[LRflex] Re: Power of B&W?
- From: bob palmieri <rpalmier@xxxxxxxxxx>
- To: leicareflex@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Sat, 15 Jul 2006 10:43:11 -0500
Eric -
For whatever it's worth, here's my take on these four shots:
Number 1 works great for me as a B&W snap, largely because it's a damn
good picture in all the ways I care about; who knows what the color
content might have been; doubt it would add and would have probably
taken away from the impact.
Number 2, unless the stuff on the walls had great color content, B&W
does its thing.
Number 3 is a good example of why it's often good to shoot color
regardless of the eventual form (B&W or color) 'cause the bodies would
likely blend into the bench unless you used selective channel work to
separate them out (even then it might be tricky.) However, something
about the vibe of the blueness seems to go along with the body angles
for me.
Number 4 (was this one also in the running for the Family of Man 2; I
feel like I remember spending some time with it before?) works great as
a black & white image, yet I wouldn't be surprised if color would have
been even better.
Also, thanks for taking the time to articulate your views on this
subject, as well as filling us in on some background info about your
photo life.
Bob Palmieri
On Jul 14, 2006, at 4:19 PM, LEICAFLEX wrote:
> Ted and Bob, I have a great love for B&W...or should I say
> "monochrome" to cover sepia and toned images, and read both your
> threads with enthusiasm! The anecdotal advice from Ted is priceless
> and ageless ~ I think most of today's digital snapshooters sadly tend
> to forget these elements of being a photographer. What I am talking
> about is the 'heart connection' with your subject.
>
> For that matter, does B&W tend to convey more of the *** feeling ***
> you had about the subject/scene, as opposed to color being just an
> accurate documentary of the scene? Or can color be used to evoke even
> stronger emotions, like fresh blood of injured teenagers in a drunken
> driving accident? I think it depends a great deal on the actual
> subject matter. If we are shooting Canadian geese and other birds, or
> macros of butterflies or flowers, why even think B&W? The good thing
> about the digital age is that one can 'cross process' post
> facto.....shoot either film or digital in color then desaturate in
> Photoshop, and play with the monochrome tonalities to your heart's
> content.
>
> When I was in my late teens / early spent 20's, I spent 2 years as a
> photojournalist shooting mostly documentary, sports and reportage B&W
> for the inside fotos of a magazine, and Ektachromes for the front
> cover. I remember how I used to shift gears to think differently when
> moving from one medium to the other. One had to not only consider the
> use of tonalities versus color harmony and contrasts, but also realize
> that slide film had little latitude while the B&W film was a lot more
> forgiving afterwards in the darkroom. Speaking of which, I would take
> the scent of women's perfume over acetic acid (stop bath) anyday
> Philippe....LOL!
>
> Well, back to B&W......How many of us actually have time to attempt
> the classic Ansel Adams-style landscapes, and regularly apply rigorous
> 'zone system' techniques that one can spend years trying to master
> during photography and in the darkroom (or using curves and histogram
> equalization, etc. on Photoshop)? Most of the time these days, I use
> a C-41 chemistry chromogenic film when I know for sure that the goal
> is a B&W image. However, I have enjoyed changing the look of an
> original color image by removing all color saturation and rendering it
> either a B&W or monochrome look. Somewhere online, some one teaches
> how to create a duotone look in Photoshop. At any rate, here are some
> of my Leica B&W's of people, and would be glad to hear the opinions
> from this thread.
>
> Here are 2 spontaneous/candid available light shots taken in '05
> during a Tibetan Buddhist ceremony in Menlo Park, CA., with a
> collapsible Summicron 50/2 mounted on a Leica M3 DS. Film was Ilford
> XP-2. (You may have to copy and paste these links into your browser
> window):
>
> http://gallery.leica-users.org/ThirdEye/Blessings01Archive
> http://gallery.leica-users.org/ThirdEye/FH000005archive
>
> This next one was scanned from a slide then 'monochromed' in Photoshop:
> http://gallery.leica-users.org/Scenes-from-Beijing-and-Shanghai/
> Forward_Kick
>
> In contrast, I decided to leave this one in color due to the nice
> blue-on-foliage-green color contrasts which I think add mood (same
> park as prior image):
> http://stmaarten.globat.com/~afirkin.com/FinalGallery/source/
> 2005fomn0757.htm
>
> Finally, this was a real B&W:
> http://gallery.leica-users.org/Scenes-from-Beijing-and-Shanghai/
> Good_Wine_Conversation_Web
>
> Comments, critiques, debates, opinions, war stories, history
> lessons....all welcome ;-)
>
> I think that B&W has the power to force us to focus on the Essential
> Symbolism of a visual image, whereas color tends to add a qualitative
> dimension that can potentially beautify the image as a whole, or
> augment its meaning or symbolism.
> B&W prints have an unequaled beauty in their own right, and given the
> same subject matter, it is much more difficult to create a fantastic
> B&W photo than a color one, IMHO.
>
> However, in the time that we ponder over B&W or color, film or
> digital, 35mm or 120, don't forget to just take the damn photo before
> the moment gets away!
>
> Ted, it is great to have you here on the thread! - Thanks for sharing
> your experiences. To me the greatest challenge in journalistic
> photography is capturing the elements of the human condition and
> focussing on something in the content/composition that forces the
> viewer to question, inquire, compel into action, etc.!
>
> ~ Eric Chan
> ------
> Unsubscribe or change to/from Digest Mode at:
> http://www3.telus.net/~telyt/lrflex.htm
> Archives are at:
> //www.freelists.org/archives/leicareflex/
------
Unsubscribe or change to/from Digest Mode at:
http://www3.telus.net/~telyt/lrflex.htm
Archives are at:
//www.freelists.org/archives/leicareflex/
Other related posts: