BLACK AND

WHITE
PHOTOGRAPHY
Abstract
Black and white photography uses light-sensitive silver halide
crystals on film. Light exposure causes a chemical reaction,
forming silver ions and creating a latent image. Developing the
film with chemicals turns silver ions into silver metal, producing
a negative image. A positive image is made by exposing light-
sensitive paper to light through the negative, then developing it
to turn silver ions into silver metal, resulting in a visible
photograph.

Introduction
Black and white photography is a timeless art form that
captures the essence of moments without the distraction of
color. By focusing solely on light, shadow, and contrast, it
brings out textures, shapes, and emotions in a unique way. This
method of photography, which dates back to the early days of
the medium, relies on the chemical reactions of light-sensitive
materials to create images. Despite the advent of color
photography, black and white remains a popular choice for
many photographers, offering a classic and expressive way to
convey a wide range of subjects.
Exposing
The light-sensitive film (or paper) contains crystals
of silver halide, which is light sensitive. At this
point, the film is opaque grey. When light hits the
film, the silver halide crystal splits into a silver ion
and a bromine atom.

Ag+Br– (crystal) + hν (radiation) → Ag+ + Br +

e–

Then, the silver ion recombines with the free

electron to give an atom of metallic silver.

Ag+ + e– → Ag0

After exposure, there is an image on the film made

from a tiny quantity of metallic silver. This is
known as the latent image. It would be invisible
to the eye and the film is still dull and opaque. For
an individual grain of the silver halide emulsion to
count as “exposed”, at least two photons must
have interacted with it, to form small silver crystals
consisting of two or more silver atom.
Development
The purpose of developer is to amplify the latent
image. The chemical composition of developer
varies and is complicated so I won’t go into it here
– other than to say that it promotes silver crystal
growth where the small silver crystals already
exist.

After development, the latent image has been

converted to an actual image, made of metallic
silver crystals. It appears black, although the film
itself is still opaque.

Stopping
Even after taking the film out of the developing
solution, it continues to develop (your hands are
still wet after taking them out of the sink, right?) so
a stop bath is used to halt development.
Developing requires an alkaline environment to
work, so stop bath is simply a weak acid – usually
acetic acid.

The stop bath causes no other changes to the film.

Fixing
Although we have now developed the film and
ended up with a black image in metallic silver, the
areas of the film that were not exposed to light are
still opaque, and still sensitive to light. Bathing the
film in fixer dissolves the unexposed silver halide,
leaving a near-transparent film backing that is not
sensitive to light. At this stage, you can take the
film out of the developing tank and look at it in
daylight.

Toning
So far, we have ended up with either a film or a
print which has an image made from metallic
silver. If there’s one thing we know about silver, it’s
that it tarnishes. Depending on the storage
conditions, silver prints may degrade with time.
Toning the image serves two purposes: it improves
the longevity of the image, and it can produce the
colourfu lsepia effects.

Various toners exist, but they all work in the same

way. They react with the silver to produce silver
salts, such as silver sulphide which is more stable
then pure silver. It is also slightly brown in colour,
hence the sepia tone.

Material used
1.Silver bromide - AgBr
Synonyms: bromide of silver
Molecular weight: 188
Boiling point: decomposes at 700 °C
Specific gravity: 6.473
Melting point: 427 °C

Solubility: soluble in sodium thiosulfate, potassium bromide,

and potassium cyanide solutions; practically insoluble in water
and ammonium hydroxide

Properties: yellow, amorphous powder

Derivation: by adding any soluble bromide to silver nitrate
solution. Inphotography it is always prepared in the presence of
some vehicle that willsuspend it in the form of an emulsion and
prevent it from forming coarse clots.

Uses in photography: Silver bromide is the basis of the modern

gelatinobromide emulsions and is the most light-sensitive silver
salt.
2. A photothermographic
film
Prepared with 20.3µm layer containing silver halide
crystals (55 nm cubic edge length.The film was coated on a
polyester base and exposed to actinic radiation from an 810 nm
laser

Process
Quantitative Data:

The silver halide content was quantified in the range of 0.054 to 1.076 g/m²
using X-ray fluorescence and diffraction analysis. The calibration curve was
developed to assess the efficiency of silver development during exposure and
processing

Experimental Trials:

Films were exposed in 21-step increments to establish optical density variations from D = 0.2
(minimum) to D > 3.5 (maximum). Heat processing at 121°C for 5 seconds completed the
development process
Morphological Analysis:

Scanning electron microscopy revealed differences in the crystal morphology between

microparticulate and nanoparticulate silver halides, which influenced the light sensitivity and
efficiency of image formation.

