Flash of Red February- Week 4
Week 4 runs from February 20-28
It’s hard to believe but you are heading into the final days of your black and white project! This week’s reading covers the final two chapters of Carren’s book and the conclusion (and I’ll add some of my own conclusions too!).
POST PROCESSING
Carren contends that post-processing in black and white is not much different than color with the exception of saturation which doesn’t factor in as much. He offers two tips:
1) When shooting in RAW make sure you save a color version of your photo before you convert it to black and white in Photo Shop or Light Room.
2) Do not convert your photo to gray scale. A gray scale conversion may look the same as black and white, but the algorithm throws away the color channel info which you will need in order to process your photo the way you want to.
Carren uses Photo Shop, so if you’re like me and use a different program, you will have to experiment with your program until it matches his directions. When you convert in Photo Shop, it automatically brings the default color controls up. These presets, as with all the other presets, are a starting point which you can fine-tune using the sliders.
Carren also notes that there is something to watch out for in post-processing: don’t just push your blacks up all the way and push your contrast. It is a common misstep to make everything look edgy. Instead Carren suggests that you consider what the photo itself calls for. Ask yourself how you want your audience to feel when they look at your work and then edit to that end. If you’re not sure about what you want your picture to evoke, then edit your photo several ways to see which works best.
I did very little post-processing on this picture. The contrast between the inside of the barn and the bright out-doors was enough. The only "effect" I applied was "soft blur" instead of sharpening. I wanted to give the picture a dreamy effect to stir up a sense of nostalgia of days gone by.
Aside from color channel considerations, your editing will be similar to your usual process. Clean up dust, scratches, and any other blemishes that may have been on your lens and show up on your picture. If you’re processing a portrait, retouch skin to clear any blemishes or redness and smooth out the skin. Add a softening filter if possible. Do all of this before converting to black and white just to make it easier to see what you’re doing. After you’ve done the preliminaries, deciding to leave a grainy look from a high ISO is sometimes an aesthetic choice but dust marks and such do not a vintage picture make- they just make a bad print!
My granddaughter Lucy had a huge cut/bruise on her chin when I took this shot. I didn't want that blemish to detract from her eyes when people looked at the picture, so I took care of it in post-processing.
IF YOU’RE STRUGGLING
Entering into the world of black and white when you’ve never shot with it before can be intimidating, so you may be wondering if you understand it, or wishing you could develop the eye to see black and white shots more readily. In this section Carren gives you some instruction on how to improve in this area. First he says we do not “see in black and white (a statement of the obvious). But sometimes shooting conditions make a picture look that way. So Carren says you should choose a day or night shoot (or both) with the purpose of taking color photographs that look black and white. This doesn’t mean that everything in the scene necessarily has to be either black or white. Look for variations of gray and desaturated colors as well (such as the conditions you find in fog). The night is a good time to do this because the dark provides a natural kind of desaturation, tamping colors down to look like maybe just a shade or tint of their former vibrance.
Shadows are great subjects for "natural black and whites". Although this shot was taken at midday, the strong contrast between the shadow and the ground makes it look like it could be a black and white shot. It's only when your eye begins to pick up the hint of color in the cement that you realize it's in color.
Snow, like fog, has a tendency to wash out whatever color is present in your view.
Carren writes, “I believe that this exercise will make a photographer of any skill and experience level think and push their boundaries”. There are 2 options to achieve this: 1) Leave your photo in color as “a cool kind of trick” for your audience, or 2) convert them to black and white to see if they are any stronger that way (For example, you may take a shot of some peeling paint which is white. In its “natural” state there is some contrast between the white paint and the brown wood beneath it. However when you convert to black and white, the contrast becomes even stronger. This may be a time when you decide to keep the end product in black and white rather than leaving it in color). This exercise may actually help you to start “thinking” in black and white according to Carren.
When I took this shot of Mosier's Barn in color I was set on printing it that way- and I did. But one of the photographers in my camera club encouraged me to put it into black and white and see what happens. He felt black and white would bring out all the rich textures of the overgrowth and silos. I think he was right!
