FINE TUNING IN THE REAL WORLD

Once you are getting predictable results, take a lot of pictures of real scenes. Sunlight coming in windows will give you high contrast. Take some 3 x 5 cards and put the Zone Roman numerals on them and also the + and - scale. (X+5, VI+1, II-3 etc.) Place these in areas of your scenes where these Zones lie. Check your transparencies to see if you are getting what you predicted. Always look at the corresponding negatives to learn how to "read" negatives. You will find that saturated colors can sometimes give unpredicted results because meters have different sensitivity to some saturated colors. Learn to think in terms of brightness first!

Another method to avoid slating with individual cards is to use a micro recorder and make careful notes about what the scene is and where areas are reading at. This method can be used when you really get good and make notes for the negative timer that times your negatives at the lab. Make sure that you have a working relationship with a timer before you burden him with extra requests. Be sure that your recorder is always recording.

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