> > Dirk Wright <wright@xxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
> >
> > > I think you missed my point. There is no photographic "hi end" in the
> > > same
> > > sense as used in audio. There is no mysticism and arcane theories in
> > > photography.
> Vaughan Bromfield wrote
> >
> > Err, what about The Zone System...
> >
Wayne" <Wayne.Harridge@xxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
> The zone system is not an arcane theory, it is based on well established
> sensitometry.
>
Vaughan Rromfield replied:
HiFi is also based on established theory. But like the Zone System, HiFi
Nazi's get into ever diminishing circles n-th degree optimising the
things they can control, while conveniently ignoring those varibles they
cannot. In hifi it's oxygen-free copper speaker cables, phase-aligned
speaker units yada yada, ignoring the recording process itself,
variations in media, the listening area or most importantly the
listener; in Zone System it's n-th degree calibration of spot meters and
film and processing while ignoring the random variations of shutters,
processing aggitation etc. There is enough tolerance in the overall
end-to-end process of both hifi and zone system to accomodate this
randomness and error (which is why the who thing manages to stay
together and work as well as it does) but because the final arbitor is
the human brain and it can hear and see just what it damn well pleases,
it all seems pretty pointless after a certain point.
Perhaps the debate should be about where that "cerain point" is. But
people will still want to spend gobs of money on stuff no matter what,
just because they can, and the more esoteric and expensive the stuff is
the better, too. I for one have neither reference-calibrated eyes or
ears, so for me that last 10-200f perfection is easily overlooked but
definately not missed.
My ears *are* good enough, however, in appropriate circumstances to
distinguish British loudspeakers from Japanese and American, and nuances
of photographic image sharpness and tonal gradation, but probably *not*
Japanese glass from German. HiFi in a car is a joke, as is quality glass
used for images that will be reprodced on the web or by cheap
lithography and newsprint. Or prints hung in a dank dark gallery.
It's a bit like Feng Shui. I spent a lot of money getting a book and
making sure the dragon isn't looking up the tiger's arse (or whatever)
but I still got rising damp and peeling paint and loose floor boards.
But gee, sitting in the back room with that lovely morning sun shining
in, blue cloudless sky from horizon to horizon... gawd I love Sydney Australia!
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