Why Black and white
May. 1st, 2012 02:34 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
melodysparksI received a comment by the lovely ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
fangedsekhmet yesterday saying
"I wonder what it is that causes black and white images to improve almost any photo. Atmosphere? Anyway, rambling musings aside, I've been loving your B/W images over the past few days. I hope you have more"
Yes I do have more Midduck. Please look below the cut for some before and after shots
Well this is how I understand Back & White Photography and more pictures
Wikipedia says "Monochrome photography is photography where the image produced has a single hue, rather than recording the colours of the object that was photographed"
I love producing black and white images as there is something clean and crisp about them. I read that B&W and monochrome gives and elegance to a shot that colour doesn't and that they have a more refined quality with the simplicity giving the subject a sophisticated high-quality feel to it.
The image above seems ordinary in comparison to the one below. Converting it to black and white has made this image of a doorway take on a whole different feel to it it has emphasised it as something special in the tones between black and white the light is different the texture is sharper an all round different image but still the same.
Its is cleaner and crisper without the clutter of colour. It focuses the attention on the shape, shade and texture rather than hue and in some cases sees forms and shapes that are not usually recognised clearly in colour. The tree above seems to have an ethereal quality about it whereas in the colour image it just looks misty.
Here is an example for instance the veins in leaves can stand out clearer in black and white rather than in colour.
Can you see the spider? In the above shot the spider is lost within the colours of the leaf where as below because the saturation and hue has been reduced to greyscale you can see it clearer as there background colours do not camouflage the spider as much. The colours in the image are turned into shades of gray from pitch black to brilliant white and other aspects of my photograph like the shape, lighting, contrast, texture and tone become prominent.
Can you see the spider now?
Also when taking pictures of people skin tones in black and white are softer so that blotches, blemishes and uneven shading gets less easily noticed and the skin appears clear.
As you can see in the image above this chaps skin is overly red and shows uneven in the colour image yet in the black and white image below the skin is smoother and evenly toned
Some shots can seem boring when shot in colour but suddenly becomes interesting when captured in black and white and photos taken on dull overcast days can be transformed into spectacular images because the washed out colours and dull skies take on different textures and tones they do not have in colour but it can also add the element of mystery or age turning a modern image into one that could be an historic souvenir.
Even though the image in colour above is still an interesting shot with the stormy clouds above the cathedral of the 21st century converting it to black and white has added an aged effect that makes the second image look like it was taken many years before. The same thing happens with the image of Rufford Abbey below
When it comes to taking images of statues you cannot always guarantee to be able take the shot in the right light. Black and white can also correct poor or over exposed images, over bright subjects so black and white adds really good contrast and makes things pop out
This image of the War Memorial at Buxton was taken looking upwards at an angle so the light wasn’t brilliant the colour of the stone behind looks a sicky shade and the statue shows shades of blue and bronze and white a mixture of the original metal it was made of, weather staining and bird excrement. Not really a pretty sight considering those shades but converted to black and white like below gives it interesting texture and shapes that you don’t notice so much in the one above.
Lastly black and white is fantastic for street photography
Colour is an ingredient of every photo as is angle, framing, composition, subject matter, lighting, exposure levels, shutter speed etc, however colour is one of those components that you can more or less turn off in conversion. Street scenes can be very busy with lots of distracting aspects and colour often leads to sensory overload in an image.
Background elements can be a major distraction: the bright green grass, the people on the boat in the background the bright blue balloon and so on. Even if the colour isn’t adding something important to the image does it really need to be there? In the case of this shot the conversion to black and white emphasises the subject ndicating the comparisons and the contrasts.
Some photographers actually prefer to shoot or produce black and white images in low contrast situations when it’s a dark or overcast day it can be a great time to shoot outside. Either way whether they shoot in colour or black and white they will more than likely end the day with a worthwhile photograph. However there are some photographers who don’t like shooting in black and white or producing a B&W photograph and sit at home on those cloudy or overcast days bemoaning the lack of opportunity to take photographs.
I have been out with my camera in all conditions although I do not like it when it’s too cold and wet but I have shot photographs in the rain (Using a large grip top freezer bag with a hole cut into one corner and wrapped around my camera), in the snow and having a whale of a time trying not to slip on my backside and the sun.
