Tuesday 8 November 2016

Tone Definition

Tone refers to the lightness or darkness of something.

It is created by the way light falls on a 3D object. The parts of the object on which the light is strongest are called highlights and the darker areas are called shadows.

Without tone form does not exist, tone is therefore an important aspect in visualisation of 3D objects.


Ansel Adams developed the zone system which is aimed to achieve the correct exposure of an image. The diagram above shows a basic principle of the zone system. Zone 0 is pitch black and zone 10 is pure white. If a camera is set to AUTO, pointing it to a bight light will set the zone to a lower number .If pointing to a darker place, the zone would be set to a higher number.

Black and White photography:

In the absence of colour our ability to create a narrative in image is restricted.  This is viewed as an advantage to people that practice black and white photography. The wider range of tones used, the generally higher attention it gets. 

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