Because one of our aforementioned photographers can create beautifully exposed images of a subject does not mean that the other photographer can make identical ones. He can take the shots but they may not come out the same... taking and making are two very different things. In order to be more like the photographer who takes the best images you, like him, have to deduce a personal exposure index for your film. In fact you have to do this for every film type you use... and if you do this you are well on the way to achieving optimum quality.

With that in mind I use the above image of London's South Bank Festival Hall architectural monstrosity taken 1982 as a non-typical example. Had I used Zone System principles and practice I could have made a much finer image with better highlight and shadow details (there are none of the latter in the print). In it’s defence the image still works because of the dynamic shapes of the cast shadows... but I wish I had done it properly. Leica M4/2 or M4/P and 2,1cm Super-Angulon using Ilford XP-1 chromogenic film.

Photographs made using Zone System aren't the preserve of large-format view cameras and individually processed sheet films... the image of a piece of glass sculpture on the next page was exposed correctly using Zone System measurements and was made with a 55mm Macro-Nikkor on a Nikon F3. The high-speed Ilford HP5 film rated at EI 200 and developed in Ilford ID-11 and shows fine detail and tonality on the original grade 2 bromide print.

Tools needed
To work out a personal exposure index (EI) for your films you need a device that will accurately measure the density of your negatives. However, you do not need an expensive densitometer... a digital hand-held exposure meter of the type that reads in tenths of a stop will prove to be excellent. Such meters are made by Gossen, Minolta and Sekonic to name three... one of the cheapest on the market being the Gossen Sixtomat. You also need your enlarger, a notepad and pocket calculator to work the figures into a meaningful table.

The only other extra needed to test a film's EI rating is a Kodak 18% Grey Card (sold as a set of 2) available from any professional camera dealer. An 18% Grey Card must be used because it is the standard reference mid-tone from which all exposure meters are calibrated.