the zone system
A black and white digital workflow It is possible to create high quality black and white images using a digital workflow as well as the more traditional analog film and photographic paper route. Just as the Zone System is about tonal control and manipulation we can exercise the same degree of precise control over digital tones or levels destined to be printed via an inkjet printer. This control can be exercised during the capture, post-production editing and printing stages of the digital process.
Capturing in RGB It is important to capture the images destined for black and white as color images in the digital camera you are using. Do not be tempted to select any black and white option that may exist in your camera’s preferences. It is advisable to capture your images using the Raw file format to access the higher bit depth and higher dynamic range that the Raw file format offers. Make sure you have read the section ‘Raw format exposure considerations’ in the chapter ‘Exposure and Light Meters’ (pages 51 to 58). To achieve rich shadow tones it will be important not to underexpose the shadow tones during the capture stage of the process.
Converting to grayscale in the editing software The best place to convert a digital image from color to black and white (grayscale) is in Adobe Camera Raw or Photoshop Lightroom. Use the sliders in the HSL/Grayscale tab to fine-tune the conversion process. Dragging the red slider to the right will lighten the red colors in the image whilst dragging the blue slider to the left will darken the blue tones. You can then lower the exposure and increase the overall contrast using the tone curve controls to increase the drama further if required. For users of Photoshop Elements it is recommended that you open the image as a 16 Bits/Channel file from Adobe Camera Raw and then make use of the ‘Convert to Black and White’ adjustment feature to achieve maximum quality.
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