These studies use advanced characterization techniques, such as X-ray diffraction

(XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM), to quantify and optimize the silver
halide imaging process. If you'd like, I can help locate specific datasets or explain
these methods in more detail.

Calculations

1. Photon Energy and Wavelength:

To calculate the energy of photons used in exposing the film (e.g., at 810 nm):

E=hcλE = \frac{hc}{\lambda}E=λhc

Where:

 h=6.626×10−34h = 6.626 \times 10^{-34}h=6.626×10−34 J·s (Planck's constant),

 c=3×108c = 3 \times 10^8c=3×108 m/s (speed of light),
 λ=810×10−9\lambda = 810 \times 10^{-9}λ=810×10−9 m.

Substituting values:

E=6.626×10−34×3×108810×10−9≈2.45×10−19 JE = \frac{6.626
\times 10^{-34} \times 3 \times 10^8}{810 \times 10^{-9}} \
approx 2.45 \times 10^{-19} \, \
text{J}E=810×10−96.626×10−34×3×108≈2.45×10−19J

Converting to electron volts (1 eV=1.602×10−19 J1 \, \text{eV} = 1.602 \times 10^{-

19} \, \text{J}1eV=1.602×10−19J):

E≈2.45×10−191.602×10−19≈1.53 eVE \approx \frac{2.45 \times

10^{-19}}{1.602 \times 10^{-19}} \approx 1.53 \, \
text{eV}E≈1.602×10−192.45×10−19≈1.53eV

This aligns with the energy required to excite silver halide crystals.

2. Silver Crystal Formation Threshold:

For an individual grain of silver halide to count as "exposed," at least two photons
must interact with it. If the energy from two photons is absorbed:

Etotal=2×Ephoton=2×1.53 eV=3.06 eVE_{\text{total}} = 2 \times

E_{\text{photon}} = 2 \times 1.53 \, \text{eV} = 3.06 \, \
text{eV}Etotal=2×Ephoton=2×1.53eV=3.06eV

This energy is sufficient to reduce two silver ions (Ag⁺) to metallic silver (Ag⁰),
forming a stable cluster.
3. Film Optical Density:

The optical density (DDD) of a developed film is related to the amount of silver metal
(mAgm_{\text{Ag}}mAg) formed during exposure:

D=log⁡10(I0I)D = \log_{10} \left(\frac{I_0}{I}\right)D=log10(II0)

Where:

 I0I_0I0: Intensity of incident light,

 III: Intensity of transmitted light.

In trials, the maximum density (DmaxD_{\text{max}}Dmax) of the exposed film

reached values above 3.5, corresponding to:

I0I=10Dmax=103.5≈3162\frac{I_0}{I} = 10^{D_{\text{max}}} =
10^{3.5} \approx 3162II0=10Dmax=103.5≈3162

This indicates that only a fraction (~0.03%) of the incident light passes through fully.
4. Silver Coverage per Area:

The amount of silver deposited in the film is quantified by coverage (CCC) in g/m².
From XRD analysis:

C=Mass of silverFilm areaC = \frac{\text{Mass of silver}}{\

text{Film area}}C=Film areaMass of silver

For a measured range of C=0.127−2.011 g/m2C = 0.127 - 2.011 \,

\text{g/m}^2C=0.127−2.011g/m2, converting this to moles of silver (MAg=107.87
g/molM_{\text{Ag}} = 107.87 \, \text{g/mol}MAg=107.87g/mol):
Moles of Ag per m²=CMAg=2.011107.87≈0.0186 mol/m2\
text{Moles of Ag per m²} = \frac{C}{M_{\text{Ag}}} = \
frac{2.011}{107.87} \approx 0.0186 \,
\text{mol/m}^2Moles of Ag per m²=MAgC=107.872.011
≈0.0186mol/m2

This corresponds to approximately 1.12×10221.12 \times 10^{22}1.12×1022 silver

atoms per square meter (using Avogadro's number, 6.022×10236.022 \times
10^{23}6.022×1023).

Conclusion
In conclusion, our experiment provided an experience
with the processes behind black and white photography.
We saw how light transforms silver halide crystals on
film, creating a hidden image that only appears after
careful chemical development. This process turned our
film into a negative image, where light and dark are
reversed. We then exposed light-sensitive paper
through this negative and developed it, revealing a
positive image—a classic black and white photograph.
This process showed us the complex chemistry of
traditional photography and made us appreciate the art
and science of taking pictures even more.

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