Black and white photography relies on the tonal quality of the colors in the scene. The way the photographer “sees” the image changes. Without the reliance on color, the photograph relies on whites, blacks, and gray tones.
The human eye sees about 16 million colors. To create a successful black and white photograph, those colors need to be translated into their tonal quality. This is dependent on camera settings, and post production processes.
Traditional black and white was done with black and white film. The process of exposure and film choice dictated the end photograph. Modern digital cameras work differently. The camera’s photo sensor sees light and filters colors. Black and white settings on the camera can produce beautiful photographs, though it will depend on the camera’s programming.
The contrast between light and dark, along with the mid-tones, create the black and white image. The settings for black and white are in picture style, filters, or color (tone) menus of the digital camera. In many cameras, the photographer can set the contrast, brightness, and other settings for the photograph.
The second way to create successful black and white photographs is in the post processing phase of modern photography. There are many different types of photo processing software and photo filters available. The photos in this blog were done in Adobe Photoshop.
Karen
Visualize ~ Create ~ Evoke
To learn more, I’ll be teaching Black & White photography on the amazing Oregon coast this June 2018. The Oregon Coast in Black & White, June 18th & 19th, 2018 at the Sitka Center for Arts & Ecology. For more information, click here.
In the film world, photography was relatively simple for the photographer. We selected our film, shot our photos, developed the film (either ourselves or at a lab), edited the photos, and finished with a final product. We had a choice in film speed, and type of film. For creative affects, we had filters for our lenses, camera mounted flashes and other gadgets.
With digital photography, cameras are programmed with all this information. Film has become a media card (Compact Flash, SD, XD, etc.). Digital Photography is defined by processors and megapixels, instead film brand and speed. Instead of the photo lab developing our pictures, we have computer software (Photoshop, Lightroom, Elements, Picasso, Gimp and others). We can print our photos at home on our printers or send them to a photo lab.
So, where do we begin with our digital cameras?
Kodak Slide Film scanned to a Digital file.
For some, the transition from Film to Digital is easy. For others, it is a struggle, and can be confusing. I’ve worked with all ages (children, teens, adults & seniors) and levels (beginning & intermediate) photographers with understanding the functions of their Digital cameras. Each person has a different way to learn the complex menus and functions of modern cameras, and need individual attention to learning the information.
The photo above was taken in 1997 with Kodak slide film and scanned to a digital file. It was taken at Arches National Park, and all the elements came together for a wonderful photograph. The photo below was taken in 2005 with a Canon 10D digital camera. It was taken at Arches National Park too. Both of these images were shot in Manual mode.
From the Digital Camera to the Digital Darkroom Intensive is a one day (6 hour) hands-on venture into camera operations and workflow for digital photography. I offer this class once a year at the Pacific Northwest Art School on Whidbey Island. Here is a link to their website and the class.
Join my workshop for a fun-filled day of learning Digital Photography and the Digital Darkroom. The last photo is John Day Fossil Beds, and was taken in 2012 with a Canon 5D Mark II.
Happy Shooting. . .Karen
Canon 10D (6.3 megapixels)Canon 5D Mark II (21.3 megapixels)
This was taken in 1995 on slide film, and scanned to a digital file.
I’ve been a photographer for years, and started with film. I wanted to be like Art Wolfe. I had seen his photos in National Geographic, and wanted to work for them. I decided to become one of the best photographers in the world, and that would be my life. I would travel the world, take photographs, and people would pay me a lot of money. I was 13 years old at the time.
Through the years, I have been blessed with the teachings of many different photographers. I attended a workshop taught by Frans Lanting in the 1990s, and he told us that nobody in the room would make it as a professional nature photographer, except for the 1 or 2 that did not listen to him. I love a challenge!
Bryan F Peterson’s workshops brought in the idea that creativity and light were the foundation for all successful photographs. I’ve taken several workshops from him through the years, and have “wow-ed” him with a few photographs. This photo of the Painted Desert was the first “wow”, and it was at a workshop. It was followed by silence, in a room full of 50+ people. It is one of my fondest memories about photography.
The other factor that brought me to this point in my career was being recognized as a talented photographer by a local photographer. He taught introduction photography classes, and asked me to assist him. This was in 1995, and lasted for two years. He also encouraged me and others to show our work, by organizing a gallery in LaConner, WA. I was covering a shift at the gallery one weekend, and had the opportunity to listen to a gentleman critique all my work to a friend without even acknowledging my presence in the gallery. Listening to others can give insight, and knowledge about the artist’s audience.
This was taken in 1997 on slide film, and scanned to a digital file.
So now when I do a show or talk, people ask me “how do you do that?” I could be anything, such as how did you get the background to go dark. How did you get the picture so colorful? What kind of camera do you use?
