In my opinion, some of the best black and white images ever produced were created by American photographer Ansel Adams. (I have scattered some of his inspirational quotes throughout this post.) Capturing an image on film was only half the story for him; it was not unusual for him to spend the whole day in the darkroom working on a single image. (Nowadays we use the computer to achieve those results.) He developed a system called the Zone System, which most formal photography students learn to use. It is not just about darkroom techniques, but how to carefully photograph an image in order to get the correct exposure for the varying light in the shot. It is not my intention to write a post about the Zone System, but just to let you know that such a technique exists where a scene is divided into 10 zones of light and darkness.
Dodging and burning are steps to take care of mistakes God made in establishing tonal relationships. (Ansel Adams)
Image ©Diane Macdonald. All Rights Reserved. Camera: iPhone 6S Plus
So often, I hear (to my dismay) photographers saying that their photographs are real because they are just as the camera saw them, and they have done no post-processing. When you see a scene, you see everything from light to dark, including details in the shadows and the highlights, but a camera, without your interference, averages the light in the brightness and shadows and produces an image based only on that average light! The camera cannot see the details in the highlights and shadows like your eyes can! So what is the correct representation of the scene? The way your eyes saw it, or how the camera “saw” it based on some internal algorithm? Remember the camera is a tool used to try to reproduce what you saw!
In other words, when it comes to exposure, most point and shoot cameras simply expose for the average light in the image, not the correct light as it is in reality. DSLR cameras do the same if you set the camera on auto and let the camera figure out the exposure for you. Sometimes it works, especially with a very even kind of lighting, but very often you end up with a photograph exposed properly for a small area of the photograph. It's up to you the photographer to decide how to expose an image properly, not your camera! Even if you are shooting with a cell phone, you can choose the exposure settings. Read the manual for your phone!
There are no rules for good photographs, there are only good photographs. (Ansel Adams)
Most professional photographers know that correct exposure is about more than the average light in the image. In the days before digital, we would use a light meter outdoors to check for the exposure required for the subject matter of the image. I still use a light meter in the studio with my studio lights of course. If the subject matter was a person, then we would meter for the person's face. I do the same today, but with my DSLR camera's metering system. There are metering settings I can choose based on how I want the image to be exposed. Many times, I use spot metering, which has the same effect as using the light meter had in my days of film. I choose what area is most important for exposure. Whatever method of metering I use though, I am usually looking for the correct exposure for the mid-tones.
Simply look with perceptive eyes at the world about you, and trust to your own reactions and convictions. Ask yourself, 'Does this subject move me to feel, think and dream?' (Ansel Adams)
If a photograph is very contrasty (with a huge difference between the lights and darks) we say the photograph has a high dynamic range, meaning that it is impossible to get detail in all 10 zones of the image. That's when we must decide to let the darkest areas go black, or let the white areas get blown out. (Almost always the best decision is to let the shadows go black and to keep the detail in the highlights.)
The single most important component of a camera is the twelve inches behind it. (Ansel Adams)
You have heard no doubt about HDR (high dynamic range) photography. Using that technique, correct exposure is used for all areas of the photograph by shooting at least three shots - one exposed for the highlights, one for the mid-tones and one for the shadows – and combining them all in post-processing to show one image that is as close as possible to what your eyes actually saw! You can even use your phone to do this, so no excuses! A tripod is necessary with a DSLR, and is highly recommended with a phone too!
A great photograph is one that fully expresses what one feels, in the deepest sense, about what is being photographed. (Ansel Adams)
So what does my critique of the winning #wiwcontest photos have to do with Ansel Adams? Well, based on the fact that his photography techniques were taught at the art school I attended, I tend to look at all black and white photography through his eyes, as it were! I was looking for good tonal range and a pleasing composition that evokes feeling ! So, let's take a look!
This image by 
There is good tonal range with the blacks being pure black, so most of the detail has been preserved in the highlights. Therefore, exposure is good.
The composition consists of an interesting pattern that keeps the eyes going around and around the photograph, drawing us in by having us look first at the very light area (where the eye always goes first in an image), and then following the spiral.
This image by 
The wispiness of the upper part of the clouds and the solid center contrast with each other, suggesting some kind of tension, as if the clouds are going to lift off and move away at any moment.
Perhaps the image would have been more powerful had a slightly wider view been taken in this case.
What makes this image by 
Again, this is an ideal black and white image with tones of white through pure black. In this case, the blacks are without detail, making the detail in the white and gray areas so powerful.
The bird in the center of the shot adds to the pleasing composition. It's as if he has just emerged from the darkness.
In this image by 
The clouds have form to them because of the pleasing 3 dimensional effect created by the shades of gray, but the composition would have have been much more powerful if there had been separation between the wispy clouds and the rest of them. Perhaps it would have been possible to capture that a few minutes earlier or later.
This image by 
My last word is that it all depends on what you visualize. (Ansel Adams)
The theme for this week's theme is WHITE TEXTURED BACKGROUNDS. Get your entries uploaded before SATURDAY 14th April at midnight EST for a chance to win! Also, please don't forget to Upvote this post and to add the tag #wiwcontest!
Thanks for taking the time to read this! I appreciate it. Please check out this week's #wiwcontest here!
