ABSTRACT

You can choose printing paper of different contrast, though nowadays the choice is more and more limited and some of the very soft (low contrast) and very hard (high contrast) grades are no longer available. Most darkroom workers use variable-contrast papers that give a choice of contrast from grade 00 to grade 5 in one box. You can either choose a paper contrast to match the negative to produce a technically correct print or you can use your artistic judgement to use a paper contrast grade to enhance a mood and produce a subjective print.