Natural Color - Adventures in the Zoning Technique

This is a similar color shot to the black and white mode shot uploaded yesterday. I still applied the same zoning principles to the natural color when I took the shot. However, I can easily see more colors in the mid-tones like blues and reds. Still have "pure black" and "pure white." I am finally "getting" the technical aspect of it - 30 some years later! LOL! The "flat" photo vs. "crisp" - no "pure blacks and whites" vs. the "pure blacks and whites"... to get the highlights and the shadows right, then your mid-tones by adjusting my camera settings to get the best of all three! Learning to do it well in black and white, just helps to make my color shots better... or tells me why they're not so good. Now on to white on white!

[The Blue Gnu]

Interesting play of textures. I can see the red and blues too. So much to learn, so little time. :) Keep clicking and most of all having fun with it.

[Princess Fairlane]

Excellent zoning technique Maggie! Your first photo in zoning technique I don't know why I haven't notice that the background was a hair until now maybe it's because of the natural color the highlights and textures were emphasized. Oh I need to learn more. I don't know this techniques. Thanks for sharing Maggie :D

[Mags]

@thebluegnu Thank you for your kind comments! It is fun! I like a challenge!

[Mags]

@princesicita I've figured out why my ol' professor stressed this so very much, Princess! =) Crisp photos are so much better! To master it in black and white just makes the color shots even nicer. It's a whole lot of trial and error with the camera settings though. LOL! Thank goodness there's no film and developing costs involved these days! Thank you so much for your very lovely comments! Always appreciate seeing your pretty face and reading them. =)

[karenann]

I love the darker shadows that you are getting here . . I hope that they are supposed to be there, because I like how they create depth. I'm wondering if this can be done with only one object? Zoning appeals to my love for simplicity. (However the method of doing this is NOT simple!) LOL

[Mags]

@karenann Thank you for the very nice comments! Yes! Can be done with one object! Start in black and white mode and master the shadows and highlights first, then work on your mid-tones. After that, try the same object and background in natural color with the same camera settings and see what happens! I am doing white on white in black and white mode today. We'll see how this goes! LOL!

[Phil Howcroft]

i think i prefer this to the previous shot marlboro, the blue tones give it a cool feel, which is very appropriate for some of the items :)

[Mags]

@phil_howcroft The hardest thing to do with black on black is still get a "pure white" in the highlights... if you can do it in black and white mode, then repeating the same settings in color will amaze you. =) Thank you very much! I like this one better, too!