Hi all- I've been reading some wonderful subjects on this web page. What a pleasure. I am interested in getting black skies in my photos. i generally shoot 35mm and med format, and have experimented w/ red and orange filters. I have seen some works where the sky is an incredible black ( no, not infra-re). How do they do that? Thanks in advance. Deb

-- Debra Rozin (PhilnDebra@aol.com), July 26, 1998

Answers

Black skies? With a deep red filter, the one often called "25A", which is a Kodak number, but lots of manufacturers make one. You should already be getting pretty dark skies with whatever red or orange filters you are currently using. You can also just burn in the sky when printing.

If you use a TTL meter, it may overcompensate for the filter: if you point the camera at the sky, with a deep red filter, the meter will try to make it average-gray, instead of heavily underexposing it (to make it black). Instead, meter without the filter, and just give it two to three extra stops.

-- Alan Gibson (gibson.al@mail.dec.com), July 27, 1998.

Skies can be made darker by combining the red filter with a polarizing filter. Add the filter factors for both filters together to get the correct exposure compensation.

-- bill moore (wmoore@provide.net), July 28, 1998.

Try using a polarising filter in combinaiton with the deep red, just be ready to take a loooooooooong exposure! Also, be careful about dark objects that project into the sky, as the sky gets darker they will converg in tone with the sky and "disappear".

The red and polarisers will also work better on "clear blue" skys, ones that have atmospheric haze will darken less, and white clouds to contrast the blue sky, will tend to make the black look blacker.

Lastly, a high quality paper, that is printed and developed properly will make the black blacker. Underexposed, underdeveloped, machine prints on rc paper will make blacks look weak no matter how good the negative. Hand printed, well done prints, will look fine on rc or Fiber paper. I happen to prefer Fiber, but have had good luck with rc too.

-- Marv Thompson (mthompson@clinton.net), July 28, 1998.

I've never tried this, but ...

If you take a picture of something close, say a person, and use a flash, you can stop way down, therefore underexposing the sky (and for that matter, everything except the person).

One of John Hedgecoe's many books (I forget which) explains just how to do this.

-- Eric Hanchrow (erich@microsoft.com), August 10, 1998.

Although I have found the 25a filter helps, I'm finding that the sky almost always needs burning in. In fact I now just assume that the sky should be burned in as soon as I start work on a print, regardless of the filter used.

-- Peter Thoshinsky (camerabug1@msn.com), September 23, 1998.

Try Kodak High-Speed Infrared film with a #29 dark red filter (the one I use is a B+W 091 Dk. Red). Make sure to load and unload the film in complete darkness (changing bag is a "must").

You'll be surprised at the great effects this film produces (black sky, white clouds).

-- Ellie M. Diaz (eldiaz@na.cokecce.com), September 28, 1998.

Try useing Ilford SFX200, with a normal (Wratten 25A) red filter or any equivalent. Excellent blacks for the sky.

-- Mike Callaghan (cyamge@netlink.com.au), January 28, 1999.