It’s been a while since I’ve taken 4x5 exposures on a consistent basis, much less practicing how to meter for the Zone System, so I figured I would reach out with a forum post in search of sound advice.
I have taken 6 exposures of this same scene and individually developed 2 already. I am trying to determine which of these two negatives
1.) Have more “zones” in them (preferably with zone III placed on greatest shadow I want detail in, and Zone VII, greatest white I want detail in, plus every zone in between)
2.) Which negative would be best for digital scanning (leaning towards the top picture in photo #1; top photo F/32 at 1/15th second)
3.) Which negative would be best for darkroom printing (leaning towards the bottom picture in photo #1 because it seems to be more dense and would thus allow greater control over the final print; bottom photo F/32 at 1/4th second)
4.) Where would you suggest I go from here with the other 4 I have left to develop? Bottom was N-2 and top was N-1.5 (if such a thing doesn’t exist, well, I invented it). Next photo I will develop was shot at F/32, 1/30th of a second)
Reason I am having trouble with this scene in particular is because I never photograph scenes where the main subject is the whitest part.
Thanks in advance for all the help!
P.S. These are cellphone photos of the negatives laying atop a light table. I currently don’t have access to a scanner or darkroom, lest I would run proper tests myself.
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