Introduction
Ansel Adams was a great contemporary black and white photographer . He received the Presidential Medal of Honor from President James Carter. From studying his works there are several terms that are used very often.
Lighting or luminosity is a very important concept in black and white photography as well as color photography. In black and white photography, the warmth of an area brightness makes the mood of the photograph appear different to the eye. The amount of lighting changes the image itself and can be used to create different moods in the same photograph .
Composition
Composition is probably the major feature of photography that makes one print great and another one just average. The Composition is an ever changing concept in film photography as there are as many good prints breaking the composition rules as there are those that follow the rules..
One such rule is the rule of thirds . The rule of thirds is simply aiming to make the subject the center of the photograph and create a sense of balance between the other objects in the photograph. In other words the idea is to create a sense of balance. The images should be considered in a horizontal and vertical grid. This grid is for the eye to see the images that are central for the photograph. The human eye sees the four quadrants and only sees one at a time where the grid intersects. So in the photograph you would want the subject in one of those four quadrants of the grid.
Developing Film
Developing black and white film is a process that is sometimes lost in modern photography. However it remains the techniques that allow a photographer to vary the mood and outlook of the photograph without using a digital service such as Photoshop. Chemicals, a darkroom and specific supplies are needed to develop black and white photographs . The chemicals are readily available at photographers supply stores or from an online source but the laws have changed regarding disposal of the chemicals. Some of the chemicals such as a developer can be reused but other chemicals need to be disposed of according to chemical recycling in your area.
As the generations of photographers evolves, most are only familiar with digital photographer and the need to shoot and develop black and white film is a dying art. However, taking the time to make prints in black and white opens a new adventure in photography from the color ones. The black and white film allows for a different view of the images as can be attested by trying the same subject in color digital photographs and then black and white as it is very difficult to reproduce the same look in the digital technology . There are film scanner available to allow for the scanning of negatives to produce the prints.
Conclusion
Black and white film and prints add another dimension to the modern photographer. In the film arena the time has to be taken to frame the picture. For those who have learned from film and moved to digital this process is transferable. Going the other way is not as easy a transition.
Film photography offers many beautiful works and the works of Ansell Adams are particularly power images. There are many greats in this field and time can be spent analyzing and enjoying the images. The rule of thirds will be apparent as well as the attempts to offset the images.
References
Adams, Ansel. "Glossary of Photographic Terms." 2015. The Ansel Adams Gallery. [online] http://www.anseladams.com/ansel-adams-photography/original-photographs-by-ansel-adams/glossary-of-photographic-terms/. Accessed January 2016.
Forbes, Ted. "Developing black and white film." 2012. Art of Photography. [online] http://theartofphotography.tv/episodes/photography-lessons/the-ultimate-guide-to-developing-black-and-white-film/. Accessed January 2016.
Magazine, Max. "Rule of Thirds Film Photgaphy compositon." n.d. Guide to Film Photography. [onine] http://www.guidetofilmphotography.com/rule-of-thirds.html. Accessed January 2016.
Marinucci, Max. "Film how to develop." 16 February 2010. Steve Huff Photography. [online] http://www.stevehuffphoto.com/2010/02/16/film-how-to-develop-scan-and-print-with-no-darkroom-required-by-max-marinucci/. Accessed January 2016.
