Exploring the black and white option of your favorite photographs. “Don’t shoot what it looks like. Shoot what it feels like.” - David Alan Harvey

 On occasion, if you follow my web page or facebook page you will see the best image emerges when I eliminate color in favor of black and white.

The three images in this post, all were shot initially in color, and certainly recorded accurately the color and details of the objects photographed.

With any image, I have an initial feeling or emotional response that I attempt to capture.
Sometimes, I'm initially satisfied with the photograph, but upon returning to  it just doesn't seem to convey or express the initial feeling when I photographed it.

The first image of the Flathead Ford is a good example of an engine that really grabbed me with its perfect execution. I liked the color, but when I converted it to black and white, it became what I really wanted to convey of a perfectly executed and very mechanical feel. This has become one of the most popular images in my portfolio. I usually print this on aluminum sheet or Kodak metallic paper to further enhance the mechanical feel.

"Popeye" the Dodge truck is another photograph that has been quite popular as a color image. The various shades of rust certainly work well, but again merely recorded the truck as seen. I spent some time reworking it in black and white. This time I feel it has an even better feeling of the passage of time.  Both work well, and are probably equally well received by the viewer. All in all, though I think it was worth producing it in color or black and white.

                                                                                                  The last image of the forty Ford headlight and silver flames work very well in color, and with a minor bit of HDR work has the feeling of a painting that I had hoped to accomplish.  It has also been a very popular image within my portfolio. So is it worth trying black and white? In this case, I felt that it worked well in black and white, but the color image remains closer to the feel and effect that I was trying to communicate.

 

My conclusion is that with digital photography, we have more options to experiment with our photography than we ever could with film. I would encourage you to be open to revisit images and try different effects until they get as close as you can to what you first felt when you made the shot.
Sometimes black and white will be the best solution. At other times it's a good alternative or option, and there will be times the original color was the best image.
As always, have the courage to experiment and don't forget to keep it fun.
Just keep shooting.   Michael