit of fill in ...( I love shooting in over cast skies ..and that's where it can get a bit tricky ) ..

[@ribsy]

Great stuff Roger 😁 very helpful to understand contrast filters

[@whiteframe2745]

Haha!😁 Vespa Scooter!!! yeah baby! It's simple - moped is MOtorcycle with PEDals ( you can ride it like a bicycle and/or use pedals to start engine). And scooter is pedal-less. Like Vespa. I know, I'm pain...😁great video again btw!!!

[@johnjbh7089]

Brilliant vid Roger. You have explained the contrast filter mystery for me. Well done.

[@fredricknietzsche7316]

excellent educational video, getting better all the time. I know its more work but we appreciate it.

[@Ricky_25n]

Seriously, you are the man. Thanks for all the videos, top quality.

[@ShootFilmLikeaBoss]

Glad you like them!

[@yasha8951]

Beautiful print!

[@harrystevens3885]

So we have a new star on the channel,.GAZ!! Action hero,purveyor of vintage motor vehicles, male model,fashion guru, great photographer and so cool that when you take a photograph of him you have to use contrast filters to reveal the image......I bet George loves him as well.:) Great video Roger and a nice photograph that you would expect see in a magazine. Great channel.

[@ShootFilmLikeaBoss]

Cheers Harry. He's a man of mystery. Comes and goes like the weather!

[@suecrewstudio8994]

Awesome class thanks 🤙

[@suecrewstudio8994]

thanks master i´m strarting with my darkroom in my bathroom, my first prints you can see in my instagram @filmbeetle i´m a amateur jeje regard!

[@parratt-world]

Durst M605 ... One of the best MF enlargers ever. Yes, I also have sets of filters for both the tray and attaching below the lens. Nice presentation - thanks. ◇

[@TheEPROM9]

I got my first enlarger about a week ago, anoyingly I have falleen really ill & not had a changce tp do some printing yet. Im on the getting better so soon.

[@ShootFilmLikeaBoss]

Speedy recovery sir!

[@mike747436]

Great video Roger. I wonder if a little bit of fill flash when you took the shot would have made printing easier.

[@ShootFilmLikeaBoss]

It would have Mike. I'm not a lover of flash but the light was flat.

[@mike747436]

Yeah I’m a very infrequent user of flash myself, but I have managed to ‘lift‘ the shadows just enough once or twice without making it look like a flash photo.

[@JohnTomasella]

I need to get those filters. My Beseler enlarger has the 3x3 filter holder under the lens along with the filter holder above.

[@ShootFilmLikeaBoss]

They are neat and compact John.

[@scuba6663]

Thank you for the informative video! What type of enlarger are you using? Very nice.

[@ShootFilmLikeaBoss]

Thanks. It's a Durst M605

[@RickMahoney2013]

Basically this is photoshop before photoshop am I correct in saying this ? Thanks Roger wonderful video.

[@ShootFilmLikeaBoss]

Yes, photoshops contrast slider. A lot of tools in Photoshop came from the darkroom

[@RickMahoney2013]

@@ShootFilmLikeaBoss that is the way the real photographer and greats did it.

[@baxtermarrison5361]

Pardon my ignorance, would using either a red or yellow filter on the camera have lightened the skin tone sufficient as to make the use of the contrast 2.5 in the darkroom to give you the detail in the clothing, but giving you room to play with on the skin tones?

[@ShootFilmLikeaBoss]

I'd sway more towards yellow on this scene Baxyer but I think it may have brightened a lot of the silver (background and scooter) and also the jeans. They may have been harder to recover with a yellow filter but I can't say for sure. Good thought though.

[@baxtermarrison5361]

@@ShootFilmLikeaBoss Thanks, I know that hindsight is a wonderful gift and it wouldn't be the first time when going through the negs or files and thinking 'why didn't I try that!' . I shoot mostly portrait but have nowhere the darkroom skills, hence my first thought being at the camera end.

[@ShootFilmLikeaBoss]

I usually take a orange or red filter for cloud scenes. I don't shoot enough portraits on film to consider a filter. But I do appreciate the comment as it embeds in the mind that filters are a very useful tool in BW 👍

[@TheAgeOfAnalog]

Correct oof I’m wrong, but isn’t the 2 1/2 filter pretty close to the same as no filter? BTW, nice final result. That was a tough one. 👍

[@ShootFilmLikeaBoss]

It is with most papers. I use filters all the time so slide a 2•5 in when I start

[@richardg6109]

Interesting, thanks.

