Digital SLR Photography - UK (2019-07)

Wo rd s : JORDAN BUTTERS

I

F YOU’REA REGULARreaderthenyou’ll

know from our recent Beginner’s Guide to

Colour (Issue 150, May 2019) that there’s a

lot of theory and psychology behind colour

in photography. Colour can set the mood and

tone for an image, even before you’ve had a

chance to take in the content and subject

matter within the frame. Certain colours can

dominate a scene, detracting from others,

and even change how your viewer feels when

they look at the image – it’s a very powerful

tool. So, why would you even consider

shooting in black & white when you have the

power of colour at your fingertips?

Black & white is the purest form of

photography. It’s a classic aesthetic and

approach that’s as old as the artform itself.

Stripped of eye-catching colour, images

have to rely on their other strengths to

succeed. Light, tone, composition and

contrast become more important than they

already are in colour photography. Not so

long ago colour photography didn’t even

exist – thankfully, in the age of digital we are

able to choose whether we prefer the colour

or black & white version of an image

post-capture – it certainly wasn’t always this

way. Black & white images have the power

to compel, and hold on to the viewer’s

attention for longer – they are often timeless

in their very nature, but not every image will

work in monochrome. Learning how to

identify which scenes and images are better

when void of colour is as important as

knowinghowtocapturethemin theright

way, and under the right light in order to

boost their impact.

In this month’s Beginner’s Guide, we’ll

cover everything from the very basics

of learning how to see in monochrome

and capturing exposures in their raw form,

to processing, editing and refining your

images, as well as specific techniques and

approaches to try across a range of subjects

and genres, from landscapes to portraits and

much more in between. You won’t master

monochrome overnight but, backed by

knowledge and practice, you’ll soon be

waving goodbye to muddy grey

monochromes and saying hello to punchy

black & whites that don’t need colour to

catch your eye. Read on...

MONOCHROME

THERE’S MORE TO BLACK & WHITE PHOTOGRAPHY THAN SIMPLY TAKING AWAY THE COLOUR. IN THIS

MONTH’S BEGINNER’S GUIDE, WE’LL SHOW YOU WHY MONOCHROME IS A SKILL WORTH MASTERING...