Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2014/01/30
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]I learned the Zone System from Fred Picker books, and used a Soligor spot meter (with Picker?s adhesive zone system guide stuck to it). I loved the ritual of determining exposure using the Zone System, but I wasn?t shooting street photography at the time. Sometimes using the current auto everything cameras (with face recognition, etc.) feels a bit like shooting a deer with a laser guided missile. Jeffery On Jan 30, 2014, at 5:24 PM, Ken Carney <kcarney1 at cox.net> wrote: > Hi Ted > > When I shot LF I went through all the zone system stuff. I pulled out my > Pentax spotmeter this week and it has the film speeds taped to it for film > and developer combinations at N-1, N-2 and so on. Very helpful if you are > shooting sheet film and developing one sheet at a time - perhaps not the > best approach to covering the Olympics. When I took up 35mm I discovered > The New Zone System by Jim Brick. It has no doubt been posted many times > before but here it is: > > There are four zones. > Zone Good, Zone Bad, Zone Ugly, Zone Butt Ugly. > > To use the system: > Wake up. Get out of bed. Go outside. > > Zone Good > It is light overcast, light shadows but good light direction. Normal > contrast. > Expose normal (eg: ASA-100 @ 100) develop normal. > > Zone Bad > It is dismally overcast, no shadows, perhaps even drizzle. Low contrast. > Underexpose one stop (eg: ASA-100 @ 200) overdevelop 20% > > Zone Ugly > The sun is out, sky is clear with puffy clouds, and there are blatant > shadows. High contrast. > Overexpose one stop (eg: ASA-100 @ 50) underdevelop 20% > > Zone Butt Ugly > The sun is squinty bright, cloudless sky, and the shadows really deep. > Very high contrast. > Go in, and go back to bed!. But, if you are a die-hard... > Overexpose two stops (eg: ASA-100 @ 25) underdevelop 30% > > > On 1/30/2014 10:04 AM, tedgrant at shaw.ca wrote: >> John McMaster wrote: >> >>> You are correct Lluis, over 16 years since I last developed a B&W film! >>> Zone system all the way, spotmeter, exposure tests for base density then >>> development tests for highlights all measured on a densitometer - how >>> quickly I forgot :-(> >> >> Hi John, >> When I read about the shooting methods of many of the crew I become >> amazed I ever got an exposure during my 65 years of exposing film on any >> assignment in my life? >> MY METHOD......"OBSERVE - SHOOT!" :-) KISS! :-) Of course many times I >> took light meter readings, generally landscapes and available light >> photos of my children. Or working a crowd situation? I would take a >> reading, then see what the camera was reading and if they were close? >> generally were... SHOOT! Letting camera set and go with what it felt fit >> to use. >> >> Imagine me shooting in an operating room and taking meter readings for >> every frame when on the last book. WOMEN IN MEDICINE! Where I exposed 500 >> rolls of tri-x at ASA 800 using three M7's and a couple of R8's only a >> quick peak at the shutter speed red in the view finder. If it looked >> cool? 99.9% of the time it was "CLICK!" >> >> So you can imagine my surprise of many of you lads and all the testing >> and checking you went through. The zone system? My interpretation of the >> zone system? >> >> That's the demilitarized zone between the 2 Koreas and all you need to >> know about that?????? DON'T GO THERE! ;-) I could never understand about >> all the time wasted figuring it out unless you were shooting rocks and >> ferns and peeling paint? REAL LIFE MOMENTS? And shooting 36 frames >> nearly every frame under various light conditions? >> >> In any event as many of the LUG CREW who go through all the digital >> techie stuff, I still try to keep it KISS as much as possible as I'm >> shooting . It'll still be my method as I begin shooting with a new book >> designer and editor next week producing a book on the University of >> Victoria's School of Medicine and it's ten year celebration. >> >> However I'm in awe of the folks who have the patients for all the extra >> "checking" and adjusting you go through in capturing your exposures. In >> deed great admiration! >> >> HENNING RESPONDED: >> Subject: Re: [Leica] Comparing B&W M9/MM >> >> >> "I would say expose for the highlights, because if they're overcooked >> you'll never see them again. Process (develop) for the shadows. This is >> closer to how one treated slide film and in that sense it's like all >> digital files. With the MM files you just have more DR and can easily >> pull things out from the shadows when necessary.<<<<<<<<<<<<< >> >> I suppose one could offer: "What works for one shooter is total confusion >> to another?" >> >> BOTTOM-LINE? "Whatever ones method is, as long as the end result is a >> cool dude photo? Who cares how you capture it? Unless a special effect is >> required for a similar looking image... IE: SWISHY - PAN IMAGES CREATING >> SPEED APPEARANCES?" >> >> cheers, >> ted >> >> >> >> "wHAT'S GOOD FOR ONE IS TOTAL CONFUSION FOR ANOTHER? tHE >> >> >> >> _______________________________________________ >> Leica Users Group. >> See http://leica-users.org/mailman/listinfo/lug for more information > > > _______________________________________________ > Leica Users Group. > See http://leica-users.org/mailman/listinfo/lug for more information