Why we love to convert our photos to black and white? Is it because it makes it looks more classic? More 'artsy'?
I use the black and white conversion when I want to eliminate the color layer. Leave the story naked, without the interference of color.
In this case, the photo in the background was a good enough reason to turn my own photo to BW.
Another small thing - A good friend of mine, @rtd13 AKA Ron, uploads a "Weekly Bzzzzz" where he recommends photos, blogs and Twittographers he enjoyed during the week.
I don't want to "steal" his idea, but I would like to begin a new tradition - Every post, I'll try to recommend a photoblog I enjoy. If you do the same, it will allow all of us in the photoblogosphere to find new blogs, that maybe we missed before.
So, please, leave a link to your favorite blog or link them in your own blogs. It can only help and enrich our virtual environment.
My favorite blog of the week is by the super talented Tim Topple (@timtop)
There has been 75 Responses to 'Black and White' so far
Anonymous
very moody image - great lighting and atmosphere
http://krikis.aminus3.com
sherri says:
To me greyscale leaves the eye to explore the details. Every image is different. This one seems fitting for the conversion.
Mileta says:
B&W lets us explore detail and texture and brings out a side of the image we don't usually notice at first glance. Gotta say great catch,the poster makes b&w fit right in there! I also like the blog recommendation idea...
Liang says:
I love love your lighting on this shot ilan! it's brilliantly executed.
Mario says:
Colors often diffuse attention, especially in portrait, where expression should get almost all of it.
So good choice here.
About linking to favourite blog, I do think I'll start doing it from times to times as well. So many fantastic artist remain mostly unknown and deserve so much attention :-)
jelb says:
bonjour,
Nice greyscale and light..beautiful portrait..bravo!
Ron in L.A. says:
Very nice Ilan, love the grain. Thanks for the mention too, I always appreciate it. ;)
R(etc... )
yz says:
love the al pacino poster in the background, that makes an extra sense to the bw
Nir Alon says:
"When you photograph people in colour you photograph their clothes. But when you photograph people in B&W, you photograph their souls!"
~Ted Grant
Your photo is excellent in b&w!!
Nir
http://TIPUSIM.com in Jerusalem
Arjan - PlasticDaisy says:
I usually make pictures of myself b&w because then I look a little less ugly ;)
enoxisureka says:
So true about B&W transition. I always think a photo seems more intimate in B&W, I guess because it's stripped of it's colour and you are forced to focus on the subject. Love the lighting and the unusual expression.
Buonaluce says:
Well, everything looks better in B&W doesn't it? Great shot, thanks for sharing Ilan!
Ken says:
B&W works well here. The Scarface poster and then the darkness swallowing up the subject's face creates an eerie feel. Does he have a scar? :)
CraigM says:
I don't think in such deep terms, I just seem to know when B&W is the right way to go and you were absolutely right with this one.
The light is fantastic, as if projected from the image on the wall, that coupled with the moody look all add up for me. Have I seen this guy before? He seems familiar!
Fritsch says:
"We stepped into the light / Took pictures of each other / Some were in black and white / The others were in color" (Langhorne Slim)
Well I don't think a serious photographer would convert a photo to b & w to make it look more classic or artsy. It's just that every picture has it's own language. Sometimes it's in colour, sometimes b & w. Yours clearly work perfect in b & w. Thanks for this beauty, Ilan, a great picture! All the best & safe travels, Fritsch.
Claude says:
Color can distracts from the mood of an image, and does not have the versatility of B&W. Case in point: The high contrast sets the mood, how would you do that in color? Great "film noir" shot.
a.h.lex says:
wonderful portrait in bw, ilian. i will try your idea by my next photos on my photoblog. have a nice day!
a.h.lex says:
wonderful portrait in bw, ilian. i will try your idea by my next photos on my photoblog. have a nice day!
timtop says:
Oh my. I just saw this! I thank you again for your words and for edging people my way...I will repay you, sometime, somewhere!
Anyhow -to the task in hand. Great portrait. It's in the eye(s)/ even tho the visible one is almost mostly in shadow, it conveys so much. Along with the slightly open mouth, the poster (perfect the way it mirrors the lighting) and the mood - it all fits, it all gels, a totally cohesive work and one of your v best.
tt
Nicki says:
Hi my friend,
i like your point of view, blogging and description of your thougts. Your'e absolute right, b/w convert feelings to the "other side" and rescue often a lost spirit/soul of moments. I know what you men by viewing this fantastic shoot. Fine .... .
