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Photographic print toning

In photography, toning is a method of altering the color of black-and-white photographs. In analog photography, it is a chemical process carried out on metal salt-based prints, such as silver prints, iron-based prints (cyanotype or Van Dyke brown), or platinum or palladium prints. This darkroom process cannot be performed with a color photograph. The effects of this process can be emulated with software in digital photography. Sepia is considered a form of black-and-white or monochrome photography.

Digital toning[edit]

Toning can be simulated digitally, either in-camera or in post-processing. The in-camera effect, as well as beginner tutorials given for software like Photoshop or GIMP, use a simple tint. More sophisticated software tends to implement sepia tones using the duotone feature. Simpler photo-editing software usually has an option to sepia-tone an image in one step.

Color image

Color image

Grayscale image

Grayscale image

Sepia-toned image

Sepia-toned image

The examples below show a digital color photograph, a black-and-white version and a sepia-toned version.


The following are examples of the three types using film:

Color grading

Cyanotype

Film tinting

(painting)

Grisaille

List of software palettes § Color gradient palettes

Monochrome

Platinotype

Selective color

Many various toners (copper, iron, vanadium, selenium, sulphide, etc.)(p. 216)

(Book) Photographic facts and formulas (1924)

Selenium, indirect sulphide toning, red chalk, blue and green tones (pp. 44–47)

(Book) All about formulae for your darkroom (1942)

Selenium, sulphide-selenium and other toners (pp. 39–41)

(Book) Kodak Chemicals and Formulae (1949)

Ilford: Toning prints

in a developing tray.

Sepia toning

Chemical toning (formulas and technique):


Digital "toning":