It's Black & White- Part 1

A really good friend of mine asked me recently, how I determine whether a photograph is going to be black and white or whether it's going to be in color.

This got me thinking about my own process and whether it's something I actually determine before I take the photograph or after I've pulled up the image in Photoshop. That thought then led me to realize that I often catch myself not shooting enough black and white photos in the same sense as I used to in film days. 

Now inherently, every photograph I take is in color out of the camera, so when I say "shooting black and white photos," I'm talking about shooting a subject with the idea that it will be a black and white photo as a final print.

So for the purpose of this blog I want to discuss how I determine if I will convert an image to black and white in post processing software like Photoshop. Take a look at the photographs below. They are the same image. One in color. One in black and white. 

Which do you like better?

If you said the one in color, then you agree with me. But why? 

It's not just because the color of the field makes the photo warm and pleasant. It's because in color there is a clear separation between my subject and the background. The subject doesn't appear "washed out" in color because of this. There is depth to the image. In B&W, the black, grey, and white of my subject are too close to the black, grey, and white of the background thus making the image appear washed out. In color, there is clear separation that results in more depth. 

What I consider to be the general rule of thumb for determining whether an image will be better in B&W is this; when your subject’s black and white tones blend with the foreground/background tones, it’s a bad idea to make the image B&W. It's that simple. 

Now occasionally I will shoot an image with the idea that it's going to be B&W but it ends up just as good in BW as it is in Color. The reason for this are more to do with skin tones, color saturation, and a perfect balance of luminosity throughout the image. And a little bit to do with my lighting technique. When I know I'm going to shoot an image beforehand I want to be in B&W, I'm always sure to light my subjects in a way that separates them from the background. This means using a reflector to create a rim light and careful placement of the subject. 

The image below is an example of this. I just couldn't decide which was better, so I gave it to the client in both. You will notice that even though he is wearing a dark colored shirt, but in B&W image, there is still a separation between the subject and the background; that depth that is needed. Here I used a reflector and strategic placement of the subject to achieve this. 

Notice there is a slight "white patch" on near the subject's left elbow that creates a separation. It's very subtle, but place your finger over that patch and all of a sudden there is no boundary between the subject and the background. Kind of cool huh?..it's just enough separation to take the photo to the next level.  

 I can write forever about little details like the one above, however, I want to spend the next blog entry discussing Contrast and why it's the magic element to black and white photography. I also want to discuss some best practices and tips for Black and White photography. Hopefully this weekend I can get some fresh new examples to share....-cg