What moves you to bw or color?

Comment

Comment by Jack Harwick on April 28, 2013 at 8:15am

I share your love of B&W. For the first four years that is all that I shot, because I did my own developing and printing. Today it is easier to shoot color, but for some images a B&W conversion seems to work better. I will try and work up a few just for you.

Comment by Pauwels Ferdi on November 26, 2012 at 2:45am

I like the color picture more than the BW, i think nature comes more to its right in color .... BW is ok for expressions and facial photo's.....my opinion........ 

Comment by Penny Dykes on October 17, 2012 at 7:13pm

The b&w is reminiscent of  Ansel Adams.  I like it though you lose some of the depth of field.  I love that you can see the lines of movement across the sky, kind of mystical considering the location.

The color adds a richness and depth to the scene that is not available in the b&w.  I like both versions depending on the message you wish to convey.

Comment by Jesse Lee Moore on September 19, 2012 at 1:50pm

As I shoot mostly digital, it's usually a difficult choice for me, especially with portraits.  I shoot in RAW, just like Dan, and then do the conversions if I so choose.  For the most part, if there's a particular element in the image that I want to emphasize, such as a pattern of shapes, contrast between two shapes or surfaces, or the texture of something, I'll most likely opt for black and white.  If I feel that color specifically adds something to the photo, I'll just adjust the HSL a bit in Lightroom.  Also, for me, tonal range has an influence on whether I publish an image in color or black and white.  IMO, a black and white image with masterful tones has no color alternative.  However, I am finding that more and more, I'm publishing color images, with fewer b&w conversions.

Comment by Rafael Fajardo on September 13, 2012 at 9:19pm

Please ammend the first paragraph of my comment:

"..since color just added a touch of..."

Comment by Dan Tubbs, Jr. on September 13, 2012 at 9:17pm

Although I shoot everything in RAW and rarely convert to black and white, I admire the way black and white photos look. I used to develop and print my own photographs, but find I can do so much more in Lightroom and Photoshop. Your image of Macchu Picchu in black and white is wonderful. The hardest thing to do in a BW image is to include all of the tones from pure white to pure black. I think you have achieved that in this photo.

Best regards, Dan

Comment by Rafael Fajardo on September 13, 2012 at 9:12pm

Hi Mario. I do agree with Victoria's point of view. however I'd like to add: before i started doing photography I went to the Bellas Artes school in Bogotá. one of my teachers was one of the greatest colorists in latin America. In his technique he always started with verdaccio, and in many occasions he gave up coloring and went deeply in a monocrome or duotone finish. He sayed that when he felt that he was accomplihsing the best of the expression he wanted to transmit, he better put all his talent in monochromatic painting, since just added a touch of distraction or an decorative effect that attenuated the expressive strength of his work.

With this idea in mind all the time I try to do BW's or sepias out of the shots I consider to be good enough, or when  feel that color plays a distractive effect.

Taking advantage of the software available , I exagerate tone mapping in color and then go to BW or sepia, trying to get an engraving like appearance to my picture.

I add the following as an example of what.

Thanks for your coment on my pict. mean

Comment by CP Keen on September 10, 2012 at 9:35pm

Hi Mario, I think a lot of us older guys that shot and processed our own film got used to shooting B/W. Color processing and printing was just too fussy and expensive for me. Expansive landscapes lend themselves to B/W. A few of my florals just seem to look better in B/W especially when enlarged.

My opinion only-I like the foreground in your photo in color and the background and mountain peaks in B/W. I think though in this case I would make more adjustments to the color photo as the foreground of the photo is the most important part and B/W just doesn't do the terraces and stonework of Macchu Picchu justice

Comment by Viktoria Eiböck on September 10, 2012 at 5:38am

I am not a pro and this is just what I think about this subject.

Wheter I use bw or colours, depends on the appearance of the photo and the message that I want to convey. I decide on bw/colours during post processing. It's like trial and error - what looks better? But there are some clues:

In my mind architectural and static pictures look more often better in bw than for example landscape photography. In most cases landscapes require colours. There are just a few landscapes pictures, that look better in bw than in colours. Colours are the strongest visual stimuli that the human eye perceives. How would you convey the freshness of leaves or the emotion of a sunset?

A good picture conveys a clear message. The message I want to convey has to be ascertainable at first view. For this reason the main object of the picture has to be emphasized. Be it depth of field, colours or contrast. In case of bw remain depth of field and contrast.

There is no universal formula that says "this photo looks better in bw than in colours". At least it depends on the viewers eye and taste. Just try both and you will see, what looks better.

In your case I prefer the coloured one.