Dodging & Burning
Master local exposure control in the darkroom—learn to dodge, burn, map prints, and rescue challenging negatives
Overview & Learning Outcomes
Mastering local exposure control in the darkroom
This Week's Mission
This week we dive deep into dodging and burning—the essential darkroom techniques that allow you to control local exposure and create balanced, expressive prints.
1Dodging
Hold back light to lighten areas of your print
2Burning
Add extra exposure to darken areas of your print
3Print Mapping
Plan your exposure strategy with sketch-based mapping
4Pre-Flashing
Advanced technique for handling stubborn highlights
5Digital Scanning
Preserve and share your prints through digital archiving
What You'll Learn
Understand the concepts of dodging and burning and when to use each technique
Master the tools of the trade—hands, lollipops, shaped cards, and cards with holes
Learn to map your prints with a systematic sketch-plan-execute workflow
Apply dodging and burning techniques with proper timing, positioning, and movement
Rescue "failed" negatives by balancing tones through targeted exposure control
Explore pre-flashing to overcome paper inertia and tame stubborn highlights
Understand digital scanning basics for archiving and sharing your analog prints
Digital Scanning
Preserve and share your analog prints digitally
Why Scan Your Prints?
Archive
Create a digital backup of your darkroom work for preservation and longevity.
Share
Post to social media, websites, or email to clients without losing the analog quality.
Reproduce
Make inkjet prints or books from your darkroom originals.
Scanner Basics
- •
Flatbed scanners (e.g., Epson V600, V850) work well for prints up to A4 or larger
- •
Scan at 300-600 DPI for high-quality digital files
- •
Save as TIFF (16-bit) for archival quality or JPEG (high quality) for web use
- •
Use scanner software or Adobe Photoshop/Lightroom for import and basic adjustments
Basic Scanning Workflow
Clean
Dust your print and scanner glass thoroughly
Position
Place print face-down on scanner, aligned with edges
Scan
Use 300-600 DPI, 16-bit grayscale for B&W prints
Save
Export as TIFF for archival or JPEG for sharing
Pro Tip: Always scan after your print has fully dried to avoid Newton's rings (those circular interference patterns). Let RC paper dry for 1 hour, fiber-based for 24 hours.
The Concepts Defined
Understanding dodging vs. burning in simple terms
Dodging
What it is:
Holding back light from specific areas during the main exposure to make them lighter.
The metaphor:
"Like standing in the shade—less light hits you"
When to use:
- •Areas printing too dark
- •Faces, important details
- •Opening up shadows
Burning In
What it is:
Adding extra light to specific areas after the main exposure to make them darker.
The metaphor:
"Like getting a suntan—more light = darker skin"
When to use:
- •Areas printing too light
- •Bright skies, backgrounds
- •Controlling attention/focus
Remember:
Dodging = MINUS light = Lighter
Burning = PLUS light = Darker
Tools of the Trade
Your essential dodging and burning toolkit
Your Hands
The most versatile tool! Cup your hands to create organic shapes for dodging or burning.
Best for:
- ✓Large, soft-edged areas
- ✓Quick adjustments
- ✓Corners and edges
The Lollipop
A circle of card taped to a wire or stick—your precision dodging tool.
Best for:
- ✓Faces and small details
- ✓Circular or oval areas
- ✓Precise control
Card with Hole
Black card with a hole cut out—the classic burning tool.
Best for:
- ✓Burning specific areas
- ✓Skies and backgrounds
- ✓Controllable feathering
Shaped Cards
Custom-cut shapes for complex burning patterns.
Best for:
- ✓Architectural details
- ✓Specific shapes (corners, edges)
- ✓Repeatable patterns
Pro Tips
- •Keep tools in constant motion to avoid hard edges
- •Hold tools at different heights to control feathering softness
- •Multiple small adjustments work better than one big correction
Why Do We Need This?
Compressing tonal range to fit paper's limitations
The Core Problem
Your negative has a wide dynamic range—from deep shadows to bright highlights. But your paper can only reproduce a narrow range of tones. Dodging and burning let you compress the negative's range to fit the paper.
The Negative's Range
↑ A negative can capture 8-10 zones of tonal range
The Paper's Limitation
↑ Paper can only render 5-6 zones without help!
The Solution: Dodging & Burning
By dodging the shadows (giving them less exposure) and burning the highlights (giving them more exposure), you compress the negative's wide range into the paper's narrow range—creating a balanced, printable image.
"The straight print is just the starting point. The performance happens when you dodge and burn."
Your Dodging & Burning Challenge
Assignment Requirements
Submit 3 Prints:
Straight print, print map sketch, and final dodged/burned print
Document Your Process:
Show exposure times, dodging/burning durations, and techniques used
Scan & Submit:
Digitize all three prints and upload to the course portal
Remember:
This week is about learning the process. Don't worry about perfection—focus on understanding how dodging and burning transform your prints!
Resources & Inspiration
Learn from the masters and download helpful templates
MUST WATCH
The Magnum Printer
Pablo Inirio is the master printer for Magnum Photos. His "marked up" prints of iconic images (like Dennis Stock's James Dean or Audrey Hepburn) reveal the incredible complexity of dodging and burning behind famous photos.
https://www.magnumphotos.com/theory-and-practice/burning-beauty/"It shows that the 'decisive moment' is often created in the darkroom."
DOWNLOADS
Print Map Template
A blank template with space for exposure data, a sketch area, and a grid for recording test strip times.
(Available on Course Portal)
Further Reading
- •"The Print" by Ansel Adams – The definitive guide to darkroom printing techniques
- •"Way Beyond Monochrome" by Lambrecht & Woodhouse – Advanced techniques including pre-flashing
- •"Darkroom Dynamics" by Jim Stone – Practical guide to creative printing