1. Does the subject have sufficient contrast to make an interesting B&W photo? I prefer a B&W style that shows both the extreme black and the extreme right, so if the contrast is flat, then it won't work doing the conversion.
2. Does color enhance the subject or is it a distraction? If the latter, then I'll either recompose the shot to eliminate the distraction or recompose to prepare it for a black and white conversion.
My personal preference is for black and white, but not every composition will work that way. I always shoot in color - why throw away over 900,000 unique shades if you don't have to - but I do compose and expose the shot with b&w in mind if I plan to convert it.
Someone told me in a color photo we look at the colors first and in a b&w photo we look at the contrasts first. So, like Ron mentioned, if there are good contrasts or you want to keep something colorful from dominating the photo, then it can be a good candidate for b&w.
I see the difference between the two photos is the sky dominates in the colored one and the land dominates in the b&w.
Great question. I just finished a month of black and white for "Flash of Red February" and learned so much. (It was also helpful to shoot in RAW, so the color was always there, just in case.)
These are the same shot of melting ice on my porch, and I can't decide which seems to fit better ...
(And yes, I rotated it to look more like the southern coast of Europe.)
I think that this is a good example by @intymalcolm of where color would not have rendered the picture as well as B&W . I also agree with the other comments.
i shoot RAW and mostly convert to black and white... in general i find that black and white reduces the image to its essential elements - light, shadow, shape, line, motion, etc... which works well for street and urban shots - mostly what i do...
i will leave in full colour when i feel it adds to the image - a glorious sunrise for example... or for a photo with one distinct subject where colour can be the focus (which is rare for me)...
i live in a big city and especially during winter, it is mostly drab and grey... so i rarely find much of interest in colour :)
Honestly I dont know and have this dilemma often. I tend to veer towards black and white, it seems to highlight light and shadow and the subject more but inevitably someone asks to see the colour and then commenters tend to prefer the colour one...these examples from yesterday
or
I have always shot in Black and White. For me, you need to make that choice before you shoot. It's a whole different way of seeing. When a shot seems to be better represented as a colour shot, I will shoot it that way. I don't really flip it after the shot is done.
I almost always hope my photos will be black and white; usually contrast and composition are my main interests. Most of my best work is in my second album, which is exclusively mono now. B&w concentrates the underlying design of an image, so the intricacy of a red rose is more directly conveyed in shades of grey.
@brewster That was a pleasant surprise this morning, thanks for the props :)
As it goes, I tend not to make a decision re B&W or colour until I see the image in Lightroom. Mostly. Although I usually have a inkling about which I'm going for when I take the shot, it comes down to... well... what looks best.
That said, I think landscapes tend to work better with some colour and portraits in B&W, but I'm still very much working it out.
Tweets ahoy!
Join the Group
Pin With Me
1. Does the subject have sufficient contrast to make an interesting B&W photo? I prefer a B&W style that shows both the extreme black and the extreme right, so if the contrast is flat, then it won't work doing the conversion.
2. Does color enhance the subject or is it a distraction? If the latter, then I'll either recompose the shot to eliminate the distraction or recompose to prepare it for a black and white conversion.
My personal preference is for black and white, but not every composition will work that way. I always shoot in color - why throw away over 900,000 unique shades if you don't have to - but I do compose and expose the shot with b&w in mind if I plan to convert it.
I see the difference between the two photos is the sky dominates in the colored one and the land dominates in the b&w.
These are the same shot of melting ice on my porch, and I can't decide which seems to fit better ...
(And yes, I rotated it to look more like the southern coast of Europe.)
i will leave in full colour when i feel it adds to the image - a glorious sunrise for example... or for a photo with one distinct subject where colour can be the focus (which is rare for me)...
i live in a big city and especially during winter, it is mostly drab and grey... so i rarely find much of interest in colour :)
or
As it goes, I tend not to make a decision re B&W or colour until I see the image in Lightroom. Mostly. Although I usually have a inkling about which I'm going for when I take the shot, it comes down to... well... what looks best.
That said, I think landscapes tend to work better with some colour and portraits in B&W, but I'm still very much working it out.