Category Archives: black and white photography

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7 Steps to Better Black and White Photography

By gmiller | Published August 21, 2011

fine art black and white photograph of texas amusement park

I adore black and white photography. I think that if my fine art wedding photography clients would let me I would only photograph in black and white and produce stunning fine art wedding albums. In fact Red Photo does offer a complete vintage black and white photojournalistic style option. But most couples prefer color images and a few key black and white ones. Many of my clients have become more and more interested in monochromatic images. I have also had many students recently want to create black and white images. And unfortunately they make the common error of taking their color images and just taking the color out. While that will create black and white images it rarely creates the best images. Producing good black and white photographs require seeing the world a little differently, setting up your shots in a different way, and then a new skills set in post production to convert the images. To this end I have created an elective class for my students called ‘Black and White Digital Photography.’ The basic principles taught in this class have really helped people to produce compelling and effective images.

I have given some tips and thoughts about black and white photography before in my posts ‘The Allure of Black and White Photography‘ and ‘Ode to Black and White Photography.’ I wanted to give you seven ideas to help improve your black and white images.

1. Look at shapes, textures, and forms

The abstract nature of black and white photography lends itself well to accentuating texture and detail. The shapes of objects really comes into play because you no longer have color as a design element. And ‘Don’t Forget the Details When You Photograph. ‘ Small details can really make a big difference in your photographs.

2. Composition is key

When you take away color you are left with tones. I think that this helps accentuate your composition because you are not distracted by color. There are many elements to a good photograph. Read ‘Improving Your Composition in Photography‘ for more suggestions. I place composition high on my list in both color and black and white photography. I have a large formalistic style to my work.

3. Use harder light

I am not suggesting that you take photographs in ugly, contrasty light, at high noon. But black and white can stand more contrasty light and this can be used stylistically. You can see this done well by many of the well known photographers from the 1920′s and 1930′s like Ansel Adams, Edward Weston, and Paul Strand.

4. Learn to see in black and white

This idea may not be as obvious as you think. We see in color. Your camera captures in color. Your computer shows you your photos in color. Unlike when we used black and white film, it is hard to see without having color pollute your vision. With a little patience and practice you can learn to see what your image will look like in black and white. And no, I do not suggest using the black and white mode on your camera. That just throws out data and that is bad. Shoot in color, convert to black and white intelligently.

5. Shoot in color on your DLSR

I just mentioned this above, but I wanted to give it a separate line to show how important this will be. Don’t throw away data. Shoot in RAW format and in color. This will give you the most options later when converting to monochrome. Just do it.

6. Convert to black and white properly

I could write an entire post on effectively converting to black and white, and I will in the future. For now I recommend using a black and white adjustment layer in Photoshop. It is the easiest way to start and the tool has become very effective and easy to sue. But be warned that it takes time to develop your eye and your skills to get those beautiful conversions. Again, be patient.

7. Shadows and silhouettes work well

These are a good place to start to develop your eye and seeing in black and white. Working with shadows and silhouettes is good to develop your compositional skills. They help you to simplify things.

So take this advice and go try it out. Let me know what you come up with.

Gary Miller

Eye Candy and Brain Veggies

Also posted in digital photogarphy, fine art photography, philosophy, photography, photography techniques, wedding photography | Tagged Ansel Adams, black and white photography, digital photography, Edward Weston, improving your photography, Paul Strand, tutorial, wedding photography | Comments Off

The Allure of Black and White Photography

By gmiller | Published August 20, 2011

black and white ambrotype photograph

I really love black and white photography. I had a recent post that was my ‘Ode to Black and White Photography.’ For about ten years I was exclusively a black and white fine art photography, shooting primarily film. Some of you may actually remember film. There are definitely things that I miss about using it. I have nothing against digital, but the hands on nature of film really added another quality to the work. I felt more connected to the piece since I exposed the film, processed it, made contact sheets, and then made fine art black and white prints. I talk about this more in my post ‘The Visceral Nature of Film.’ Many of my students are interested in black and white photography. About a year ago I noticed that several of them were handing in black and white images for some assignments. But the conversions were weak and the images did not really fully exploit the abstract and graphic nature of the medium. So I created an elective class for them, ‘Black and White Digital Photography.’ Those that take this class really show improvement in their work very quickly once they learn to see in a monochromatic way.

