Going to Extremes #1

Leaf Light
Missoula, Montana


I'm currently attending an online class on making black & white images in camera. In the first session the teacher encouraged us to experiment with increased contrast and different exposures to create different moods. The usual exposure for this scene was pretty mundane (see below) compared to this version, which I would never have tried without the assignment. 

I set my Canon 7D to a custom Monochrome Picture Style with maximum contrast and underexposed the scene by two stops. These choices forced all the midtones to very dark, leaving the highlighted leaves to stand out.

The same scene with average exposure and contrast

Fall 2024 photography classes at the Lifelong Learning Center begin in September. Visit MissoulaClasses.com for details.