Jon Rieley-Goddard says:
Welcome back! Missed your posts. Love the pic. Intense emotion needs black/white.
blog says:
Love this shot. Great composition- the poster in the background makes is it classic in a way to me.
And thank you for sharing this great photoblog of Tim Topple!
--
Joanna
http://joannasfoto.com/blog/
mononeil says:
Composition prefect and B&W perfect. With b&w photography you play with texture, shape, form and contrast.
John Maslowski says:
Personally, my reason for BW images is that I grew up with black & white, way back. Had my own little dark room and loved to develop and process my BW film into prints. Learned a lot about filters, film speed, light, etc. It was love at first sight, a feeling of exhilaration. Every so often I'll create a BW image just for the fun of it and the mood it generates. Really like this image of yours, great contrasts and tones. Like the poster, enhances the mood here. Great job on this BW image.
Ivar says:
In some cases B&W conveys much more feeling and atmosphere.. like in this case. Very nice work
cara says:
That's a great idea. I'll post a favorite photoblog on Twitter for FF(which I usually don't do because I hate strings of user names, which is what it's become IMHO).
I enjoyed Tim Topple's site. His photography is quite varied and fascinating. Excellent choice.
Asaf Karagila says:
Personally I prefer black and white for two main reasons:
1) It's a lot cheaper to shoot b/w when you shoot film
2) I'm a colour blind, so post processing colour is always a tricky thing for me.
After you've decided to use b/w you can strip the story naked from the colours and leave it with the forms and shapes.
rhys says:
I like this, there is a look of Al Pacino about him, quite sinister and moody. Sometimes a mono conversion is the only way to go. Personally I think it add a focus to the image, i.e. the eradication of colour also removes distractions (like you say too). Nice one.
Danne says:
Heya Ilan,
it actually only takes about 10-15 minutes to setup, take the shots needed, and get everything down again. But on the other side, I'm kinda used having to do it. =)
Thank a lot for your comment anyhow :)
And the picture of yours is really good. Just like you say, the Scarface-poster in the background togheter with the lighting on his face does the image. Spot on.
Brian Ramnath says:
Beautiful composition and light Ilan. Bravo!
z-vet says:
Superb shot, great use of light and shadow and very interesting composition. Five stars from me! :)
Alex says:
CReo que la fotografia en blanco&negro puede llegar a transmitirnos mas la realidad de la vida.
Buen trabajo con esta comparativa, entre el cine y la realidada... a mi entender, saludos.
bluechameleon says:
This is so beautiful, classic in composition and light. I can't imagine this in anything but black and white as it showing us the the simple (and effective) side of life and light.
Strong composition, so beautiful.
T and S says:
Lovely play with light and shows Ilan, Very nice
Younes says:
Such a great story in one image. The b&W really pares it down to its bare essentials and leaves a powerful message. Great choice.
Younes says:
Such a great story in one image. The b&W really pares it down to its bare essentials and leaves a powerful message. Great choice.
emillamola says:
Blanco y negro siempre es mas dramatico, y esta foto tiene una carga dramatica muy buena.
Muy bien.
Saludos.
Ronnie 2¢ says:
I think the long-lingering love of b&w goes deeper than nostalgia. Color is often a distraction to underlying moods and, once removed, so much is revealed. Just like blue is ‘cold’ and red is ‘hot’, b&w has to be neutral and the truth comes thru. None of which has anything to do with this warm, loving image !
NJ & SB Photography says:
Ilan tus B&N no tienen que envidiar nada a las viejas fotos de pelicula, los dominas muy bien :))
Aquí está la prueba!!!
saludos
Núria
NYKO.L says:
Bonjour Ilan,
You often visit my site
You shall have to know that I love particularly the black and the white
Why ? the emotion ...i know... lol
So, good shoot again !
See you
nyko
beanow says:
Masterly portrait!
Elaine- says:
hey there, lookin' very handsome in black and white... here's my link http://bluechameleon.aminus3.com/
Wayan Suadnyana says:
Great lighting..very high contrast but look beautiful...
Andrei B. says:
Great portrait. Very good light and in BW u can see better the details. Excellent shot! Best regards, Andrei.
AB says:
Another great atmospheric shot. New photos do not come often in this blog, but when they do come they are always worth the wait.