He also has 2 other ideas to help improve your ability to see in black and white. First, try the black and white setting on your camera. Second, if you have the ability to do so, shoot black and white film and develop it. Carren writes, “There is just something about how work intensive that process is (shooting and then developing) that makes everyone a better photographer. Over time you learn how to see what your camera sees without being able to see the finished product”.
CARREN’S CONCLUSION
Carren finishes his book with this thought, “Don’t forget that taking a good black and white photo isn’t so different from taking a good photo in general, but do remember that the process of a black and white photo itself has different needs”. The first step is always to decide whether or not you need to shoot the picture in black and white (or convert it in post-processing). As long as you can defend your reasons, you’re good to go. Second, pay attention to tonal differences and contrast. Thirdly, make sure you pay attention to the light and the elements of your composition, so that you can have an image that is worthy of and can stand up to being black and white.
MY CONCLUSION
While the price of Carren’s ebook would be hard to beat ($2.99 in the US) and the chapters are easy enough to read, I find the lack of examples and photos illustrating his step by step directions in this book disappointing (and I’m assuming you did too!). Next year, I may just write my own! However, all in all I think it’s been a good month. Many of you have said your creative boundaries expanded and that you’ve learned a lot of new things. Some of you even found yourself liking black and white when you didn’t expect to!
In my humble opinion black and white is a great photographic genre. As much as I love color, black and white seems to reveal something very special about a subject. So I encourage you to keep on shooting in black and white throughout the year.
Keep your eyes open for beautiful lighting- it generally is an invitation for a wonderful black and white picture!
THIS WEEK’S ASSIGNMENTS
1) Follow Carren’s suggestion in “If You’re Struggling” and choose a day or night when you will look for what I call a “natural black and white”. You can spread this out over the week or do it on a daily basis using one or both scenarios to develop your black and white skills.
2) Revisit one of the previous assignments that you would like to try again.
3) Take 2 or 3 of your previous black and white photos (or take new ones of course!) and process them in different ways to see how this affects your photos. Record what you did and compare the results. You can accomplish this by using different pre-sets on your pictures in your photo-processing program or by adjusting the sliders manually.
4) Learn how to see the nuance of color on black and white. Find objects that are different colors and see how they look when you convert them to black and white. Take note of which colors you have to post-process more than others and why.
As always you can combine or change any of these to your liking, OR, you can come up with your own assignment.
So how did you have fun putting that splash of red (or color) into your month of black and white? Make sure when you post your last photo on the 28th to check out your calendar view. You’ll be pleased with the end result! Share your “flash of red” in the discussion below or one of your favorite shots from the previous week in the discussion thread below. It’s been fun to see all the shots posted in previous weeks and read what you had to say about them.
I had to be on the look-out for a shot that depicted "transportation". Of course I was thinking in terms of something a little more splashy than a bicycle. But when I saw this bicycle leaned up against a building in Stroudsburg with the light spilling across the alleyway so nicely, how could I resist? The timing couldn't have been better as the second I took the shot, a truck rolled by on the main road behind it. I'm pleased to say this one was an award winner! And this is one of the reasons why I believe we can all develop the ability to see in black and white. There are scenes we take in everyday that will be winners if our eyes are open to see them.
There were 82 of you who participated (in one way or another) in Flash of Red February this year. That's AWESOME! Unfortunately it meant that I did not get to see everybody's photos. But be assured, I am quite pleased at how popular this monthly theme has become and I'm already looking forward to next year's installment. A HUGE thank you to each one of you for taking part and putting up with all my pictures as examples- so many of you have shots worthy of those spots too!
@olivetreeann thanks Ann, my intentions of joining this month went pear shaped! However I've just read your entry here and will try and join for the last week!
Your notes are great reflection points - I've especially noted 'how do you want the viewer to feel when viewing the image. I've often erred towards/fallen into the trap of more contrast is better!!
thanks again.. very much appreciated the time you take
@lsquared You're welcome Larry! Glad you enjoyed it. @brigette You're welcome Brigette! That happens some times- but you stuck with it and adjusted it to your needs and that is what you needed to do so that it worked for you. I have no problem with that at all!
Here are my flash of red images... I did two and spent ages agonising over which one to put in my main album. The tarot card one won in the end...
