Certified Professional Photographer (CPP) Practice Exam

What is the end result of light striking the emulsion of film and causing silver ions to come to rest?

1. Color negative

2. Dye image

3. Photograph

4. Color reversal

The correct answer is: Photograph

The end result of light striking the emulsion of film and causing silver ions to come to rest ultimately leads to the formation of a photograph. When light interacts with the light-sensitive emulsion on a film, the silver halide crystals undergo a chemical reaction, leading to a latent image. This image becomes visible through subsequent development processes, which involve transforming the exposed silver ions into metallic silver. The resulting product — once fully developed and fixed — captures the scene that was photographed, thus creating a photograph. In this context, while color negative, dye image, and color reversal all relate to different processes of photographic development and output, they do not encompass the broader term "photograph." A photograph serves as an overarching term that includes any image captured on photographic film or through a digital process, regardless of the specific type of development used. Therefore, the outcome described in the question logically leads to the answer that signifies the final product of this intricate process.