I visited the Wildwood Hotel right at dusk to setup and take a few photos. This scene is challenging from an exposure perspective because of the wide latitude of luminous values (shadow detail to highlights).
I’ve read about several people having issues with Tmax and night photography and I have not found that to be the case. I like the fact that the Tmax 100 curve could possibly run your highlights right off the top. For night time black and white you very well might want those zone VIII or IV highlights. I rate my Tmax 100 at EI 64.
The setup was simple, I waited for the daylight to just turn the corner from daylight to dusk and then I quickly metered around the scene. I placed the roof in Zone III because I wanted a little bit of shadow detail against the sky. I normally setup for f/8 in my night photos and tonight was no different. The roof measured 15s at -2 stops (Zone III). The sky measured 1s and water in the fountain was at 1/15th. This is a high contrast scene with about 8 stops of light between the shadow detail and highlights. I used my normal development time and was very happy with the results. If I had shot more than one photo at this time I would have likely done a n-1 development to bring down the highlights one zone just to have the opportunity to compare the two images.
Night photography can be a lot of fun because it is challenging and adds a little mystery to your experience. The one you think is your best of the night usually isn’t most of the time. If you are serious about a photo then I would suggest you bracket a few shots and increase your chances of getting the shot you traveled for.
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Tim Layton
© Tim Layton – All Rights Reserved – 2011. You may not republish or use any information or media of any format, in part or in whole, without my written permission. For permission and more information you can contact Tim Layton on the web at blog.timlaytonphotography.com or via email at tim@timlaytonphotography.com or via the telephone at 314.972.4900. Visit Tim’s latest photos online at Flickr.
