i have a canon 350d i just want to ask you guys whats the best setting to achieve that black and white quality of a film camera. i use to shoot using a nikon fm-2 and i can't achieve the same quality using my 350d,, thanks

in camera setting? or post processing?

What film would you shoot before? B&W characteristics were mainly determined by film type. I wouldn't trust a B&W done in-camera because you have no control of the conversion. Best to take your file to an editing program like Photoshop. I don't know the inner workings of the 350D but if there is a conversion, it could be similar to the simple greyscale conversion of Photoshop where the red channel contributes 30%, the Green 59%, and the Blue 11%. The result? A flat looking black and white.

Take it to Photoshop, experiment with different Channel Mixer Mono Blends and you will get good Black and Whites.

I agree, doing b&w digitally is better done in Photoshop. Here are a few resources:
From Luminous Landscape (http://www.luminous-landscape.com/tutorials/b-w_better.shtml)
This is DigiDaan's Photoshop action (http://www.digidaan.nl/indexframedigidaan.html?channelmixer/index.html)

a friend of mine told me that it's better to take your black and white pictures in color first then just convert it into b&w through your software. he said that it would give you grey tones that your 350D b&w setting wouldn't give you.

i don't know if it really works, just give it a try :)

Shooting in color gives you three channels of information R-G-B. This will give you more flexibilty and options when making a conversion.

Based on my experiences (like the others replies you got earlier) when using digital it is still better to take pictures in color and convert them during post processing. My suggestion is shoot in raw so that regardless of what setting you use either color or bw and or whatever white balance you use during the take you can easily and readily alter it during post processing. There are numerous ways to convert your digital capture into black and white by either using filters or the channel mixer there are quite a number of ways to do it but at the end of the day it still depends on how your eye would perceive it and how your skills will enhance it.
Cheers!

Here is a very long article from a friend of mine on Digital B&W. It's rather long and involved but at the end you can download the Actions for Photoshop.

http://www.prime-junta.net/pont/How_to/n_Digital_BW/a_Digital_Black_and_White.html

Mike

Two schools of thought: do it with photoshop or in camera.

The first allows you a lot of flexibility in terms of conversion but requires a lot of work. Further, it's chancy if you are not familiar how hues convert to black and white tones.

The second requires a lot of work in-camera but conversion in photoshop is straightforward. Like in the analog days, you will need to be conscious of how light falls on the subject, else a lot of post processing work is required.

BTW, it would be cool if you can post photos on this forum similar to FM/photo.net to illustrate a point.

tnx guys,, nino i was asking about the best settings of both ( processing and camera settings ) neway tnx guys, still an amateur so i better start learning my photoshop.

nick i was using a colpan 100 b & w...... it was our "official film" in my basic photography class,, neway tnx for the info guys