"Three hours of daylight and all of them grey. The suicide prevention group have all run away." from "Wintertime Blues" by John Hiatt. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KiN7Q3DTWBc It's been a pretty dreary winter so far. I'm pretty sure that I can count the number of blue sky days on the fingers of one hand. I have to admit, it can get a little depressing. It seems every day features nothing but grey skies, fog, mist or drizzle. The temperature, for the past couple of weeks, has been unseasonably mild so we don't even have the beauty of snow cover to mask the bleak landscape.
So what's a photographer with an itchy shutter button finger to do? Well, when life hands you lemons... Actually that quote really applies if life hands you lemons, sugar, water and a nice pitcher for mixing. If life hands you nothing but lemons, you're pretty much screwed. But I digress.
My solution is to embrace the grey. Go monochromatic! For the most part, I'm trying to stop using the phrase "black and white" in application to photography. Black and white is, well... too black and white. It implies that I'm making images with black ink on pristine white paper when what I'm really doing is creating images utilizing infinitely varying shades of grey. Besides, monochromatic kinda sounds more sophisticated. Hey, I'm not just another bumpkin with a camera!
Since my photographic renaissance in the world of digital imaging, I've been taking everything in colour and converting it in post processing when I want it in monochrome. That way, I get the best of both world's right? Not really. I've found that, at least with my two newest cameras, I have a pretty wide array of black & white options in camera and it's been a lot of fun trying them out. Besides, if I want colour, I can simply switch back to the various colour settings in the camera while I'm on location. I love using photographic terms like "on location." It sounds so much better than "When yer out takin' the damn pitcher!" Did I mention that I'm not just another bumpkin? Of course if you are a bumpkin there's a good chance you could be elected President of the U.S.A. Wait a minute... he's orange. More of a pumpkin than a bumpkin. Perhaps a combination of the two, a pumpkin bumpkin. But again, I digress.
Anyways, I'm having fun making monochromatic pictures again. However, I have to admit that I kind of miss the old way of doing black and whites. When I think of the hours I spent in a darkroom developing films and making enlargements from the negatives, it's a bit sad to think that it's now pretty much a lost art.
Nostalgic feelings aside, I still believe there's a place for monochromatic imaging in modern photography. If nothing else, it helps to make me a better photographer. The images themselves are more graphic. I have to pull out all the stops when it comes to composition. I have to work a little harder to use visual elements like form, line, shape, texture and balance to make an image with visual impact. Photography is a bit more of a challenge when I don't have pretty colours to save my butt. Actually, a sort of litmus test for a colour photo that I learned a long time ago is, " Would it still look good in black & white?" Colour is only one of many visual elements. If an image can stand on its own without it, It's (hopefully) a good photo.
So if you want to expand your creative vision, I strongly recommend spending some time ( a week, a month or even a year) in the world of monochrome. I guarantee that it will change the way you see the world. Besides, what the hell else can you do with almost a month of grey, dull weather?
...more later
Nostalgic feelings aside, I still believe there's a place for monochromatic imaging in modern photography. If nothing else, it helps to make me a better photographer. The images themselves are more graphic. I have to pull out all the stops when it comes to composition. I have to work a little harder to use visual elements like form, line, shape, texture and balance to make an image with visual impact. Photography is a bit more of a challenge when I don't have pretty colours to save my butt. Actually, a sort of litmus test for a colour photo that I learned a long time ago is, " Would it still look good in black & white?" Colour is only one of many visual elements. If an image can stand on its own without it, It's (hopefully) a good photo.
So if you want to expand your creative vision, I strongly recommend spending some time ( a week, a month or even a year) in the world of monochrome. I guarantee that it will change the way you see the world. Besides, what the hell else can you do with almost a month of grey, dull weather?
...more later
