Black and White Going Strong

[John]

Quite a few of us seem to be interested in black and white photography. Certainly there's a very strong presence on the appropriate Facebook pages.

I have to admit that black and white images have a certain something, maybe a more graphic, harder quality than colour.

What do we think is the allure of monochrome? What is it exactly that appeals?

[Janice Freeman]

Well to be honest, I have not really been a fan of black and white. I could not see the point of having a camera that will produce such good colour these days and then taking that colour away. However, I am reversing that view somewhat. I think that the first thing that attracts us to a scene is the colour and the vibrancy, and that is what will draw most peoples eye to the image. However, strip the colour away, and you get the bare bones of the image and actually see the image, composition etc much more clearly. You can still get the gentle images and some very dramatic images with a range of tones. Must admit that I cannot see in black and white and the ones I have tried have been very hit and miss. I am coming round to it - I think!!

[Walter Brooks]

For me, without colour, the image is about the tones, the textures and the shapes within the monochrome [rather than black and white] image, and the interplay between the blacks; the whites; and the infinite shades of the greys.

Not every colour image converts well into monochrome as they are two very different ways of 'seeing' what is before you, and that is one of the 'skills', seeing the potential of a monochrome image before the shutter is pressed and not as a processing afterthought. The use of monochrome film certainly helps to 'see' in monochrome ... you have no other choice.

As John notes, there are some excellent examples on FB ... check out Monochrome Vision and some of the expert architectural photographers who have the 'wow' factor with their work without a hint of colour popping out at you.

W.

[Janice Freeman]

For me, without colour, the image is about the tones, the textures and the shapes within the monochrome [rather than black and white] image, and the interplay between the blacks; the whites; and the infinite shades of the greys.

I agree with what you say here Walter. Perhaps Black and White is not the correct term to use! I think most novices will start off by trying a colour conversion to see if it works or not, and then analysing the colour versions to see how the colours have converted to the myriad of monochrome tones available. Perhaps then we can learn to start seeing in mono? I still have a long way to go with my photography so will continue in this vein for the time being, however, my prime target is still to see well at all! I would be interested to know though, how folk do/did learn to see in monochrome.

Jan

[mark dyson]

If you want to try black and white photography and you are having problems finding what will work, use a digital camera so it captures raw and jpeg and have the jpeg set to b&w, so now keep the ones you like. Someone said "take a picture of a man in colour and you see the colour of his shirt, shoot in black and white and you see the colour of his sole". Look at the most iconic pictures and most are in b&w and colour film was available at the time. For myself I love black and white film photography and to a lesser extent digital black and white. I love the whole process from full manual cameras to developing and printing in my darkroom. I have been called a dinosaur but with a bit of thought you can see how versatile film can be. I can print in the darkroom or scan the negs and go the digital route. My next thing to try, is to scan a neg, process the neg in the computer then turn it into an negative image and print it onto clear acetate and contact print it on to silver photographic paper. Take a look at some classic black and white pictures and just take time and study what you see. Black and white photography is not as simple as removing colour, its about tones, the contrast between black and white and more importantly the interplay of light on the subject. Film or digital have a go at black and white photography but take your time to look what you are photographing in a more meaningful way. Most importantly just enjoy taking pictures that you like, and not for others.

[PhilipHowe]

When I shoot gig photography, usiually in the lowest light (ISO3200, f2.8, 1/40 sec), I always have my camera set to black and white. I shoot in RAW only, but this means that the previews on the camera screen are always black and white. The RAW file is unaffected.

I shoot this way, as the light is low and usually a mixture of colours, but it allows me to see if I actually got a shot, with what I see on the back of the camera as a worst case scenario. When I import the RAW files to Lightroom, all the thumbnails are restored to colour, so I can then see whether I have a colour shot. I then convert any back to black and white I require in Lightroom, as it is more suited to converting (and it's using the RAW file, so is higher quality.

[Paul Jones]

I have to admit that black and white images have a certain something, maybe a more graphic, harder quality than colour.

Yes, if done well.

What do we think is the allure of monochrome? What is it exactly that appeals?

Cynical camera club answer: more chances to enter images in competition categories

Serious answer: some images just look better in mono

... strip the colour away, and you get the bare bones of the image and actually see the image, composition etc much more clearly.

Agreed.

For me, without colour, the image is about the tones, the textures and the shapes within the monochrome [rather than black and white] image, and the interplay between the blacks; the whites; and the infinite shades of the greys.

Not every colour image converts well into monochrome...

Yes, agreed.
I struggle with mono conversions most of the time.

When I shoot gig photography, I always have my camera set to black and white. I shoot in RAW only, but this means that the previews on the camera screen are always black and white. The RAW file is unaffected.

Good tip. We'll have members who didn't realise you could do this.

Look at the most iconic pictures and most are in b&w and colour film was available at the time.

Good point.

Most importantly just enjoy taking pictures that you like, and not for others.

Definitely.

Someone said "take a picture of a man in colour and you see the colour of his shirt, shoot in black and white and you see the colour of his sole".

Sorry Mark, being pedantic, couldn't resist...

[mark dyson]

The colour of the fish a "lemon sole. Yes it should be soul, thank you for pointing it out, mate Lol.

[Gill Blower]

I think most of us gave tried converting an image to mono because the colour version hasn't worked out as planned! It would seem from the comments that it's more than just me who has trouble converting to mono - Mel - perhaps this is something we could put into the syllabus.

[melbarnes]

Good news Gill - John Riley has agreed to do a black and white night early in 2015. I will publish the programme soon, once I have a few bookings confirmed.

[Paul Jones]

Members of DPReview.com were allowed to download a free fully working copy of DxO Film Pack last week, so I've been playing around with it.

http://www.dxo.com/intl/photography/dxo ... film-looks

I haven't had much experience of using film, but am enjoying testing out such presets as Kodak T-Max, Ilford HP5, Fuji Neopan, etc. It will certainly help my mono conversions from now on.

http://www.dxo.com/intl/photography/dxo ... k/features


Question for film users... Did you have a favourite film, and why?

[Walter Brooks]

Ilford FP4 - wasn't popular without reason - tonal quality; latitude; predictable in the sense that you know what you are going to get.

Fuji Velvia 50 - I know it's not black and white ... but 1st choice for punchy, vibrant colour, even though it's narrow latitude means it's intolerant to incorrect exposure ... so you make sure you get it right second time (the first being the practice roll).

W.

[John]

Kodak Tri-X developed in Paterson FX39. A fast 400 ASA (as was) film with sharp, crisp grain structure when developed in the right developer. Black amd white of course!

For colour, Kodachrome for slides, 64 or 200 ASA.