To me it doesn’t matter as long as I go out and enjoy myself. I can travel around on a bus all day and stop off and one or two villages or towns and take a handful of photographs that may not be brilliant. If I don't take many I have still had a day out travelling somewhere different but if I am lucky and have escaped being drowned like a rat in a deluge of typical British weather maybe, just maybe, hidden away in all those dull images is one that when converted to black and white turns into something special.
fangedsekhmet yesterday saying"I wonder what it is that causes black and white images to improve almost any photo. Atmosphere? Anyway, rambling musings aside, I've been loving your B/W images over the past few days. I hope you have more"
Yes I do have more Midduck. Please look below the cut for some before and after shots
Well this is how I understand Back & White Photography and more pictures
Wikipedia says "Monochrome photography is photography where the image produced has a single hue, rather than recording the colours of the object that was photographed"
I love producing black and white images as there is something clean and crisp about them. I read that B&W and monochrome gives and elegance to a shot that colour doesn't and that they have a more refined quality with the simplicity giving the subject a sophisticated high-quality feel to it.
The image above seems ordinary in comparison to the one below. Converting it to black and white has made this image of a doorway take on a whole different feel to it it has emphasised it as something special in the tones between black and white the light is different the texture is sharper an all round different image but still the same.
Its is cleaner and crisper without the clutter of colour. It focuses the attention on the shape, shade and texture rather than hue and in some cases sees forms and shapes that are not usually recognised clearly in colour. The tree above seems to have an ethereal quality about it whereas in the colour image it just looks misty.
Here is an example for instance the veins in leaves can stand out clearer in black and white rather than in colour.
Can you see the spider? In the above shot the spider is lost within the colours of the leaf where as below because the saturation and hue has been reduced to greyscale you can see it clearer as there background colours do not camouflage the spider as much. The colours in the image are turned into shades of gray from pitch black to brilliant white and other aspects of my photograph like the shape, lighting, contrast, texture and tone become prominent.
Can you see the spider now?
Also when taking pictures of people skin tones in black and white are softer so that blotches, blemishes and uneven shading gets less easily noticed and the skin appears clear.
As you can see in the image above this chaps skin is overly red and shows uneven in the colour image yet in the black and white image below the skin is smoother and evenly toned
Some shots can seem boring when shot in colour but suddenly becomes interesting when captured in black and white and photos taken on dull overcast days can be transformed into spectacular images because the washed out colours and dull skies take on different textures and tones they do not have in colour but it can also add the element of mystery or age turning a modern image into one that could be an historic souvenir.
Even though the image in colour above is still an interesting shot with the stormy clouds above the cathedral of the 21st century converting it to black and white has added an aged effect that makes the second image look like it was taken many years before. The same thing happens with the image of Rufford Abbey below
When it comes to taking images of statues you cannot always guarantee to be able take the shot in the right light. Black and white can also correct poor or over exposed images, over bright subjects so black and white adds really good contrast and makes things pop out
This image of the War Memorial at Buxton was taken looking upwards at an angle so the light wasn’t brilliant the colour of the stone behind looks a sicky shade and the statue shows shades of blue and bronze and white a mixture of the original metal it was made of, weather staining and bird excrement. Not really a pretty sight considering those shades but converted to black and white like below gives it interesting texture and shapes that you don’t notice so much in the one above.
Lastly black and white is fantastic for street photography
Colour is an ingredient of every photo as is angle, framing, composition, subject matter, lighting, exposure levels, shutter speed etc, however colour is one of those components that you can more or less turn off in conversion. Street scenes can be very busy with lots of distracting aspects and colour often leads to sensory overload in an image.
Background elements can be a major distraction: the bright green grass, the people on the boat in the background the bright blue balloon and so on. Even if the colour isn’t adding something important to the image does it really need to be there? In the case of this shot the conversion to black and white emphasises the subject ndicating the comparisons and the contrasts.
Some photographers actually prefer to shoot or produce black and white images in low contrast situations when it’s a dark or overcast day it can be a great time to shoot outside. Either way whether they shoot in colour or black and white they will more than likely end the day with a worthwhile photograph. However there are some photographers who don’t like shooting in black and white or producing a B&W photograph and sit at home on those cloudy or overcast days bemoaning the lack of opportunity to take photographs.
I have been out with my camera in all conditions although I do not like it when it’s too cold and wet but I have shot photographs in the rain (Using a large grip top freezer bag with a hole cut into one corner and wrapped around my camera), in the snow and having a whale of a time trying not to slip on my backside and the sun.
To me it doesn’t matter as long as I go out and enjoy myself. I can travel around on a bus all day and stop off and one or two villages or towns and take a handful of photographs that may not be brilliant. If I don't take many I have still had a day out travelling somewhere different but if I am lucky and have escaped being drowned like a rat in a deluge of typical British weather maybe, just maybe, hidden away in all those dull images is one that when converted to black and white turns into something special.
