Tim Parkin - Landscape Photographer

After working out my idea for a zone sticker customised for Fuji Velvia, I asked quite a few people about what the dyanmic range of Velvia 50 is. The responses I got were varied but most people agreed that if you want real detail, you want to be +1 2/3 to 2 stops above and if you want shadow detail you want to be -2 stops.

However, the feedback I got from Joe Cornish was that it really is a long subject which needs more than a quick response but in short, Velvia 50 responds well to reds and yellows and not so well to blues and cyans. This means that when you take a shot into the sun, you can get texture up to +2 1/2 and colour up towards +2 2/3 to +3 .. Cyan and Blue however start to go clear at +2 1/3 and if you want texture, you need to be using +1 2/3.. Wow! Something I think will be very useful. At the bottom end, the feedback is that Velvia will record black detail down to -2 2/3 (although you need a drum scanner to get it out) and -3 will go hard black.

I’ve modified my sticker accordingly but will try to have a longer conversation about this in the future. In the meantime, if anybody would like one, I’ve printed off a few extra if someone wants to send a stamped addressed envelope to Tim Parkin, 237 Lidgett Lane, Leeds LS17 6QR; I’ll send a couple back.