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Indian Country, November 2009
© 2009 KenRockwell.com. All rights reserved.

 

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Saturday, 14 November 2009

Red and Green, Red Cliffs Lodge, Moab, Utah

Red and Green, Red Cliffs Lodge, Moab, Utah, 8:07 AM.

Snapped with a 2009 Canon S90, ISO 160, Program mode chose f/2.8 at 1/60, zoom at 9.6mm (45mm equivalent), Daylight WB with added amber, -1/3 exposure compensation.

 

Ranch Road, near Moab, Utah, 8:30 AM.

Ranch Road, near Moab, Utah, 8:30 AM.

That's rain on the sign; it's not camera noise.

Snapped with a 2009 Canon S90, ISO 80, Program mode chose f/4 at 1/80, zoom at 10.7mm (50mm equivalent), AWB with added amber, -2/3 exposure compensation.

 

Chiaroscuro at Sorrel River Ranch, near Moab, Utah, 8:50 AM.

Chiaroscuro at Sorrel River Ranch, near Moab, Utah, 8:50 AM.

Snapped with a 2009 Canon S90, Program mode chose f/4.9 at 1/160, zoom at 22.5mm (105mm equivalent), AWB with added amber, -1/3 exposure compensation, some later curves tweaking to boost contrast.

 

Sorrel Ranch

Chiaroscuro at Sorrel River Ranch, near Moab, Utah, 8:51 AM.

Photographed with the Contax 645 and Zeiss Sonnar T* 140mm f/2.8 (equivalent to an 85mm lens on 35mm film), 72mm Nikon A2 warming filter on Fuji Velvia 50 (220), processed and scanned at NCPS. Slight crop, slight dodge of yellow tree and some similar curves tweaking to the snap above.

Want to see film vs. digital for detail? Here's the lower right corner:

crop digital

film crop

I'm giving digital an edge here. As you'll see in the original files linked below, the digital capture was zoomed-iin farther, giving it slightly more resolution when seen in the same-size crops above.

The problem with digital is that even though rated resolution may look the same on paper, Bayer Interpolation and anti-alias filters lose half the claimed resolution, and noise reduction smears over what subtle textures are left.

Each pixel in a digital capture isn't a complete pixel: since the sensor has only the ability to see just one of R, G or B in each spot, mathematical and optical hocus-pocus has to be used to simulate the complete R, G and B data for each single-color sensor location. A raw digital camera pixel isn't a complete pixel: it's only a third of a pixel. The math lets camera makers improve performance from one-third to about one-half of a pixel per claimed pixel.

This digital trickery leaves digital with a cartoonish look: bold edges are there and look sharp, but look closely and subtler textures and the finest details aren't there when digital captures are compared to actual photographs.

By comparison, every scanned film pixel is a complete R, G, B pixel. Every pixel is completely resolved, and if you want more pixels, all you have to do is scan with a real scanner instead of using these fast minilab scans I used here that I get back with my developed film.

Original digital capture file © (1.1MB). Minilab scan of 645 film © (10MB).

Superb, timeless cameras sell used for a fraction of the price of disposable modern digital capture devices. The Contax 645, one of the best cameras ever sold, sells used for about the same price as a new Nikon D90, and the lenses likewise sell for half the price used as Nikon's pro zooms new. Five years from now, the Contax will still be worth what you paid for it — or more — and you can get digital backs for the 645 if you insist.

Does film cost more? No! Last year (2008), when I added up all my lab bills for processing and scanning, it came to about $600 for the whole year. With film, you don't bother with the throw-away shots. No one ever spent as much for film as they think they would today.

 

Non-Compliant Newspaper Rock, someplace out in the sticks of Utah, 1

Non-Compliant Newspaper Rock, someplace out in the sticks of Utah, 11:16 AM.

Snapped with a 2009 Canon S90, ISO 80, Program mode chose f/4 at 1/125, zoom at 6mm (28mm equivalent), Daylight WB with added amber, no exposure compensation

 

Snow, Monticello, Utah,

Snow, Monticello, Utah, 1:10 PM.

I popped up the flash to highlight the falling snow.

Snapped with a 2009 Canon S90, Auto ISO chose ISO 250, Program mode chose f/4 at 1/500, zoom at 6.8mm (32mm equivalent), daylight WB with added amber, no exposure compensation.

 

The Mexican Hat, Mexican Hat, Utah,

The Mexican Hat, Mexican Hat, Utah, 2:52 PM.

I snapped this out the window of the van as we made a quick U-turn to get away to better photo opportunities. I'm unsure what those opportunities. turned out to be; this would have been worth stopping.

