Recently I had someone make a comment about the inherent value of color over black and white photography. I was surprised at the comment because I consider both of them to be valuable with their own unique qualities.
I photograph most birds in color, because God made each bird unique, including the differences in their hues and markings. That is easier to see in color and a viewer can take his or her time examining what is unique about each bird. It also is often easier to identify the birds when they are in color. I want to see the red markings of a red-shouldered hawk or a red-winged black bird, the blues of a threatened Florida scrub jay, but even in bird photography there are times when a black and white photo takes the picture to a different level.
As with many photographers, a black and white takes me back to the many hours spent in a small bathroom or closet glued to a timer, tapping a film can filled with D-76 on the counter, and that magic moment when under a red light, an image appears through a mixture of Dektol. But even more, I love black and white for what it reveals. When the viewer isn’t looking at color, but at the texture, the contrast, and deeper into the world between deep black and glowing whites. It is a study of shadows, white space, a world that we do not normally see with “our eyes.” When I see a black and white photograph I tend spend time with the image, study it and look for what’s hidden. Black and white tends to draw me into a different space.
Then there is the mood and emotions they can illicit. One of my friends considers them “broody,” while her daughter loves them for the light and shadows. I want to reach out and touch the textures, or step inside the frame and walk through the mysterious landscape. I want to see everything it holds.
In portrait photography, taking out the color can prompt the viewer to look deeply at the face and see the emotion in each line. The viewer may see something in the way the eyes shine or the way it seems as if the subject is about to tell some secret. Black and white portraits reveal a face laid bare and often let the beauty shine through in a different way than color can.
Black and white photography allows the viewer into the photograph in a different way than color does. Sometimes it’s what the viewer brings to the experience that determines how they interpret the photo. But of course that is true for every photograph.
