Zone Metering

I know there is a TON of metering posts and I've been reading books

on the side, but it seems like "correct" metering is like splitting

the atom or something. I'm pulling my dad's old 4x5 camera out and

trying to take some shots of fall color. I have a Nikon F100 with

active metering and spot mode. I also have an old hand held meter.

I'm trying to use both. I'm confused!! With bracketing I seem to

eventually hit the mark, but I waste a lot of film. I was reading

books on the zone system as applied to Black and White. Is it also

applicable to Color?

 

I was reading a method of spot metering on what the "darkest" subject

you care to photograph, such as pine trees for instance and realizing

that a spot meter will give a "Zone 5" reading for them. Then go off

two stops to make the trees "Zone 3". Then take an exposure and hope

everything comes out. Is any of this applicable to color photography?

 

Even with "proper" metering, I'm paranoid and I'd probably still

bracket...

 

Steve

Steve,

 

The zone system can be confusing, but essentially you are on the right track. In addition to metering for the "darkest" shadow areas that you want to "hold" detail, you need to ascertain the value for the brightest highlight you wish to hold detail as well. Then with the number of stops that the scene holds you can determine the development time to fit the negative density range to the paper you are using.

 

A bit of testing will give you an exposure index for the film you are using as well as the paper. You can then determine the ideal development times for normal, contrasty and flat scenes.

 

Many folks just use an incident meter (not reflected) to determine the average exposure and go from there.

 

A bit brief, but I think at this point simplicity is good until you decide how in depth you wish to go into the zone system. Experience will help get you on the right track.

 

Mike

Stephen, if your old handheld meter still works, use it. Spot metering isn't going to give you an advantage unless you are shooting B&W and developing the negs. yourself. For color film, use Jack Dykingas method. Locate a Zone V area in the scene, take a meter reading from it, and use that as your exposure. For color trannies, bracket about 1/2 stop over and 1/2 stop under, if you want to shoot extra film. For color negs., make an extra exposure 1/2 stop over, for insurance. It's not rocket science, but it pays to know what a Zone V tone looks like. Green trees, an area of green grass, and the surface of a body of water are examples. Have fun!

Question not answer: Is zone five the same as a 18 percent gray card ?

 

Lee

Yes

Generally Color Transparency film has about a 3 stop range while color negative has a 5 stop range (B&W has a 10 stop range in comparison). IMO it's best to meter the brightest and darkest areas then expose for the average with a bracket up to a stop either way (with transparencies), up to a stop (over only) with negatives.

Charles Campbell has a book where he explains a system he

calls "Chromazone". It's not the zone system, but it does give a

good overview on metering for color and uses "zones". It's a

good overall book and worth looking into. I bought a used one

off of Amazon.com for ten bucks or so.

I think that you should get a copy of this book:

"The Confused Photographer's Guide to Photographic Exposure and the Simplified Zone System" by Bahman Farzad.

 

This book explains the subject in a way very easy to understand, I highly recommend it to anyone interested in learning how to use a spotmeter and the basics of the Zone System.

Well first of all, metering and placement are only two parts ofthe zone system -

- and you seen to be on the right track. But first you have to know what your

film's real sensitivity to light is. The ISO rating is a good stanard, but doesn't

necessarily apply to your equipment. So first you have to know what the

exposure Index (E.I. ) is for the film you are shooting and then you have to

determine what the "real world' normal development time is. Forthe most part,

when workingwith color it is sufficient to determine what the E.I. is. For a lot of

ISO color transparency films that I work with, that seems to be either an E.I. of

80 or 64, depending on how flat or contrasty the lighting is. Unless I

absolutely have to I try to avoid expanding or contracting (AKA "pushing" or

"pulling") color development. Pushing more than about 1/3rd stop with Fuji or

Kodak films makes the colors shift towards a warmer color balance, while

pulling makes for a cooler color balances and muddies the high lights. <P>On

top of that color -- negative or transparency has at most a five stop exposure

range to record details of the color. Below or beyond that, I either get detailess

whites or dark grays quickly shading into black. Those blown out whites and

dark shadows are very important to successful color photography but most of

what happens in a color image happens inbtween those two extremes. So I

think that for right now, rather worrying about trying to master the Zome

System, concentrate on studying the contrast range of the scene you are

photographing and learn to decide what detail you want to capture.

