 BetterPhoto Member |
Use of the Zone System How does one go about using Zone System in conjunction with an 18% gray card? Let's say I select the face of my subject to be the important shadow area with some definition and texture. And I want to place the face of my subject in Zone III? Knowing that my meter will average the scene to a Zone V, do I meter the gray card, note the aperture reading and set the camera's aperture two stops below that reading when I compose on the face of my subject?
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doug Nelson |
As I understand it, John, putting the gray card in the same light as what is falling on the face will give you an accurate reading. When you let a meter that tries to render everything as an 18% reflectance gray read an 18% gray object, you come out all right. All the tones in the scene (illuminated by that same light source) will fall into their proper place. When you don't have the gray card, you have to be able to figure out how much the area you're interested in deviates from a middle gray. Read that area without the fray card and close down two stops. This is an interesting learning situation. Record carefully what you are doing here, and see what you get.
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David King |
John I don't think 5000 characters will let me explain this in detail. Basically the gray card is Zone V. Each Zone is the changing tone you get on a print resulting from a one stop change in exposure on the film. Zone III is the darkest area of the print that still shows detail/texture while Zone VII is the lightest area of the print still showing detail and texture. if you want to place an object in Zone III first take a meter reading of it. If you actually took the shot at that setting you would render whatever you metered as a Zone V. To place it in Zone III underexpose that reading by 2 stops (the difference between the Zone III you desire and the Zone V you meter thinks you have pointed it at. David
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