Given the reaction to the previous few BLOG discussion topics, I expect this little collection of unstructured sentences, littered with spelling and grammatical inaccuracies, will generate its fair share of hysteria. Despite the fact that I am only trying to generate some interesting discussion on a few photography forums and Flickr discussion groups, it seems I have managed to piss a few people off. So be it. Im no stranger to a heated discussion. I have said before I love a passionate debate. And I have even had my mind changed by some of the discussion. Sit back down all you Strobists, I’m still an advocate of natural lighting, you haven’t swayed me yet.
Todays chatter is about black and white photography,(for those middle aged men with bushy beards and cardigans, please don’t take me to task over the fact that is should be duotone or some other term you have dragged out of “A pedants guide to correcting idiots.” I like to speak in simple terms) and its reluctance to go the way of black and white TV. Black and white photography seems to be making a resurgance, I suspect, partly by people like myself diving into the non-digital (read, film) world of photography. Developing your own black and white film is cheap. Quite a bit cheaper once you are set up than taking the rolls to your local lab or chemist. But there is also an ever increasing crowd out there who are converting their colour images to black and white using Photoshop, GIMP and all the other virtual darkrooms available on the humble home computer. I used to poo-poo the idea, telling people if you can shoot colour, why go back to black and white. Animals see in black and white (I am too lazy to Google and see if that claim is 100% correct, so I am ready for the comments telling me I obviously didn’t see the NatGeo special on the Pacific Blue Bearded Tit) and we see in colour. It might be why we are apex predators, who knows. I just know I used to like my photos in living colour, not some dreary black and white image. I think it was Dave Foley’s character in the terrific sitcom News radio who said something like “I find black and white photography pretentious”. I agreed, at the time.
As it turns out, I must have magically evolved overnight quite a while back, because I can cope with a colour free photo these days. The odd one, not all photos. I even convert some of my own photos to black and white now. I really have no idea what photo I should convert to black and white, but it is usally a photo with a sombre mood, like this.
Remembering as a unit
I can remember when I took it that that photo would brobably benefit from being processed as a black and white image. It happens on occasions. It might be that tiny part of my brain that houses the 3 synapses that make up my artistic side, the bit that I keep closed down for fear of my plums falling off. I have been told time and time again that there is some arty fartyness (if that doesn’t convince people there isn’t, nothing will) in me, and for the love of Mary’s young bloke, I wish they would stop.
So what I would like to know is why people embrace black and white photography with such gusto? I have heard things like tonal range, which makes as much sense to me as quantum physics to a 3 year old. Don’t get me wrong, I am not anti black and white, just curious as to why it is so much loved. I hold people like George Voulgaropoulos in the highest regard. His photos are amazing at times. And every now and them he takes them in colour too. Have a look at his work. Proof that that taking photos with out colour is the new black, and white!