Snapped with a hand-held 2009 Canon S90, Program Auto chose f/4.9 at 1/500, 22.5mm (105mm equivalent), AWB with added amber, -2/3 exposure compensation.

 

San Juan Inn, Mexican Hat, Utah, 5:49 PM.

Bridge to the San Juan Inn, Mexican Hat, Utah, 3:02 PM.

Snapped with a hand-held 2009 Canon S90, Program Auto chose f/6.3 at 1/500, 9.6mm (45mm equivalent), AWB with added amber, -2/3 exposure compensation.

 

Monument Valley, Navajo Nation, 4:08 PM.

Wet Road on the Way to Monument Valley Just Past Mexican Hat, Utah, 3:19 PM.

Snapped with a hand-held 2009 Canon S90, Program Auto chose f/6.3 at 1/500, 22.5mm (105mm equivalent), AWB with added amber, -2/3 exposure compensation.

Monument Valley, Navajo Nation, 4:08 PM.

People Snapping the Wet Road on the Way to Monument Valley Just Past Mexican Hat, Utah, 3:20 PM.

Snapped with a hand-held 2009 Canon S90, Auto ISO chose ISO 125, Program Auto chose f/4 at 1/500, 6mm (28mm equivalent), AWB with added amber (S90 added even more with the flash popped up), -2/3 exposure compensation, no flash compensation.

I popped up the flash to fill the foreground. The S90 does us the favor of making the color balance much warmer with the flash.

 

Redlands Overlook Somewhere Between Mexican Hat, Utah and Monument Valley, 3:28 PM.

Redlands Overlook Somewhere Between Mexican Hat, Utah and Monument Valley, 3:28 PM.

This, like most of these shots, is exactly what I got out of the S90.

Snapped with a hand-held 2009 Canon S90, ISO 80, Program Auto chose f/5 at 1/500, 6mm (28mm equivalent), AWB with a lot of added amber due to the flash being used, -2/3 exposure compensation, no flash compensation.

 

Red Ball

Red Ball, Redlands Overlook Somewhere Between Mexican Hat, Utah and Monument Valley, 3:30 PM.

Photographed with a Champagne Contax G2 and Champagne Zeiss Planar 45mm f/2 on Fuji Velvia 50 and processed and scanned at NCPS.

 

Monument Valley, Navajo Nation, 4:08 PM.

Monument Valley Tribal Park, Navajo Nation, 4:21 PM.

The light was dead, so I popped up the flash to emphasize Ansel's Rocks in the foreground.

We were lucky; the rain had washed off the graffiti. A warmer AWB setting made it a nice red instead of gray.

Snapped with a hand-held 2009 Canon S90, Program Auto chose f/3.5 at 1/500, zoom set to 7.5mm (35mm equivalent), -2/3 exposure compensation, no flash compensation.

 

Fina Station in Rain, Kayenta, Arizona

Fina Station in Rain, Kayenta, Arizona, 5:08 PM.

In Arizona, everyone packs. In this case, I snapped this as I came out of the men's room running back to the van in the pouring blowing rain. The S90 was in my pocket, always ready to shoot.

Snapped with a hand-held 2009 Canon S90, Auto ISO grabbed ISO 100, Program Auto chose f/2 at 1/30, zoom set to 6mm (28mm equivalent), straight AWB, no exposure compensation.

 

Tin Ceiling, Cameron Trading Post Restaurant, Cameron, Arizona

Tin Ceiling, Cameron Trading Post Restaurant, Cameron, Arizona, 7:12 PM.

Snapped with a 2009 Canon S90, Auto ISO set ISO 100, Program Auto chose f/2.2 at 1/4 second (hand-held), zoom set to 6.9mm (32mm equivalent), straight AWB and no exposure compensation.

 

Monument Valley, Navajo Nation, 4:08 PM.

Green Tree, Cameron Trading Post, Cameron, Arizona, 8:14 PM.

The tree isn't really green. I knew that the fluorescent lights in the backlit sign on the trading post would make the tree look green. The fuzzy upper left corner is from the wind blowing the tree.

Snapped with a hand-held 2009 Canon S90, Auto ISO set ISO 1,250, Program Auto chose f/2 at 1/20, zoom set to 6mm (28mm equivalent), straight AWB and no exposure compensation.

 

Shell Station, Cameron Trading Post, Cameron, Arizona

Shell Station, Cameron Trading Post, Cameron, Arizona, 8:25 PM.

I shot this one out the window of the van as we drove past. No one ever wants to stop for the colorful stuff.

Snapped with a hand-held 2009 Canon S90, Auto ISo set ISO 800, Program Auto chose f/4.5 at 1/30, zoom set to 18.2mm (85mm equivalent), straight AWB, no exposure compensation.

 

Next: 15 November 2009

 

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