When the digital age roared in many of the software and printing manufacturers went after the commercial and consumer photography markets. For many of the last 12 years making good black and white images on the computer or creating a nice, fine art digital black and white print, was very difficult and disappointing. It was so disappointing that I abandoned black and white all together when I was using my digital SLR. In an ironic twist, as I was entering the digital SLR realm, working more with Photoshop and other software, and using the digital media to its’ fullest, I began to become very interested in the historical, or alternative processes. I was especially enamored by platinum printing and I spent several years perfecting the artform. It was laborious, but there was something magical about all of the time and effort and handwork that you had to invest to get a stunning print in the end. I still believe that nothing can match the sublime beauty and tonal subtly of a fine platinum print. There are inkjet prints that look like it and press printed pieces too, but nothing has that texture, that feel. If you have never seen a platinum print up close and personal then I recommend you search around at your local galleries and museums. You will see what I mean.

Now digital and printing technology have caught up and you can produce really nice black and white images. There are printers that contain gray inks or you can buy special ink sets that help create the subtle tonality of a fine black and white photographic print. There are many great fine art papers on the market. Photoshop has a good black and white adjustment layer built in and there are several vendors producing plug ins and stand alone programs for converting color images to black and white. One of the best that I have found is Nik Software’s Silver Efex Pro 2. It is a stunning piece of software. Nik Software makes some of my favorite plug ins and I am not a plug in type of guy.

So if you are interested in making black and white photographic images, good images, the technology exists to do so. But I encourage you to learn the medium. Too many people are just taking the color out of their images. That usually does not produce a true monochromatic image. It is important to utilize previsualization to get the best results. You can read ‘Do You See What I See?‘ to find out more about that concept. I have begun using black and white imagery more and more in my wedding photography business. It really fits my fine art, photojournalistic style, and there is a timeless nature about that you cannot beat.

Gary Miller

Eye Candy and Brain Veggies

Also posted in digital photogarphy, fine art photography, philosophy, photography, photography techniques | Tagged black and white photography, fine art, fine art photography, monochromatic, photojournalism | 1 Comment

Ode to Black and White Photography

By gmiller | Published August 19, 2011

When I began to learn photography it was all about color for me. In fact I looked for images with lots of bold color and then used a slide film that would make them even more saturated. At the time my influences were Ernst Haas and Jay Maisel. You can read more about Haas in my post ‘But You Have to See in Photography.’ I dabbled a little with black and white but that was only when I took a basic darkroom class. I used black and white film and worked in the darkroom just like everyone else did when learning darkroom skills. At the time I did not take it very seriously and it was more of a vehicle to learn basic techniques and then to move on to using the color darkroom.

It wasn’t until I entered graduate school that I found the joys of working in black and white. I am not sure how the transition happened. A few years before I became more and more interested in photojournalism and documentary photography. I began looking at the classic work of the Farm Security Administration (FSA.) This is the group of photographers that did some stunning documentary work around the United States during the depression era. They were originally conceived just as a vehicle to record the state of the country for the Federal government. But the photographers that were hired were some of the best and most artistic of the day. This group included legendary photographers Dorothea Lange, Walker Evans, Gordon Parks, and Arthur Rothstein. For me this was the height of photojournalism in America. All of their work is in black and white and it really helped to create the ideal form for me. When I entered graduate school I had already begun using black and white film as part of my documentary work. At the time it was a very pure style and my photo hero was Sebastaio Salgado. You can read more about him in my post ‘Why We Photograph.’ In graduate school I began to pursue more of a fine art direction and then applied it to a documentary photography approach. At that time all I did was black and white. I processed up to 40 rolls of medium format film a week, made countless contact sheets, and many prints. After doing this for the better part of three years I was totally absorbed in the black and white world.

