A couple of months ago I made it out on one of the last foggy days this winter. I chose Aversley Wood as it is reasonably close and I had been there only a couple of times before. It sits above Sawtry near where the monastery that gave Monk's Wood its name was located.
It was a good day out. I got a couple of good images. I was out with my Mamiya 645 and shot mostly 150mm with and without 2x teleconverter and my 80mm lens. I shot Ilford FP4+ at ASA 80 developed in a HC110 dilution B at -20% of massive dev chart development time. I also shot some Fuji Pro 400H color film which is on its way to the lab. The delay was because at 15 images to a roll I didn't get through all the film rolls on that one day.
I took the black and white film into the darkroom to print a couple of the better images. What did I learn?
Virtually Every Image Can be Printed in Multiple Ways
This has been a recent theme (see here...) and has become an ingrained truth for me. This is especially true of black and white images where ranges of tone and contrast can be pushed far more than color. Now I understand that Ansel Adams and his school of thought invokes previsualization so that you take the photo with the end result in mind. I certainly do that but we also know that he would reprint an image differently later.
I also take counsel from having read monographs from David Kachel. He implored one to 'go too far' when printing to explore the boundaries of an image in order to get the best results. For me this process also reveals different interpretations latent in the image itself.
I find there are a few different degrees of freedom. First is the crop one chooses, second is the choice over brightness and tone high key or dark and moody, finally the contrast. The combinations are endless but I find that I have one idea in mind and stumble onto a darker or lighter version and then explore that one. This has become a blessing and a curse for me. I can see two immediate results.
1) One or more great prints from a single negative.
2) The consumption of vastly more paper.
This time I set about the process using smaller sheets (8x10) of RC paper (Kentmere VC Select) before committing to fiber-based paper.
The Journey
This image I had to crop first to remove some distracting branches at the top. I tried to exclude them in the composition but there were too many other compromises. I settled on a 6x8" image on the 8x10" paper. I have developed a fetish for wide borders after years of maximizing image size with 1/4" borders.
I started out with test strips for the #00 and #5 filters . (I use split grade printing.) I initially determine my exposure my setting the aperture and lamp brightness in the range of Ev 6 (ISO 100) metered from the base board. In this case I started out with f11 for an Ev of 6.5.
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Test Strip #5 filter top
64 seconds on right decreasing in 1/2 stop intervals.
64, 45, 32, 22, 16, 11, 8 |
This lead me to choose #00 at 11" and I couldn't decide between #5 at 32" or a 1/4 stop more 38". I made a split print with #00 at 11" and half the image at 32" and the other at 38" of #5 filter.
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f11 #00 11" left side #5 32" right side #5 38"
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This leads to a fully detailed though low contrast image. In many ways it probably reflects much of that the scene looked like though for me fog is not gray but bright white. I liked the higher contrast of the 38" exposure so made a print with that setting.
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#00 11" #5 38"
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This results was lighter than the previous print would have predicted. I am not sure why. So I punch up the #5 filter to 45". It is also apparent that the upper left corner is going to need burning no matter the final print so the tone is consistent with the right side of the image.
As an aside I am learning with fog that the position of the sun has a vital impact on the scene even though it is not directly visible. I think the fog fools me into thinking the illumination is even when it is not. This photo is facing due south and the sun is coming up on the left. The sun in fog also creates a lot of extra luminance it the top of an image generally and I need to think more about using a graduated ND filter in these situations even if the film can handle the range of light.
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| #00 11" #5 45" burn upper left #5 10" |
This is better. A little more contrast but still no blacks. The upper left corner balances better. I am concerned I am not using the full range of the paper as there are not enough really dark tones. I realize where I am headed. Using only the high contrast filter (#5). This seems to be where foggy images lead me.
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| #5 45" burn upper left #5 20 seconds |
Without the #00 filter the image got lighter again. This is a big change and I am lost so I regroup with another test strip this time the whole image in only the #5 filter. I also realize I need much more exposure so at this point I change the aperture to f8 (one stop brighter). I start at 16" (32" at previous f11) as I know there is not much to see at exposures below this exposure.
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#5 test strip bottom to top,
16, 22, 32, 45, 64 seconds |
This is the point where the journey changed for me. Wherever this image was headed I now changed direction. The impetus was the 64 second exposure at the top. Clearly too dark there is that glint of light through the branches in the center that catches my attention. How can I capture that luminous glow? Clearly the contrast of the dark forest helps.
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#5 38" burn top left corner 16" #5
Dodge center 6" |
This is now headed in this new direction. The image tone is not so graduated with the darkened forest emphasizing the luminosity of the path. It comes across a little dark. Judging print brightness is one of the more difficult tasks I think. I spent years judging from the lights in the darkroom only to realize my prints were too dark on the walls. The lighting in the room is too bright and now I move about the house to a couple of locations with more typical light. I sometimes make 2 different versions (lighter and darker) of a finished print as a result.
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#5 32" burn top/left corner 22" #5
Dodge center 6" |
This si getting there but I should have reduced the dodge of the center area as there is now 6" less exposure which is equal to the dodge time. I was tempted to not dodge at all but I strive some white in the hightlights so I opted fro a reduction.
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Final RC Print
#5 32" burn top/left corner 22" #5
Dodge center 3" |
Where to Next?
I plan to print this version on Ilford MG FB Classic paper as slightly larger on 12" wide paper. The blacks will improve.
I think there is a path to explore of an even darker image.
I could return to the original version I was pursuing to maximize visual detail.
A different crop is possible and doing a 16x9 aspect ratio is possible. This will pull the focus from the center which might work or might not.
Burn Plan
- 60W
- 0xND
- f8
- Ev 7.4
- Kentmere VC Select
- 6x8 on 8x10
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