This week in Flash of Red February we’ll turn our photographic attention on landscapes. What is Landscape Photography? The answer seems obvious- it’s pictures of landscapes of course! But if you want to sound a little more educated than that, National Geographic photographer Jimmy Chin offers this definition, “Landscape photography is photography that occurs in the great outdoors. It is separate from what we know as nature photography, which is a broader category that encompasses all portraiture of the natural world. Usually, landscape photography captures an impressive natural scene—an imposing mountain range, a serene, sprawling field, a river roaring—untouched by human presence (besides the photographer’s, of course).”
We are used to seeing subjects such as landscapes in color, but black and white landscapes have their own particular appeal and drama when you know what to look for. Chin continues, “Black and white landscape photography removes a key tool from an artist’s palette: color. To compensate for this, the best black and white landscape photography (also known as monochrome landscape photography) seeks out particular subjects that can be every bit as compelling without color.” Chin recommends you:
• Look for landscapes that provide high contrast. Think of a bright sky against dark hills, or a deep inky ravine beneath a well-lit landscape. Such subject matter offers notable contrast between light and dark, and those contrasts will shine through in a black and white photograph.
• Use texture as another way to express contrast. The craggy bark of a tree trunk offers a continual ribbon of shadow and light. Or use two objects to show textural contrast. Think of a smooth rock face with fuzzy lichen growing out of it. Or perhaps feathery birds atop a glassy lake surface.
• The best black and white landscapes are often the same ones that might be featured in color landscapes. If you spot a piercing blue sky over verdant green mountains, try a black and white image alongside a color shot. The mountains will provide deep blacks while the sky will offer an array of textured light.
These articles feature a number of tips on what to look for if you’re venturing out to find landscapes for your photos this week. For those of you who may find time constraints, weather and health working against to capture something new, feel free to dip into your archives and work on a landscape you took earlier. Whether you accomplish black and white in camera or in post-processing, looking for and recognizing a good landscape shot for the black and white genre is the same.
As always, understanding composition is an important part of any artistic endeavor, but especially so in black and white landscapes. According to travel and landscape photographer Jason Friend, “In general, simplicity is the key with regards to composition and learning what to exclude from your frame is just as important as knowing what to include.” He and many other pros also emphasize it’s important to learn how to “translate” colors into the monochrome format. Some colors that look extremely different in color can basically look the same in black and white. So, your eye must be trained to recognize the nuances. The digital world has made this much easier with live view, histograms and post-processing programs. And the articles above will also give you tips on filters and other technical steps you can take to accomplish a great black and white landscape IF you want to go a little further than just the basics. But don’t feel overwhelmed or pressured to become an expert on this aspect of black and white landscapes in one week. Experiment both in-camera and post-shoot and enjoy the excuse to play with pictures you might not have considered worthy of your project before.
Believe it or not, this is our last full week of Flash of Red! The tag remains the same FOR2023 and the dates will run from February 20th to February 26th.
What a difference a year makes! This shot was part of my Flash of Red Project in 2021. It's a good example of how making use of lines (the verticals of the trees) and a strong leading line (the line formed by following the base of the tree trunks through the picture) enhance the appeal of a black and white landscape.
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What a difference a year makes! This shot was part of my Flash of Red Project in 2021. It's a good example of how making use of lines (the verticals of the trees) and a strong leading line (the line formed by following the base of the tree trunks through the picture) enhance the appeal of a black and white landscape.
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Posting a little early as I've got a busy weekend ahead.
Thank you Dixie, Katy and Nada- I learn just as much as you do!
You're welcome Marilyn and Kathy!