When digital came around I began to experiment with it. I bought my first digital SLR camera in 2000, just as I was finishing up graduate school. At the time I wanted to learn more about digital photography because I knew that it would be the next big thing. But I did not do much black and white work with digital. At the time it was difficult to make a good black and white digital print. Also, converting the color files to monotone was not very good either. It wasn’t until the past few years with advancements in printing technology and computer technology that I have returned to black and white imagery and printing.

You will probably start seeing me post more and more images here in black and white. My dream is that some client will let me produce a complete wedding album in black and white and in a classic photojournalistic style. Fortunately, many people are rediscovering the beauty of this artform.

Gary Miller

Eye Candy and Brain Veggies

Also posted in digital photogarphy, fine art photography, philosophy, photography, photography techniques | Tagged black and white photography, classroom, creativity, digital photography, Ernst Haas, fine art, fine art photography, Jay Maisel | 2 Comments

Is Landscape Photography Dead?

By gmiller | Published August 18, 2011

monument valley, az

So the question came up in my mind today, “Is landscape photography dead?” I saw several landscape images posted from Monument Valley, Arizona and that triggered my reaction. I used to be a landscape photographer. When I began photography, that is what I mostly photographed. I would go on trips, hike around, and come back with loads of photographs of nature, vistas, trees, and plenty of sunrise and sunsets. I used to get up very early in the morning and hike around in the dark, setting up to be ready for that sunrise. I remember that one time I was in Moab, Utah and I got up at around 2:00 AM to drive to Monument Valley, 188 miles away, to be there before sunset. It is a lovely drive as you can tell from this website, but it wasn’t so scenic in the dark. I worked hard and I enjoyed it. And I have some beautiful images in my closet somewhere to prove it.

This cycle continued for several years. Then one day I was walking around in a town somewhere and I passed a gallery. I popped in and there on the floor was a lovely print of some aspen trees photographed in early morning light in the snow in a very symmetrical, abstract way. It was a very nice image. It was the exact same image that I had from the same place. And then the light went on. Anyone can take these landscape images that I took, or Ansel Adams, or Edward Weston. Maybe not as well, or printed with such high skill, but these images are mostly there except for the occasional ‘miracle’ shot. Some of these places have not changed in hundred or thousands of years. And how creative can you be with a landscape. I felt betrayed by my photography. I wanted to find out who took that image in the gallery and sue them for copyright infringement. I wanted to sue them for photographic infringement. They had invaded my joyful photo world and soiled it. But then I realized that I did not own that image or any other landscape image that I had worked so hard to take.

After that day I switched to doing more creative, artistic, abstract images that were unique to me and my style. I moved more into documentary style work. I found myself drawn to areas where I could produce unique images that you could tell were mine. It was the start of my fine art journey and the beginning of the development of my own personal style. Before I was just copying what had been done. But now I was coming into my own vision as a photographic artist. If you would like to read more about finding your personal style read my posts on ‘Finding Your Own Artistic Style‘, ‘Following the Path or Not‘, and ‘Stand Out From the Crowd.”

Now I do not think that landscape photography is dead. Maybe it has just bored people to death. I still think that it is a wonderful genre, but it never satisfied me completely. Everyone and their brother has the same pictures from the same places. That is not adding to the world aesthetic. I know that now, and so do you. Now it is your turn to discover where you are in your art flow and to go add your own personal vision to it.

Gary Miller

Eye Candy and Brain Veggies

Also posted in digital photogarphy, fine art photography, philosophy, photography, photography techniques | Tagged Ansel Adams, art, digital photography, Edward Weston, fine art, landscape photography, personal vision, vision | Comments Off

Why We Photograph

By gmiller | Published August 18, 2011

$ocean_beach_san_fracisco_ca_photograph$

ocean beach wall, san francisco, ca

One of the things that I enjoy the most about writing a blog is that every Monday I post a Photo of the Week. These images are normally taken from my backlog of photographs. I must have at least 400,000 images by now just sitting around in slide pages, negative sleeves, CDs and DVDs. In fact I have so many images that I rarely get to see many of them. One of my goals is that when I post an image on Monday that I will go back into my archive to find photographs that I have not seen in some time.