Marcie says:
What is there left to say..that hasn't already been said??? Love the mood you've captured/created. And - yes - a wonderful idea to start linking to other photoblogs.
The Factory says:
I like this type of bW, well black :)
You certainly have a reason to have this poster behind, but I think it's competing against the subject, which is not bad, indeed :o
I agree with your legend. For me, the only only way of working in color is limitating the color palette to the minimum and following bw rules...
I would like to mention another reason to work in bw: as a langage, bw put a gap between reality and subject, helping to establish a narrative distance...
Charles
Btw, is it an autoportrait?
Btw2, good idea, the link ;)
Connar O"Keeffe says:
I think its a really good way of expressing a certain type of message in the photo.
Colours plays massively with our perception of the meaning and emotion of things.
Here you've used light and back ground imagery to portray this.
Great Stuff
Snapshutter says:
Great use of lighting. The composition with the poster in background is well placed. Another good one, especially in B&W.
Sandy says:
Enjoying seeing your latest, great work.
jo says:
I do love how the poster graphically imitates reality, or vice versa, when these things work, like here, there are so many dimensions to enjoy with the intensity of a limited palette only a b/w can provide
elaine says:
Great mood!!! really good idea to use B&w processing indeed! i m gonna miss your pics for a while again till the end of teh month :)
david says:
of course...you could always shoot with black and white FILM!! :-)
excellent lighting creates a moody shot.
PixeLuz says:
Like the black and white contrast you created on the face responding to the black and white contrast on the poster. Makes a great compo.
About b&w, i imagine b7w is associated in our minds to past things, that's why they carry a stronger emotional power. If Nicephore Niepce had invented photography directly in colors, the story would have been different and we wouldn't associate b&w to the past.
Luis says:
Great atmosphere, contrasting light plays so well with the contrast in the al pacino movie poster, strong look in the eye, well done Ilan
Kamal says:
great use of available light here again. pictures in bw tells a different story. ive once read if you shoot color you show the color of their clothes. if you shoot bw you show the color of their souls. but some people misuse the bw conversion to save a bad picture. and that is the worst. thanks for sharing.
joshi daniel says:
a classic look and feel!
João André Farinha says:
Just came back from a break myself. Good to see you already return to your regular posting!
cako says:
I like the dark atmosphere. Nice work !
Cyndy says:
impressive =) i love the lighting effects here.. very well done.. =)
SD (Aspherical) says:
Such moody lighting. I like how you look like such a badass here with your drink and your cigarettes.
Stephen Chapman... says:
I thought that you may be interested in a monthly fun posting that I started in July called "5 on the fifth" where you take 5 random photographs on the fifth of the month and post them somewhere on the net. You then add a comment on MY blog with your name, location and link to the site containing your photos and I update my blog entry so the world has your link.
Interested?
Here's a link to the last "5 on the fifth" entry
http://thestateofthenationuk.blogspot.com/search/label/5%20on%20the%20fifth
and a link to postings with misc. photographs
http://thestateofthenationuk.blogspot.com/search/label/Miscellaneous%20Photos
and to the latest blog entry
http://thestateofthenationuk.blogspot.com/
Omar says:
Excellent B&W portrait, very nice light and truly a very deep mood
Yashar says:
Really fantastic B/W..
It makes my day, Bravo.
Catalin Oprea says:
Nice picture, nice lights.
Photography is "writing with light", so b&w photos are more close to the definition of this "hobby". You are writing with the basic light, only tones, so the b&w photography it's a little bit harder to make it eye catchable.
William Alexander López says:
Beautiful Black and white, great light !
Miro at LightIsAllAround.com says:
Really great BW portrait, I would taka away some stuff from the desk - everything but the glass, to make is simpler
Anne says:
ah this is good, the expression, the intensity and the black and white of course :)
Abhijit Dharmadhikari says:
Nice black & white! Lovely light captured!
Sylvain says:
This is a fabulous portrait !
B/W creates a very nice ambiance.
Well done !
pando says:
Great b&w portrait!
puglyfeet says:
When I'm unhappy with a photo, I try to save it by running it through Poladroid. Some times, it's just the thing to do.
puglyfeet says:
When I'm unhappy with a photo, I try to save it by running it through Poladroid. Some times, it's just the thing to do.
Alline says:
Dans le clair obscur du yin et du yang....
Superbe...
Enfin de retour ... mais encore en pointillé... :)
Amitiés
om says:
Very nice portrait.
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