People have claimed to use the Zone System for everything from
color slides to cooking steaks on the grill.
Don't bother. The Zone System is a specific tool for a specific
task. That doesn't mean that you don't use elements of it for
other stuff, but the Zone System is specifically designed for
B&W work. I do agree, however, that with digital imaging, the
Zone System is a fabulous means of improving the work flow and
imaging.
The Zone System has little place in shooting transparencies.
Sure, you can meter parts of the scene and determine where on
the brightness scale those parts should land. With
transparancies, it is most important that midtones get captured
as midtones and you control highlights and shadows through
lighting and filteration (polorizers, gradients).
Again, elements of the Zone System can be used for color work,
but that's about it. There have been, through the years a
myriad of books and articles about using the Zone System for
color and transparency work. But as you really read them you
discover that what is presented isn't the Zone System but
usually new and improved ways of using your spot meter.
Frankly, with modern films, the complete Zone System is pretty
much a dinasour. Very few films give the same type of N+ or N-
development characteristics of the old thick emulsions. In fact,
some film/developer combinations (Delta/DD-X) do not give any
usable N+/N- control as they push/pull instead of altering the
contrast response curves. Modern film/developer combinations
have much longer straight-line sections without the large toe
and shoulder. Highlights keep seperations and don't block up as
much. It's a different world. For those using some old classic
combinations, the full-blown Zone System is great. For the rest
of us, we use it mostly for the exposure componant and leave the
contrast componant for the darkroom.
AG-Schnozz
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