The image above is from a series that I did around 2001 called ‘Man vs. Nature.’ It was a fine art series of black and white images that showed natural landscapes that had been invaded my something manmade. It was not designed to complement these manmade additions, but rather to criticize them. But I have never been much of a social commentary type of photographer. I have always wanted to be one of those image makers that could photograph horrific events and then show them to the world saying “look at how terrible this is.” That is why my photo heroes have always been mostly photojournalists and documentary photographers who peeled backed the niceities of the world and exposed them for all to see. That is one reason why my photography heroes include Sebastaio Salgado and James Nachtwey. If you are not familiar with the work of these photographers you really should research them. Salagado is a brilliant documentary photographer who has been photographing the poor people of the world for the past 25 years. His work is haunting and beautiful in its lighting and composition. Nachtwey is one of the leading war photographers in the world. Much of his work is downright disturbing to look at, but beautiful in composition. Both share a great deal in common. Both are making social statements, but wrapping it up in exquisite photography.

There are many reason why people photograph. The two photographers I mentioned above do it to enact social change. I do it more for the aesthetic of it. That is why I have always admired social change photography, but I have not been able to do it. I am attracted more by the forms and shapes of things and not the things themselves. I am draw to people more as graphic elements. I am more of a formalist. You can read more about this in ‘Photography Movements- Formalism.’

But besides this I think that an important reason that people photograph is to remember, to preserve memories. Whether we intend to do it or not, every photograph is a slice of a fraction of time, preserved. That is important. When I look at the image of the the beach above I can still remember standing there composing the picture, waiting for the light to glissen off of the sand just right, and feel how that wall was breaking the perfection of nature. I photograph to preserve memories because I believe that is important.

Gary Miller

Eye Candy and Brain Veggies

Also posted in digital photogarphy, fine art photography, philosophy, photography, photography techniques | Tagged black and white photography, California, fine art, fine art photography, Ocean Beach, San Francisoc | 1 Comment

Something Old, Something New in Photography

By gmiller | Published August 14, 2011

old latch

new latch

This familiar saying reminds me of photography. Photography is old, relatively old. It was invented in 1839 simultaneously by Louis Daguerre in Paris and William Henry Fox Talbot in London. You can read more about this in ‘We Will Always Have Paris‘, and in ‘Photography and What is Art?‘ Little has changed in the principle of photography since it’s beginning. Lenses still operate the same. The components of aperture, shutter speed, and ISO (or film speed) still control exposure. You can get more details in my post ‘Photography’s Holy Trinity‘ and it’s related posts. Composition and content have remained pretty much unchanged. The use of photography has changed since it’s birth. When it was first invented it was for very utilitarian reasons. People wanted an easy way to record the world around them. Not for pleasure or art, but for scientific and historical documentation purposes. It took some time for photography to grow to encompass fine art, social change, and information provider. But the roots of photography are still here today. If we were to bring back Daguerre or Fox Talbot and hand them the latest digital camera they would still be able to make a good image. The soul of photography and much of it’s components are the same.

On the something new front we are in the midst of the second great evolution in photography. The first great evolution, after the creation of photography, came in 1888 when George Eastman, of Kodak fame, introduced the world to flexible film and a smaller, handheld cameras for the masses. Prior to 1888 photography existed in what I like to call the ‘plate’ age. This is when photographs were produced on either metal plates, glass plates, or paper. The glass plate technology won out because of the three media it was the only one that could easily and accurate produce multiple copies of a photograph from a single negative. Eastman’s revolutionary cameras and flexible film changed photography greatly as he opened it up to the masses.