I've really been enjoying this challenge - thanks so much for putting it together :)
@m2016 You're welcome Mel- both very strong images, but I think you chose correctly for your main album. The graphics on the card are quite compelling.
@olivetreeann Ann these past few weeks i have so enjoyed producing b&w images that i will be producing more in the future. thank you for running/administrating this theme. you have been so supportive and helpful and your photos used for illustration purposes have all been brilliant.
i didn't always stick to the plan, didn't add red as i'm not a fan of selective colouring.. but all my images have been shot for this theme and given b&w processing.
should this be run again i will definitely be signing up for it..
@olivetreeann I've participated (albeit off the radar and not always sticking to the plan) but have thoroughly enjoyed your presenting each weeks' 'assignments' and helping us to understand Mr. Carren's vision. I've actually just purchased the book, figured it'd be a great reference if I ever need the inspiration. Thanks for running this challenge so well!
@jorlam You're welcome Jorlam! I enjoy putting it together and especially when I get feedback like yours! Flash of Red runs every February so it will be here next year too. I think others have done black and white months at other times in the year too. Just keep your eyes tuned to the discussion page for those.
@girlincamo Thanks Terri! I know there were more like you who also followed along but didn't give me a tag- which is perfectly fine. I'm glad you liked the book. I'd also recommend the one we used last year (which I think is better)- Black and White: From Snapshots to Great Shots by John Batdorff. It's a little more thorough and has pictures and illustrations to go with the ideas he's discussing, It also comes in ebook format and you can get it on Amazon.
Our school district asked us to post photos of a parent (or older sibling) reading to our kid(s) for "read4luv" on the 14th, so I combined the two ideas.
I wish I could have done the assignments, but I've mostly just taken random black & white photos using monochrome mode on my camera. I hope one year I will actually be able to delve into the actual weekly assignments and do FoRF properly. (Given that February is also "insane rehearsal schedule for the March musical" month nobody should hold their breath waiting for this to happen.)
Very grateful that you are taking charge of this for 2017. I am been enjoying thinking in b&w again, started yeas ago with b&w film. I learned that even if I have my camera (Sony A57) set to black and white but with a raw and jpeg file setting, the raw has all the color data while the jpeg is only monochrome. Now I know.
Thank you very much Ann. There's been so much to learn and practise in a short space of time and I know I will go back to your posts and example shots throughout the year.
@sarahsthreads Love the combo! Family should always take precedence over photography- but why not just do a different month using the weekly stuff from Flash of Red when your schedule is less hectic. Thanks for joining in when you could Sarah!
@annied Thanks Annie! Nice bold red lines for the splash!
@joysabin You're welcome Joy- we all learn here. That's one of the benefits of this community.
@olivetreeann many thanks Anne for hosting the challenge and for all the input and direction. Very much a work in progress for me, and loads to learn, but starting to make sense of some it.
@olivetreeann Thank you very much for this project - it has really kept me focused and thinking about my photos. I am looking forward to many more photos this year and hopefully keeping on track to have a photo for every single day. Here is my flash red - a tribute to those before us!
My Flash of Red for Valentine's Day! I've so enjoyed the b&w challenge and will experiment more now - although have missed colour too so ended up posting a colour shot each day in my other album! We are creatures of habit 😊
@wag864@skstein@mandygravil@lyndamcg@tibles
You're welcome Kas, Sandy, Mandy, Lynda and Riikka! I really enjoyed everyone's participation and also the lovely photos shared in the discussion threads. Eight days to go!
@olivetreeann Thank you so much Ann for hosting the challenge and keeping me inspired and encouraged. It has been really interesting, and despite the challenges, I have really enjoyed it. :)
Id like to add my thanks for this challenge and all the hard work that has gone into putting together such an informative and well illustrated thread. I have given it scant justice, but really appreciated what I have been able to read and absorb and work through. Hope to revisit in quieter times. Thank you so much.
Thanks for putting this together! Quick question -- did you start a thread for folks to post their calendar view for the month? I thought I'd seen it, but couldn't find it.
@taffy Setting that up after I view pictures tonight. @wag864 You're welcome Kas. I'm glad you enjoyed it. It's just as inspiring to me! @helenhall You're welcome Helen! It's just as helpful to me. I go back and review the material a lot!
