Originally Posted by
Alan9940
Are we talking Kodak Tri-X? That's a B&W film that has a much greater dynamic range than 5 stops. Again, it seems like you're mixing terminology and methods between B&W film and color film. Also, I might add that placing a shadow value on Zone III means nothing, if you haven't tested your film. I'm talking B&W film here. Many times, depending on the scene and my anticipated development technique, I'll place an important shadow value into Zone IV. The "ceiling to the highlights is zone eight" is correct only for [B]textured[B] high values; that is, important highlight areas where you wish to retain some detail. The film itself is capable of going into higher zones and, if you utilize compensating developers or staining formulas you basically don't have to worry about the high values. But, now we're getting into more advanced topics.
I wouldn't get too hung up on expansion/contraction (N+, N-) development with B&W film. If you do your own darkroom printing, much can be done with the MG papers we have at our disposal nowadays. And, if you're scanning and working on the desktop contrast is easily manipulated to taste.
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