The next great evolution came around 1990. Digital cameras existed before this, appearing in the mid 1980′s. But it took the introduction of a little program called Photoshop to kick start the digital age that we are in now. Today, photography is linked to cutting edge technology and just about every month or two something new comes out; a bigger megapixel camera, a higher quality lens, HD video capabilities, etc. But even with all of this new stuff going on photography, for the most part, is still learned the same way that has always been. This is rather unique and I like the fact that it gives photographers a very close connection to the past as we forge on into the future. The computer technology and digital camera sensor has really opened up possibilities to photographers and digital artists that we have never had before. It’s a brave new world.

Gary Miller

Eye Candy and Brain Veggies

Also posted in fine art photography, philosophy, photography, wedding photography | Tagged digital photography, fine art photography, history, houston wedding photographers, Louis Deguerre, photography history, wedding, wedding photography, William Henry Fox Talbot | 1 Comment

Taking Photographs with Love

By gmiller | Published August 14, 2011

jacques-henri lartigue 'avenue du bois de boulogne, paris' 1911

“I take photographs with love, so I try to make them art objects. But I make them for myself first and foremost – that is important.”
Jacques-Henri Lartigue

This quote goes back to the turn of the 20th century and photographer Jacques-Henri Lartigue (June 13, 1894 – September 12, 1986). He is an interesting character. Lartigue was born into a wealthy family in a city just outside of Paris. At this time photography was seen as a very respectable hobby for both men and women of wealth. Even though there were ‘professional’ photographers around who did mostly portrait or documentary work, photography was seen as an appropriate leisure time activity for the rich. I think that they liked the scientific and gadgetry nature of it and probably enjoyed owning beautifully crafted cameras of wood, brass, and fine optics. I am sure that these wonderful cameras drew much attention, just like they still do today. I was photographing a waterfall in Vermont one time and I was using a handmade large format, 4″ x 5″ film camera. The camera was made of rich dark cherry wood and gold plated hardware with a leather bellows. I had it set up on a tripod and I was waiting for the light to get just right. In that hour or so I must of had a dozen people approach me and ask me about that camera. I didn’t mind even though I was ‘working here people.’

Jacques-Henri Lartigue started taking pictures when he was 6 years old. He would record the people and events of his life. And since it was a privileged life the world we get a glimpse of includes the sites of Paris, beautiful country homes, and the fine toys and leisure time that was available to the upper levels of society. It is like Lartigue was a little spy into the high society world of turn of the century Paris. In his day no one really knew Lartigue for his fine photographic work. In fact, he was not discovered until he was 69 years old. This lead to a photography spread in Life magazine in 1963 and his fame grew. Lartigue is well known for his images of automobile races, airplanes, and fashionable high society women. His most famous images were from the period of the early 1900′s.

The quote above reminds all of us engaged in photography that we should be doing it for ourselves and for the joy that it brings. It is too easy to get caught up in the commodification of this art form. I am not saying that it is bad to make money as a photographer or artist. It is just that money should not be the driving factor. You passion for your art, whatever it may be, should push you on. In some previous posts I have talked about the importance of passion for an artist. Read ‘Reflections on Reflections, ‘Looking at the World Differently‘ or ‘Photography and What is Art?‘ for more information and inspiration.

So no matter if you are a business person, or an auto mechanic, or a visual artist you should do it for yourself first. Without passion you are just going through life asleep.

Gary Miller

Eye Candy and Brain Veggies

Also posted in fine art photography, philosophy, photography, photography techniques | Tagged art, fine art, Jacques-Henri Lartigue, love, paris, photography | Comments Off

Photographing Effective Portraits – Richard Avedon

By gmiller | Published August 14, 2011

marilyn monroe by richard avedon

“My portraits are more about me than they are about the people I photograph”. Richard Avedon

Today’s photography quote comes from master photographer Richard Avedon. He is one of my all time favorite artists and photographers. Avedon was a great fashion and portrait photographer. If you do not know much about him you can learn more about him at the Richard Avedon Foundation. Avedeon was the person who really changed the world of fashion photography to the much freer, looser style that we have today. He pioneered shooting fashion on location, mostly in Paris. The models became part of the art and not just mannequins. There was movement in these images, flowing clothes, and exotic environmental settings.