Well, a good photograph doesn’t have much to do with owning an expensive camera. It does have a lot to do with knowing how to use the equipment that you own or can afford to own (Point and Shoot or DSLR). It comes down to understanding light, exposure, composition, and how to manipulate the camera to get the artist vision. It takes practice, using all this knowledge to hone a photographer’s skills.
I teach student’s these skills through several venues. On the weekends, I teach through Nature’s Photo Adventures. The 2 hour workshop is called a Photo Walk. This format allows students to learn these skills, practice the skills, and ask questions regarding application of the skills. Many of the Photo Walks happen at the zoo, where there are an abundance of photo opportunities. For the more advanced students, I offer a 1 day workshop (4 hours) of classroom time, and opportunity to practice skills. The format of the classes focus on skills, and students being successful with their photographs.
For those who prefer a classroom setting, I teach a series of Digital photography classes through the City of Edmonds. There are 4 individual classes that are 2 hours of instruction. Each one builds off of the knowledge learned in the previous class. Students can sign-up for these individually. The first class starts with basic camera operation. Class two focuses on exposure and light. Class three works on composition, and the application of exposure/light. Class four finishes with the digital darkroom, and what software programs work best for their costs.
I teach longer workshops through the Pacific Northwest Art School on Whidbey Island. In 2013, I will be teaching a one-day (6 hour) workshop called “From Camera Knowledge to the Digital Darkroom Intensive.” This will be one day focused on basic camera operation, exposure, composition, light, practice shooting, and finishes with the Digital Darkroom. This will be on Saturday, March 23, 2013.
The second workshop I will be teaching here is “An Island Photographic Adventure – Birds, Wildlife & the Environment.” It will be a 2 day workshop with classroom time, and shooting on location. The shoot locations will be on Whidbey and Fidelgo Islands. The workshop will be held Saturday and Sunday, July 27-28, 2013.
My other teaching venue is the Sitka Center for Arts & Ecology on the Oregon coast. I will be teaching “Of the Land, Sea & Air – An Oregon Coast Photo Adventure.” It will be in June, though I do not have the final date yet.
So, when asking a photographer, “how did you do that,” consider taking a photography workshop. . .
This was taken in 1992 (I think) on print file, and scanned to a digital file.
Since photography is based on light either natural (ambient) and introduced (flash), low lighting photo opportunities gives a photographer many choices on “how to take the shot.” Basic equipment should include a camera and tripod. The rest is up to choices about exposure and/or adding or subtracting light.
This first image was taken at dusk. The sun had been down for about 15-20 minutes before I took this shot. I used a tripod to keep my camera steady. I wanted to capture the lights of the ferry dock, and have the rocks in the fore-ground lit as well. I exposed this image for the lights and last colors of the sunset. In the Digital Darkroom, I worked on bringing the exposure into balance, which reflected what I saw when I took the photograph. I worked a lot with fill light and contrast.
ISO 100, 1/30 sec., f7.1
In the photo below, I had a different lighting situation. This was shot during late winter, and the sun had already set or near sunset. The Barred owl blended into the surroundings well, and I pushed the ISO to 2500. I didn’t know if the photo would turn out, because of the poor lighting. A flash would have been nice, but I would have lost the details in the background. The background would have gone very dark with a flash, because of the difference in light between the owl and the sky. In the Digital Darkroom, I adjusted the exposure, and de-saturated the color. This is the final resulting photo.
ISO 2500, 1/80 sec., f5.6
The scene below is a different situation than the previous two images. The lighting challenge is between shadow areas and direct sunlight. I chose an exposure in-between the two extremes, so I could collect enough details in the blacks and whites to work with in the Digital Darkroom. Even with this exposure, I still have some blacks and whites without detail. If one looks closely at the photo, the sun reflected in the window made refraction marks through the image.
For more information about these processes, I’ll be teaching workshops on the subject, and writing about this in future blogs. My workshops are offered through Pacific Northwest Art School, Nature’s Photo Adventures, Sitka Center, and the City of Edmonds.
Often times, I get asked if I “Photoshop” my photographs. If it was a film image, it would be like asking me if I took my film to a photo lab, which I worked at one for a couple of years. Our job as employees was to give the customer the best photograph possible from their film. We would color correct the prints, before they left the lab.
In the digital age, there is a lot of concern about “manipulating” photographs. In truth, all photographs are a manipulation of a scene through composition, and use of exposure.
So, what is a Digital Darkroom?
A Digital Darkroom is a software, such as Photoshop, Elements, or Aperture, where a photographer can color correct his/her photographs. There are tools to remove dust spots, filters to enhance color and cropping tools. What comes out at the end is the photograph the photographer wanted to take.
To answer the question. . .yes. . .I use Photoshop. I gather the best possible data with my camera, then polish it into the photograph I saw through my lens.
Here is an example of what computer software can do. . .
In this photo, I used Photoshop to remove dust and correct color.
In this photo, I started with Photoshop to remove dust and correct color. Then, I used Topaz filters to reduce haze, and further enhance the color.
