Black and White Photography Tip of the Day
There is something special, classic and elegant, sometimes even romantic about it. It often creates an historical feeling when you view this kind of photograph. When learning photography, the simplicity of black and white helps you focus on the important stuff. There is always an on going argument whether you should shoot your photos in color first and convert them to Black + White later, when you do your photo editing. You can often turn a drab color shot into an amazing black and white.
Arguments for Shooting in Color If you shoot in color you can always convert to black and white later and keep your full colored version also. It's only a quick one-button click in your photo editing software.
If you set your digital camera setting to black and white or sepia mode, the beautiful colors in the shot are lost forever. This portrait shows why black and white photography will always have an appeal on some level. This gentleman's character lines in his face are revealed so well in this pose. On the other hand you may want to shoot and light with black and white photography in mind as the end result. Arguments against Shooting in Color When you’re shooting in a black and white camera mode, you’re forced into a creative situation when you depress the shutter. You have to look at textures, lines and shapes, shadows and contrasts.It makes you work harder, pre-visualize and analyze the elements of your photograph. Often if you have to work harder on one aspect of your photography, the qualities of your photo are better. Because a black and white photo relies so much on shadows to define shapes and details, your approach to lighting is even more important than ever.
This dog portrait has a real unique appeal because of the high contrast that was added to the photograph. One other tip:
When you are taking a portrait of someone, dressing your subject in black clothing creates an interesting opportunity. In this color portrait of this cowboy, because of the black clothing, only his face seams to be in color. It's important to keep the background black, white or a shade of gray. This is an excellent portrait also because of the pose, the photography lighting and the subject's relaxed expression.
One effect that may not be desirable when reducing the saturation is when your subject has colorful eyes. When photographing people, the element of age can be emphasized. A close-up portrait of an aged face shows all the wisdom lines and features developed from their years. This can have a much greater impact in black and white. Also, on the flip side of that, the smoothness of a young person's skin is revealed when there is no color and the smooth texture is emphasized. If you think someone else might enjoy this article on black and white photography tips, please share it on one of the social bookmarking sites below. Happy Shooting! Back from Black and White Photography Tip to Black and White Photography |