Avedon is probably most famous for his portraits and their unique style where he has his subject sit before a stark white paper background. Most of his portraits were photographed in black and white using large (8″ x 10″ and 4″ x 5″) and medium (Hasselblad) cameras. He developed this into what is still commonly referred to as an ‘Avedon’ style portrait. His portrait subjects rarely smiled. Most of Avedon’s portrait work is fairly gloomy and depressive. Instead of capturing people at their best moments he tended to catch them at their most real. So that is why I find the quote above so intriguing.

Art is a reflection of the society around us. And the work of an artist is always a reflection of them and their emotions. We always bring something to our photographs, whether we intent to or not. I think that as people grow and become better in their work, they let more of themselves be revealed. The best artists are the ones who revel in this and don’t try to hide their true selves or worse, try to be something that they are not. Avedon’s work resonates truth when you look at it. The image above of Marilyn Monroe is great mostly because we see the real person, the tragically fragile person that she was and not the glamourous, always together, cartoon that she normally portrayed. Avedon’s words and his work always remind me to be true to my art and true to my subjects. Being a documentary photographer it is important for me to capture life as it really looks and moments that are true. If someone notices me while I am photographing I will wait until they go back to their natural state. I don’t want posed images. I want reality with a creative twist.

Gary Miller

Eye Candy and Brain Veggies

Also posted in fine art photography, philosophy, photography, photography techniques | Tagged fashion, fine art photography, Hasselblad, portrait, portraiture, Richard Avedon, vintage photography | 1 Comment

What is Beauty in Photography?

By gmiller | Published August 14, 2011

jackson pollack painting

The age old question of ‘What is Beauty’ has launched thousands of discussions and heated debates, and not just in the arts. The ancient Greeks set down the current definition of Beauty as it relates to aesthetics. They spoke of symmetry, balance, and design that made a person, an animal or an object pleasurable to the viewer. This is the idea of innate beauty. Think about a beautiful sunset or the shape of a tree. It is easier to see this aspect of Beauty in things other than people. With people there are other frames of reference involved. The aesthetic concept has always been difficult to separate from the societal concepts of beauty. Hence the saying “Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.” This saying is believed to have originated in Ancient Greece during the 3rd century BC. In this case they are not referring to innate Beauty but rather to the idea of subjective beauty. This comes up a great deal when you are speaking about art. One of the areas that I am very interested in is what I call ‘the subjective response of the viewer.’ This is how a person reacts when they see and experience some artwork. Now that does not mean that a piece of art has to be deemed ‘good’, or ‘pretty’ to be effective. Many people define ‘good art’ as a work that moves the viewer somehow, makes them react, whether it is positive or negative. Alfred Stieglitz, the great American photographer and art patron, was the first to show Van Gogh’s work in America. When this work was shown in Europe many people were sickened, literally sick to their stomachs, after viewing the work. Now that is what I call a visceral reaction. But today Van Gogh’s works sell for many millions of dollars. So what has changed. People, society, frame of reference, have all changed. That is a subjective area. I don’t think that the ancient Greeks would have liked modern art. It cuts against their definition of Beauty. Their definition of Beauty is a very formalistic one. I have spoken before about the idea of Formalism in ‘Photography Movements – Formalism‘ and in several other posts. This comes up a lot here on the blog. But the Greek’s definition is very based on design, line, form, and composition. Even though modern art has these elements, they are not as easy for the average viewer to follow. So many people have looked at more modern forms of art, beginning with the art movements of the 1920′s, like Surrealism and Dadaism, and they don’t get it. Because they are looking at art as just a visual medium and not seeing that there is something deeper there; an expression, a message, a feeling. You can read more about abstract art in ‘Photography Movement – Abstraction.’

So we need to expand our definitions of art and beauty and photography is right in the midst of this. What makes a photograph or a person or a place beautiful can be different things to different viewers. See if you can separate innate beauty from subjective beauty and then use it in more effectively in your work.

Gary Miller