by Gary Fong
Photographer: Gary Fong
Click photos to enlarge
Click photos to enlarge
It may seem odd that some long time photographers prefer shooting B&W photos, rather than color. But those who prefer monochrome seem to think on a different plateau. B&W photographers say they envision and compose the image in B&W. For these lens persons, light and composition are the least common denominator of the craft.
Color has an intrinsic characteristic that impedes the eye from seeing the visual balance more directly. B&W allows the viewer to appreciate the light and composition without being distracted by the colors of the image itself. In a sense, it’s a purer way of seeing.
Those light-stalkers of the wet darkroom era reminisce of the sound of running water, the smell of fixer, and the OC safelight ambiance. It’s a world where one's thoughts are lost in artistic creativity…a place where one can retreat from the complexities of the world for the love of photography.
Photography was simpler then…as opposed to digital images massaged by computers that need constant software upgrades. But those who dove head first into the new age of digital color may be missing an element of photography that would enhance their shooting.
B&W photography can be very direct; it is the content and the viewer. While color touches people on a subconscious level, B&W connects without deliberation. What you see is what you get.
The art of B&W is moving the eye around the print by lighter and darker areas of the composition. The eye gravitates to the lightest part of the print first and then moves through the frame gathering visual nuances, that at first glance were not seen. The subtle shades of grey facilitate that discovery experience, often not appreciated by its color counterpart.
To see and shoot in B&W takes an extra sense many photographers should develop. Those who see only in color, shoot only in color. Those who see in B&W, shoot in B&W and in color. They have become ambidextrous.
