Linear or non-linear, ColorNeg doesn't care.

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robyferrero
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Location: Italia

A 1998 rural shot taken with the Contax G2 and its superb trio of Zeiss lenses, with Fujifilm PR 400 B&W film, scanned with an Imacon scanner.
A non-linear file is more complicated to manage, but ColorNeg helps.
To achieve this result, the use of the FilmType/SubType/FilmGamma tools, as well as FilmicRelight, was essential during the process.
I can't imagine how much effort I would have put in, and how far I could have come, without using these tools. I don't even want to try, and I don't believe it's possible to achieve this, even if this isn't necessarily the best processing in the world.
However, it looks ready for a beautiful print on matte paper, given its rustic texture.
Repeatedly using these tools, before making other adjustments, continues to make a difference; it allows you to adjust and enhance the low and high lights, relating them to each other. Favoring one over the other, or achieving the best compromise in terms of brightness, contrast, and overall image appearance. This allows you to characterize the digital negative film, making it the ideal starting point for further adjustments.
1998-1-002-imacon_scan-mk-cp-fujifilm_pr_400_b&w-roby_ferrero.jpg
1998-1-002-imacon_scan-mk-cp-fujifilm_pr_400_b&w-roby_ferrero.jpg (237.95 KiB) Viewed 288 times
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C.Oldendorf
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Wonderful image, thank you so much for sharing it.

Regarding Gamma C (linear input or otherwise): as long as it is a gamma, it is true that FilmType → SubType → FilmGamma will account for it. However, for B&W in monochrome mode these do not exist, and Gamma is simply equal to Film Gamma.

Nonetheless, it is a good idea to set something up that is close to the actual input data. Either press L to become G (meaning the output encoding is expected as the input encoding, i.e., already gamma-encoded), or go to the options screen and enable the Gamma C In/Out option. This will provide two pulldowns where you can specify input encodings that differ from the output encoding.
input_gamma.jpg
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When I was working on FilmicRelight, I had just bought a book by Diane Arbus—used—one that my library had lacked. Not long after, I was gifted another of hers. As I sat down and looked at them, my heart sank a little and I doubted whether I could ever get there. I dug out an older negative and started working on it with the whole toolset. Soon after, I was excited to realize that I had been wrong: we can indeed get there. For me, ColorPerfect has always included B&W, and CP3 even brings general improvements to it.
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robyferrero
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Posts: 151
Joined: Wed Aug 20, 2025 4:12 pm
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Good, thank you, I'm glad.
The Milk Queen is ready to return to the village ( Désarpa ).

I've set Gamma C in/out
The input encoding is set to Linear because it seems like the best starting point.

You mean FilmicRelight was partly inspired by Diane Arbus?
That's why it works so well :-)

For black and white with PerfectRAW, I'm now getting ready to open another topic.
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