Digital BW, The Print

Djon,

>Clayton, thanks for the detailed insights. I've come to the
>conclusion that 20D et al are halfway steps, too expensive for 
>8mp...I think they'll become much cheaper soon... 

Yes, and I think 8mp will gradually replace 6mp as the "base line"
resolution for entry level cams, with 12mp becoming the next level up.
 Nikon just released a 12mp cam for $5K and rumor has it that Canon
will have a 12mp answer in August at a lower price.


>and I really dislike the SLR form factor. 

Agreed.  I never really liked the 35mm 2:3 ratio - way too long.  But
in my 6x7 work the 4:5 ratio was great for portraits but often seemed
too "fat" for horizontal landscapes.  I was pleasantly surprised to
find the 3:4 ratio in the digicams and have really fallen in love with
it.  Seem just right and can easily go in either direction

Also, the digicam's light weight is important.  I have some back and
hip problems that were making it harder for me to schlep heavy stuff
around.  My camera bag went from 15lbs to 3.5lbs, and tripod went from
11 lbs to 4lbs (carbon fiber).  From 26 to 7.5 lbs.  I carried it
around all day on the DVNP dunes and never was hurting at all.  It's a
whole new world.  

Here's a pic (taken with the Casio) of the Pro-1 on the carbon fiber
tripod out on the dunes.  It has a light weight folding hood attached
to the open LCD screen - works great:

  http://www.cjcom.net/img/dvnp/pro-1-a.jpg

The twisty screen with hood allows careful composing out in bright
sunlight without having to bend over and squint into the viewfinder. 
It's great.

Here is one of the shots I came back with:

  http://www.cjcom.net/img/dvnp/pro-1-dune.jpg 

I'm working on a portfolio of dune pics, and they are working very
nicely with BO on Condor or Kayenta paper.  They look better on the
cold white papers.  I tried some with UT7 and found the improvement in
smoothness wasn't enough to overcome the loss of BO's luminance and
"pop", so it will be BO for these.


>The digicam concept makes more sense to me (Pro-1 & Leica D2), 

What many film users (and DSLR users) don't realize is how far the
small sensor cams have come in just the past year.  I have a 5mp Casio
the size of a deck of cards with a very sharp pentax lens on it that
takes astonishingly sharp pics that for 8x10 prints rivals the Pro-1.
 Fuji just released a tiny 6mp F10 with the latest incarnation of
their Super-CCD with useful ISO up to 1600.  Canon & others now have
tiny 7mp cams that do amazingly well.  It really is a whole new world
and it just keeps getting better.  


>especially since I rarely consider extreme lenses. 

Then you'll probably find the Pro-1's 28-200 range to be everything
you need.  It also has a super macro feature.


>Therefore I'll probably shop for a >good price on Pro-1...

After you find one check to see if it has the firmware upgrade.  You
can go to the Canon web site and find out how to test for it.  It's an
easy download and install process, and definitely worth it.  It
improves the low light focusing speed and the response of the zoom
ring, and other things.


Regards,
Clayton


Info on black and white digital printing at    
http://www.cjcom.net/digiprnarts.htm