@olivetreeann Ann, a belated massive thank you for pulling this altogether and host in such style. I know it is a lot of work, and I really appreciate it. I finally got around to posting a collage of my month.
Tweets ahoy!
Join the Group
Pin With Me
@vera365
@carolineb7
@m2016
@ruthmouch
@quietpurplehaze
@salza
@jocasta
@domenicododaro
@pamknowler
@kali66
@emrob
@radiogirl
@homeschoolmom
@meowtographer
@hvansteenburgh
@slash
@ncnewfiegirl
@taffy
@gigiflower
@jorlam
@rachelwithey
@annied
@barneyone
@sjodell
@mandygravil
@linnypinny
@brigette
@suesouthwood
@cristinaledesma33
@tracys
@mcsiegle
@bizziebeeme
@kiwinanna
@teachntravel
@newbank
@lyndamcg
@thistle
@claycameras
@la_photographic
@tabarlett
@joysabin
@skstein
@nanderson
@jld29
@sioux
@lilacphotography
@milaniet
@365projecttaylor
@ingrid01
@susie1205
@cazink
@dibzgreasley
@pandorasecho
@houser934
@30pics4jackiesdiamond
@daisymiller
@amyk
@grammyn
@Sarahsthreads
@yaorenliu
@wag864
@skipt07
@adi314
@lsquared
@deborah63
@vignouse
@phil_sanford
@dianen
@mona65
@randystreat
@alia_801
@farmreporter
@mrslaloggie
@golftragic
@grendelbait
@tibles
@beryl
@emma78
@helenm2016
@adi314
@jennywren
@summerfield
There were 82 of you who participated (in one way or another) in Flash of Red February this year. That's AWESOME! Unfortunately it meant that I did not get to see everybody's photos. But be assured, I am quite pleased at how popular this monthly theme has become and I'm already looking forward to next year's installment. A HUGE thank you to each one of you for taking part and putting up with all my pictures as examples- so many of you have shots worthy of those spots too!
Your notes are great reflection points - I've especially noted 'how do you want the viewer to feel when viewing the image. I've often erred towards/fallen into the trap of more contrast is better!!
thanks again.. very much appreciated the time you take
@brigette You're welcome Brigette! That happens some times- but you stuck with it and adjusted it to your needs and that is what you needed to do so that it worked for you. I have no problem with that at all!
I've really been enjoying this challenge - thanks so much for putting it together :)
i didn't always stick to the plan, didn't add red as i'm not a fan of selective colouring.. but all my images have been shot for this theme and given b&w processing.
should this be run again i will definitely be signing up for it..
@girlincamo Thanks Terri! I know there were more like you who also followed along but didn't give me a tag- which is perfectly fine. I'm glad you liked the book. I'd also recommend the one we used last year (which I think is better)- Black and White: From Snapshots to Great Shots by John Batdorff. It's a little more thorough and has pictures and illustrations to go with the ideas he's discussing, It also comes in ebook format and you can get it on Amazon.
Our school district asked us to post photos of a parent (or older sibling) reading to our kid(s) for "read4luv" on the 14th, so I combined the two ideas.
I wish I could have done the assignments, but I've mostly just taken random black & white photos using monochrome mode on my camera. I hope one year I will actually be able to delve into the actual weekly assignments and do FoRF properly. (Given that February is also "insane rehearsal schedule for the March musical" month nobody should hold their breath waiting for this to happen.)
@annied Thanks Annie! Nice bold red lines for the splash!
@joysabin You're welcome Joy- we all learn here. That's one of the benefits of this community.
@helenm2016 You're welcome Helen! I'm glad it's something you'll visit more often.
@365projectltaylor Thank you so much for that vote of confidence! Seriously considering it!
@skstein Nice flash of red Sandy!
You're welcome Kas, Sandy, Mandy, Lynda and Riikka! I really enjoyed everyone's participation and also the lovely photos shared in the discussion threads. Eight days to go!
@wag864 You're welcome Kas. I'm glad you enjoyed it. It's just as inspiring to me!
@helenhall You're welcome Helen! It's just as helpful to me. I go back and review the material a lot!