Transition of tone is the photographer’s stock in trade. Its manufacture is what you get paid for: the better you can make it, the more you get paid. In high-volume environments you might not get to make it-- to some degree someone else will dictate transition of tone with the use of a Kodak Q-60; you'll be expected to hit specific aim-points for their idea of how the capture should transition from highlight to shadow. At the higher commercial and more esoteric levels, transition of tone separates the known shooter from the unknown photographer. Certainly Ansel Adams made his mark with his brand of transition of tone as has Arnold Neumann, the celebrated portrait photographer. Separators have a name for transition of tone: they call it shape and they like to optimize it for every channel-- C, M, Y, and K.
Before you can create considered transition of tone for your target you must understand your target. How white is white, how black is black? How does the target transition in the lows, in the highs? How many total tones are available? Can you make pastel renderings? How about colorfully abbreviated, saturated renderings? Will the target limit your ability to craft your vision for that target? Will your style hamper your vision when rendering to the final target? That will depend on what your rendering intent is and what style you’d like your images to appear in.
Unless you know what your target will do, you’ll need to do some experimentation. Luckily, you’ve done this before-- when you first learned black & white, when you started making color prints, and when you learned the newer color reversal films’ response to lighting.
Creating transition of tone is all about craftsmanship. It’s about making pictures rather than taking pictures. To learn your craft you’ll need to learn to use your tools. Invest your time and your intellect in the process. Don’t be shy-- there are essentially no photographic costs involved in the process of experimentation. And the net improvement in your skills benefits you, and your future in this business. What more could you ask for? If you have questions along the way, we’re here to help.