@marcus: sorry for not specifying, dude. my mind’s all over the place.

first question: i usually keep three exposure settings in mind, so that when subjects shift to new locations, i can switch to the precise setting in order to yield the best possible picture. that said, when in LR, i fix my white balance, exposure (i tend to underexpose everything) as well as color correct. these setting are set at a certain amount, seeing as i’m less and less into hyper-color. i apply these presets across my entire edit, then tweak individually based on the circumstances of light.

second question: i have self-imposed limits on how far i’ll bump anything. i base everything off the Zone System, so i’m using zone IV as my jumping off point (when shooting) and won’t drop anything past zone I in editing. maybe zone 0 if the scene warrants it. a lot of my contrast comes from how i photograph. when i “bring back” the levels from the light side (no star wars pun intended), it automatically gets rid of some flat tones. this is all part of the plan.

third question: for general edits, i’ve created a photoshop action that used Alien Skin (http://www.alienskin.com) presets as well as some preset Channel Mixing. after that, if the image is worth it, i’ll tweak the Levels/Curves to finalize it all. if the picture is really good and goes to print, i use a 4 ink Quadtone aimed at Zones VIII, VII, VI, V, and IV.

JI

“Then they’re imported as RAWs into Lightroom (LR), given a blanket set of exposure corrections and color corrected,”

By blanket set do you mean a set of exposure corrections for each location that you shoot (assuming your working with a single exposure setting and consistent lighting), that you choose based of one photo and apply to the whole set?

Or do you mean a set of adjustments that you apply to every photo, like bumping the contrast, “fill light”, blacks, etc.? In order to change the “look” of the chip?

What b&w film and processing do you use when you know you’ll be shooting somewhere dark or at night?

Thanks for the info!

i would love to hear your ideas about the limits of post processing. what you are comfortable with and when you think an image steps over the line.