[@Seele2015au]

A problem with Ilford's Multigrade filters is that they are prone to fading over time, especially noticeable on those with higher numbers. Ideally the enlarger should have a Multigrade light source - a bit like a colour one with dial-in primary colours but with Ilford Multigrade numbers, for the dichroic filters inside are permanent. For this negative I would try pre-exposing the paper prior to printing exposure. First establish the maximum (overall) exposure the paper can take before registering as a tone, apply that to the paper before printing. The paper is thus capable of turning any additional exposure into a tone no matter how little it is. Here you are forcing a linear exposure into a log scale, so it would not make any difference in the darker tones, but only bring in otherwise lost details in the highlights. And that is why I need at least two enlargers in any darkroom I use.

[@anthonyfarmer6811]

Love watching your videos . My question is does the under lens filter degrade the image quality in any way ?

[@ShootFilmLikeaBoss]

That's a good question Anthony. I guess placing a peice of coloured plastic under a quality lens theoretically you'd imagine a slight deterioration in print quality. I've used above and below and not seen (to the eye) a change. I may test that out though just for curiosity. I use under the lens as I find them easier to change under red light during a print.

[@giovanni_a67]

Some say so, and I suspect that using below the lens filters forgives much less their deterioration, scratches, dust etc. They are so much more comfortable to use in some enlargers (I have a Durst m800 which is not much different from Roger's) that I am trying to treat them with uttermost care, so they last as long as possible in like-new conditions :-)

[@JonnyRobbie]

A quick question. When you do split grading, why do you use 0 and 5 and not 00 and 5?

[@ShootFilmLikeaBoss]

I've never used the 00 filter Robbie.

[@GigiDAmico]

did you print 10 seconds at he end?

[@nonthaburibear2201]

hi, i would like to ask ..i have bit too dark negative and using ilford MGRV paper..what filter i use to make it not too dark. Thank you and i already follow both on 2 platform media.Cheers

[@ShootFilmLikeaBoss]

If your print is dark it sounds like you either have a thin negative or if your neg is fine too much light on the projection or too long. Have a look at my recent video on my channel where I talk about enlarger times.

[@ronaldmoravec2692]

What you need is a film developing clock that runs faster. Film is over developed. Use a reducer on the film or contrast reducing mask. But get a new clock as this should be an easy neg to print. Easy fix with split filter print too.

[@JoseRamirez-cd7ge]

Love your videos they are always funny and interesting!

[@demcomp]

First!

[@Garacha222]

It would be educational to see an image of the negative. (because) it is interesting that the day of shooting was described as low contrast lighting, yet appears a rather medium to high contrast negative to work with. My guess is that the bright background (and light clothing) fooled an average meter reading so that the skin was underexposed on the negative. I assume the 'taking' lens on the camera did not have a filter; one that might impact skin tones. final image turned out excellent! Concerning an experience I had with enlarging filters... (spoiler alert: they had mold) I live in a humid apartment, and have had weird printing results that turned out to be slight mold growing on the filters. I figured this our (with professional help) because featureless areas on the negative were printing as wavey textures. The enlarger lens (and all condenser glass surfaces) were clean. but not the filters. I bought new filters, and I was back in business! Love how you tackle this art of classic image processing, without being OCD ... which keeps it fun! (and magical) Some commenters add excellent Master Class advice. which is nice to see in case someone wants to explore more. Not everyone wants to take things to the extremes, so can simply overlook such posts. IMO, best to learn simple advice that create a fairly decent negative to start with (not too little, nor too much density) and then effortlessly have fun printing and seeing the magic. We are so lucky to have variable contrast papers available (this invention that was not available to BW masters of distant past.) Advances in technology have served artist well.

[@ShootFilmLikeaBoss]

I can't remember the video now it was a while back but I do remember the lighting being flat and Gary's skin being under exposed and as you say the meter more than likely picked up on the bright background and the white clothing. I had to get new filters, the ones you see, as my old ones had blemishes on them and wasn't working well for me. And yes the comments section for me is a great read. Lot's of well experienced guys with good feedback has helped me learn more over the years even if it's a little trick or two here and there.

[@terrywbreedlove]

Lina Bessonova has a great how to with split grade contrast filter printing on her channel. Very in-depth explanation

[@lostintransitphoto]

I have been told, don't shoot me, that a filter of 2 is neutral. So if you do a print without a filter or a filter 2 you should have about the same. I have not tested this and will give it a go this afternoon. The idea is that anything below a filter of 2 would give you less contrast than not using any filter. 2 is about the same as no filter and anything above gives you more contrast. Not sure how accurate this is. Worth wasting a bit of paper to confirm.

[@donbennett3723]

The book says that multi grade paper is equivalent to a number 2 contrast filter. I have never tested the difference but theoretically no filter and a 2 1/2 should be pretty close. Maybe a good exercise!

[@ShootFilmLikeaBoss]

Interesting Patrick. I always use 2.5 as my starting point. And most MG papers are set at 2, so I've read. Like you I'll have to test this out. Cheers

[@califmike2003]

1 filter about 17 seconds .