I took my 4X5 down the grand canyon and got 4 useable pictures because I was so confussed about the subject. I assume that you are using slide film and nothing looks good if your highlights are washed out, so lewis kemper gave me this solid advice. Place the hottest part of your image in zone 6 3/4 to zone 7 and pray for the shadows. I have been very close using this method.

The zone system is very simple with black and white sheet film. However, it doesn't translate well to 35 mm color film for two reasons. First, correct exposure is only half of the zone system, development to a desired highlight density is the other half and you presumably don't develop your own film, not to mention the fact that with 35 mm film you obviously can't individually develop each photograph as you can with sheet film. So even if you master the exposure half of the zone system, the other half won't be usable. The other problem is that it's easy to visualize zones with black and white film since the zone system is based entirely on black, white, and shades of gray, but not so easy with color.

 

If I were you I wouldn't worry much about using the zone system with your equipment for these reasons. Instead, I'd rely on the matrtix metering setting (or whatever Nikon is calling it these days) in your camea's metering system and assuming you're using color negative film you'll get excellent results 99% of the time.

 

Nevertheless, if you are determined to use the zone system there is a book entitled "The Zone System for 35 mm Photographers" by Carson Graves (ISBN 0-240-51773-3)that would proably be more useful to you than most other zone system books since it deals with the film format you're using. It even has a chapter dealing with using the zone system with color film.

Brian, the way I translate Stephen's question is that he is shooting 4X5 color transparencies and using his Nikon 100 as a spot meter for determining his exposures. Am I missing something here?

Stephen, if that's the case, get yourself a Pentax Digital Spotmeter or a Minolta Spotmeter F, read everything you can about metering for proper exposure, and leave the Nikon at home. I am assuming that your old handheld meter is not a spot meter. If that's the case, aim it at the palm of your hand, take a reading, then open up one stop. You'll be in the ballpark most of the time.

Just to confuse you a bit more:

 

For B/W use a spot meter.

You are not photographing objects - you are photographing light reflected from objects. No incidence meter will give you information about reflectancy.

 

The meter reading equals 18% grey (well it should if calibrated correctly.)

18% grey equals Zone V.

The spot meter will aid you in visualizing where on the grey scale you place your readings.

 

Read Fred Picker's book "the Zone VI Workshop. Easy - down to earth reading - that in simple terms explains how to fine tune your equipment with your film.

 

Using the Zone System (even just having it in the back of your mind) as a reference tool) will enable you to make creative decisions about your imagery, from "seeing" to final presentation.

 

Finally, do not be a slave to the Zone system, or to anything technical when it comes to photography, but do learn the technical aspects fully so you can make creative decisions based on knowledge and intuition (again based on your understanding of the medium), instead of relying on chance.

(Although "chance favours the prepared mind" = Louis Pasteur.)

 

Per Volquartz

 

 

http://www.volquartz.com/pervolquartz

Eugene - No, you're not missing anything, in rereading it I think you're right (although I don't see him mention whether he's using transparencies or negatives). I obviously got carried away with the fingers before engaging the brain.

Well what I do may seem simplistic to most dyed in the wool LF'ers, but all I do for most pics is use a hand held meter, put the incident filter over the front, take one reading with the meter pointing away from the sun and one reading with the front of the meter in full daylight, then split the difference. As an example if the away reading is EV14 and the sunlight reading is EV18 I use EV16. From that I pick the shutter speed and F-stop based on depth of field considerations. I shoot both B&W and color negs. The guy who showed me this little trick shots exclusively tranny's.

 

When I decide to get all Zen like I pull out the spot meter, my floppy hat, wear baggy clothes and scribble all kinds of notes about highlight and shadow placements in my notebook. As time goes on this happens less and less.

 

Eric

Steve, don't make a thesis out of a simple issue. I agree with the Fred Picker recommendation. Fred also recommended a "Key Day" approach in his newsletters. He set the lens for f22 on the brightest day in his area and made a series of esposures at various shutter speeds. Keep careful notes. The neg or transparency which looks right is the correct exposure. Leave the f22 setting and halve the shutter speed for a hazy bright day. The lower the light, the shower the shutter. Practice this consistently and you won't need a meter. I have used this for years with good results. If I get in a lighting situation where I feel unsure, I set the exposure by eye and make the exposure. After making the initial negative, I bring out the meter for a second opinion. This technique improves with practice.