DigitalCamFan
black and white photography
Deciding on a style… color or monochrome today!
As you may know I am taking a night time class “intro to black and white”! Because of this my posts might be consumed with black and white. The assignment I was given was to take 2 pictures of everything (one in color and one in black and white) Find set of pictures you like the color better and the other set is where you think black and white brought your picture to life. This was a great exercise!
What I learned… I looked in complete opposite directions for both pictures! When I was looking for color I was looking for bold, bright beautiful colors. When I was trying to find a picture in black and white I was looking for shadows, contrast different angles of light.
Here are my two pictures. This first one I picked the color photo I thought the colors jumped out too much to go black and white on this one.
On this next one I choose the black and white because I thought it added more depth and interest to the to picture!
Pick up your camera and try it! I learned a lot in fact I am still taking pictures and looking at both to see which I like better and why!
Why black and white photography?
First question of the night at my intro to black and white photography class last week. Well actually it was the third question first two were name and camera model, but those were easy to answer.
The third made me think… she wanted an example. She wasn’t looking for an answer like “I want to see in black and white” A lot of answers revolved around Ansel Adams or personal experiences.
I thought about it… when did I see in black and white, when is the first time I thought, wow! Of course I have always admired black at white photography. But when did I as a photographer want to see myself in black and white.
This is where I need to say a sincere thank-you to @dcharlwood You can also view his work at www.charlwoodphotography.com and his flickr stream or you might have a photography question for him.
I bought my first Canon Rebel in 2009 and started DigitalCamFan soon after that I signed on to twitter for the first time. I asked a question i can’t remember what the question was, but David answered me…. He was kind and encouraging. I saw his photos on flickr and saw photography as art. I thought wow I love photography and I love this community. Not once has there been a day where I didn’t feel only encouragement from photographers helping me along the way.
At about that same time my grandma was visiting I had taken a picture of her at a tea house. I had just bought the Canon 50mm lens and was excited to try it out.
Of course I loved the picture for my own personal reasons. My grandma is simply one of the most amazing ladies I know… seriously… She inspires me every day to be better.
David took that picture and converted it to black and white. I loved it even more. That is the moment I thought I love black and white. I love the depth her wrinkles have, the timelessness of this picture, the simplicity, the contrast the elegance, an emotion!
I have this picture hanging in my kitchen! So thank-you David for helping me see in black and white!
Learn By Doing – Monochrome
Assignment #9 – Learn By Doing – Take a picture in Black and White
I am excited to see your pictures! You can post at the bottom of this post or on DigitalCamFan FaceBook wall. If you have questions about “Learn By Doing” Please refer to the guideline page. If you have no questions post away!
Simple enough… Right! Just take a picture in black and white! If you have never changed that dial to monochrome today is the day! Look it up in your manual if you have to! Find out how to change your picture style from standard to monochrome.
This week my camera has been set on monochrome for the first time which has opened my eyes to a whole new world. This week I have been taking two pictures of every picture. One in color one in monochrome.
In photography it is all about the light…. Where is the light coming from, is there enough light in the room. Well when shooting in monochrome there is no color so your eye is drawn to the light. Shapes, textures everything that was there in color just feels different in black and white. It helps you look at the basic photo without the distraction of color. I find myself thinking about composition more when I have my picture style set in monochrome.
I think shooting in black and white will have a positive effect on my color photography.
What have I learned this week while using monochrome
Trying to pay more attention to composition
Looking for the light
paying attention to what people are wearing
Looking for contrast where before I might shy away from it
I feel like I look at lines and curves more in my picture
I see highlights better
Notice negative space or think of things that perhaps I should have cropped out of the picture.
Your Turn!
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