Venturing into the world of ...

[DOrtiz]

Hi Guys!

I've decided to venture into the world of B&W. Ironcially I was experimenting with some of my color images and decided to give it a try and something about them captured me. Who knows .. maybe it's just a phase, but I'm hoping anyone here can shed light on this style of photography. My wife is set on color-color-color and says NO-ONE will buy B&W.

That said, here's a sample of my 14 year old daugher -- critique is most humbly welcome.

http://dortizphoto.com/pictures/portraits/IMG_3675a.jpg

Thanks in advance for your valued time and opinions.

Regards,
Dave
http://dortizphoto.com (http://dortizphoto.com/)

[davebud]

Very Nice, I think with Black and White props are most welcomed. IE the Silver jewelry dancing in the black and white photo add the element to this picture.

[DOrtiz]

Hi Dave ...

Very Nice, I think with Black and White props are most welcomed. IE the Silver jewelry dancing in the black and white photo add the element to this picture.
Thanks for the kind words my friend. This is a whole new area for me and I'm told just because it's B&W doesn't make it any easier. I do however, like the smaller file size. :)

Here's another one I call, "Mother and Son."

http://dortizphoto.com/pictures/people/momson.jpg

Any tips on B&W photography will be most helpful and appreciated.

Regards,
Dave
http://dortizphoto.com (http://dortizphoto.com/)

[DOrtiz]

This was my son's band during a Christmas concert.

http://dortizphoto.com/pictures/events/concerts/band02.jpg

Critique is always welcome.

Regards,
Dave
http://dortizphoto.com

[MTalley]

Speaking to your daughter's picture, I've found that B/W often decreases the in-focus background clutter nicely. This has advantages outdoors, too.

The third one from the concert really pops in B/W. The white shirts and completely black background conspire to focus your attention where it belongs. I think the B/W lends a special atmosphere to the picture.

[DOrtiz]

Hi Malcolm...

Thanks for the feedback and observations. This is an area quote new to me, but one which captured me suddenly and I honestly can't explain why. I've noticed the B&W images are far smaller (in size) than their color counterparts and I supppose is a good thing.

However, with new styles of photography undoubtedly come new challenges. That said, do you (or anyone here) have any tips as to what mindset one should be in when shooting for B&W?

Also, I've seen (online) numerous programs for transfering images to B&W but I think PS or PaintShop grayscale should be just fine -- I could very well be wrong here. Infact, someone even suggested shooting in RAW mode for greater range relative to B&W post-processing -- what's your take on this?

Thanks again friend.

Regards,
Dave
http://dortizphoto.com (http://dortizphoto.com/)