Is developed camera negative still caled negative, or it is positive?

[Jana Slamova]

Topic title say it all. In fact, developed and processed camera negative have positive colors, so it should be called positive?

[Oron Cohen]

No, it's still a Negative, just a processed one. Positive is different emulation all together.

[Jana Slamova]

Thank you for your reply, Oron. And does the image on processed negative looks the same as the possitive, or processed negative have still inverted colors, when the processing just made them visible?

[David Mullen ASC]

The colors on a processed negative are reversed/inverted/opposite/complementary with an overall orange cast due to a color mask. Also all the densities are reversed too, black subject areas are clear on the negative and white subject areas are very dark on the negative.

 

Print stock is actually also a form of negative stock in a sense, you're essentially taking a negative picture of a negative image, and thus creating a positive image. In other words, all the densities and colors are reversed again. Same goes for intermediate duplicating stock, it creates an interpositive if it is a copy of a negative, or a dupe negative if it is a copy of the interpositive.

 

Often in a scan or telecine transfer of a negative, the recorded image is electronically reversed back into a positive image without any color mask.

[Jana Slamova]

Thank you so much, David, for taking time to explain this to me, you have hepled me a lot, I really appreciate it! I think I'm understand it right now. Thanks!