In a previous blog (dated 7th March 2014) I reported upon my reaction to the images in Adam's book placing them in arbitrary groups solely upon my reaction to them. In this blog I want to look at the techniques used by Adams. The page numbers refer to the edition of the book that I have read [Adams A (1983) Examples The Making of 40 Photographs. Eleventh paper back printing 2013. Italy: Little, Brown and Company].
There is a great deal of technical information scattered throughout the book and the reader is offered Adams' best guess of the exposure used, the method of development of the negative and the paper used for most of the images. The certainty with which one can accept this information is lessened by his confession that he did not make notes at the time and that even the year that the photograph was taken is a best guess. Most, if not all, of this information, whilst of historical interest, is of little value today even for those who use film and print their own images.
Adams is not only famed for his talents as a photographer but also as the joint developer of the Zone system. Developed in the late 1930's Adams describes the system as: "A framework for understanding exposure and development, and visualizing their effect in advance. Areas of different luminance in the subject are related to exposure zones, and these in turn to approximate values of gray in the final print. Thus careful exposure and development procedures permit the photographer to control the negative densities and corresponding print values that will represent specific subject areas, in accordance with the visualized final image (p. 177). It is not the intention of this blog to explain the Zone system and those interested should refer to the information on the Web and/or the New Ansel Adams Photography Series (The Camera, The Negative and the Print).
Visualisation (I revert to the International English spelling of the word) is a key element in much of what Adams tells us throughout this book and has direct relevance to the Zone System. We are told in the Glossary (p. 177) visualisation is the "process of "seeing" the final print while viewing the subject. With practice the photographer can anticipate the various influences of each stage of photographic procedure, and incorporate these intuitively in visualising a finished image." In short you stand a better chance of achieving your final aim if you have a mental image of the desired result prior to taking the photograph and eventually printing it.
Michael Freeman in his book (Freeman M (2009) The Complete Guide to Black and White Digital Photography Lewes Ilex) argues ( p. 166) that the Zone system was developed for a highly specific kind of photography that very few people ever practised. Whilst it was usable for a single sheet film image it was not a practical proposition for a roll of film (the system would ideally have required all the images on the roll to be of the same or very similar exposures). He further argues that it required that the subject matter of photograph was such as to allow the photographer time to visualise the image. The latter argument is less certain because Adams talks of an intuitive process that does not, by definition, require reason or perception. It does raise the question whether the Zone system has any relevance in the digital world of today.
Even the best of modern day digital cameras with their high level of sophistication can not match the dynamic range of the human eye. When we see a potential image, particularly where there is a wide range of tones between the darkest and lightest elements, our eyes allow us to see almost everything. The camera has only a limited range and this is often the reason by what we saw and what the camera produces can be markedly different. I was recently taking a series of architectural images outside where parts of the buildings were in deep shadow whilst other parts were lit by a bright mid-day sun. As I saw the image I could see that in one of the darker areas there was a wrought iron gate that had many attractive features. Furthermore I was able to see the structure and colour of the brickwork that was lit by the bright sun. The image taken showed a deep, featureless, shadow where I knew the gate was and little if any detail in the brighter areas. I was able to recover fully the shadow detail but the highlights were non-recoverable.
The photograph was taken about the same time as I was reading Adams' book and I began to think about the thought processes I adopted when taking a photograph. As with all such processes some of it will be intuitive and difficult if not impossible to describe in words. Very often there comes a point when everything seems 'right' and the shutter pressed without conscious thought. At a conscious level I almost invariably have a specific aim in mind particularly when undertaking assignments where there is a known goal. It is often at a location I have some prior knowledge of and I give a great deal of thought about the images that I wish to take and the best possible outcome given the uncontrollable elements. In essence I have visualised the outcome, albeit in general terms.
Of course there is built-in flexibility but hopefully I am in the right area and the overall chances of getting the image are good. For any image there are the following elements: the essential, the necessary, the desirable and the hoped for. The 'essential' is the element that is the key to the success of the image as a whole. Usually the subject matter of the photograph even if it is as ill-defined as a group of people or a particular sort of landscape or object. The 'necessary' is the element or elements that will provide context and support for the essential element in the story to be told by the image. The 'desirable' is the element that provides the icing on the cake that will lift the image out of the ordinary and capture the viewer's interest. The 'hoped for' is an event or confluence of events that can underpin the image and provide it with a greater depth of understanding.
My concentration and decision making processes are centred upon the essential element. All other decisions flow from this element. Where I have to make choices between different levels of exposure and focal point then the decision will lay with the best choice for this element. I need to achieve the best possible exposure where texture and shape are clearly defined. In some cases the choice made will conflict with an optimum choice for other elements and then it may be necessary to compromise slightly to achieve the best overall result. It is here that experience will offer the best possible chance of success. Knowledge of the dynamic range of the camera being used and the amount of detail that will be captured is invaluable. I have recently purchased a second camera that necessarily means that I have less knowledge of its capabilities and this has been reflected in the success or failure of images where the dynamic range of the scene has been considerable. When I came to 'develop' the images using my computer areas that would have been recoverable using my other camera were difficult to recover whilst other areas were easier to recover.
The question then arises would an awareness of the Zone system help to make better decisions at the time. The Zone system is essentially an evaluation system and thus should help in the decision making process. Whether one needs to fully understand why or whether an area of the scene falls in Zone III or Zone IV is less certain (interestingly Adams in his book refers to certain elements as falling between, for example, III and III and a half which increases the possible number of zones and therefore the gradations by at least two). Attempts have been made to suggest a digital version of the Zone system (see for example Michael Freeman's book referred to above). An awareness of the range of the camera being used and the success or otherwise of any software that is available is what is required. It is essential that the photographer knows what is or is not feasible. Knowing what the chances of success are in capturing detail in brightly lit or deep shadow areas within the chosen image is necessary if not vital but being able to place those areas within a particular Zone by number is of little consequence.
Perhaps the best comment I have read on the Zone system is in this book " Edward [Weston] ..a highly intuitive artist paid little attention to what he called "complexities". Through experience alone he had developed a personal equivalent of the Zone System. ..He simply was not capable of or interested in technical discussions beyond his own methods and controls" (p. 146)
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