How to · 8 min
Walkthrough: classic car, bright chrome
A complete edit built around reflections and dark paint.
The challenge in a dark car is to retain bodywork separation without turning bright chrome into flat white. Let the surrounding road and buildings support the subject instead of competing with it.
The method
Step by step.
- At Fit, decide whether the car or a particular detail is the subject. Crop only if it strengthens that decision.
- Compare None with Ilford FP4 Plus 125 in Profiles. Watch the paint, tire, window, and bumper as separate tonal areas.
- In Light, set overall exposure. Moderate Highlights if reflections feel too strong; lift Shadows only far enough to reveal useful bodywork.
- Try a small Radial adjustment on the car, or hand-dodge a key reflection. Keep the correction soft and compare without overlays.
- Inspect at 100%. The demonstration uses Definition 12 and Film Grain 14; lower either if edges or paint become rough.
- In Finish, try Tone 15, Pop 20, and Punch 10 independently. Save a snapshot, export a JPEG, and check the output at normal viewing size.
Keep this close
Control reference.
- First priority
- Separation within dark materials.
- Second priority
- Highlight shape along the chrome.
- Final check
- No halos, visible mask boundaries, or overworked paint.
Closer to the controls
See the settings, not a reconstruction.
This detail is cropped from the real application capture above. Click to enlarge, then choose actual pixels to inspect the labels and sliders.
At your own pace
Try it.
Make a second version with every finishing control at zero. Keep the version that best conveys the car, not the one with the longest recipe.
Watch for
These numbers belong to this demonstration. A sunlit white car will need a different interpretation.
Monochrome Lab Pro workflow guide. Interface details may evolve. Example settings are creative starting points, not automatic corrections.