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10/08/2012 01:07:55 AM · #1 |
Seeing the the entire top ten and about half of the entries in the candid portraits challenge being black and white de-saturations of images that were taken on sensors that capture RGB got me wondering, what is it about black and white images that make them so much more popular for portraits than images shown in their native color?
Is there some power in a palate limited to what silver salts could reproduce? Is it referencing the masters of the past for whom that was the only option? Is it separating art from reality and distilling what we normally see with our eyes into a formal structure of tone and shape that satisfies a desire for more pure form and structure that only black and white can satisfy?
Help me understand. |
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10/08/2012 01:10:50 AM · #2 |
| I think it's because B&W strips away all other distractions and helps us to just focus on the person. I'm just a dumb ol' electrician though so it's just a guess. |
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10/08/2012 01:11:06 AM · #3 |
It's the candid not the portrait that must be bw
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10/08/2012 02:11:12 AM · #4 |
| It is an interesting question, I tend to agree with what Brennan said about our desire for more pure structure and form. Also the fact that a b/w image is not like how we would see it, somehow makes it more agreeable and maybe more acceptable. |
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10/08/2012 03:47:14 AM · #5 |
'CANDID' PHOTO IS USUALLY A CAPTURE OF THE MOMENT (IN TIME) - LIKE A PHOTO FOR A NEWS ITEM OR OF INTEREST TO SHOW THE EMOTION AND DRAMA OF THAT MOMENT...
I FEEL LIKE MOST PEOPLE THAT A BLACK AND WHITE IMAGE, WOULD SHOW A MORE DRAMATIC FEELING, THAT STANDS OUT AMONGST OTHER IMAGES, LIKE COLOUR OR POSED IMAGES. COLOUR WORKS JUST AS WELL AS LONG AS THE IMPACT AND EMOTION IS SHOWN... |
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10/08/2012 04:05:38 AM · #6 |
Originally posted by chazoe:
I think it's because B&W strips away all other distractions and helps us to just focus on the person. |
my thoughts exactly |
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10/08/2012 05:09:25 AM · #7 |
The previous straight Portrait challenges had one and two black images under the first ten.
I do beleive that DPC is [on the pendulum-swing theory] currently more inclined to be artsy than at other periods in it's past, and the percentage of B&W images will be higher because of that.
Mostly, though, I agree with PH, that the "candid" part of the challenge forced most shots to have busy backgrounds, which can be made less important by going B&W.
Alas, in a similar vein as  chazoe, I'm a bean counter, so discount that into the future[s] of my debit and credit commenting journal.
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10/08/2012 07:37:56 AM · #8 |
i dont know the reason. i do know that whenever i do a photoshoot of an individual or couple they always gravitate to the B/W processing over the color versions.
something about stripping the image to its foundation and being able to just see the person. |
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10/08/2012 09:50:50 AM · #9 |
Just taking a wild guess here, but I think b/w help lends a timeless quality to an image. Also, having seen how Polaroids and other colour images fade and discolour over time, whether due to exposure to the sun or just crap-quality processing (Kodak red-orange-brown tones, anyone?) I can easily see why clients might prefer b/w.
ETA: My entry for the Candid Portrait challenge could have easily survived the transition to b/w, but in that case I felt that doing so would have robbed my subject of a crucial element of his being. So kept it in colour.
Message edited by author 2012-10-08 09:55:57. |
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10/08/2012 10:23:18 AM · #10 |
There could be several reasons:
- street photography is most of the times B/W, probably because it produces less visually appealing images and in B/W the lack of colorful scenes is less important.
- B/W is useful to get rid of distracting colors in the scene.
- B/W is much more perceived like artsy stuff, and candid photography is often considered more artsy than, for instance, landscapes.
As for my entry, I loved both version, color and B/W, but B/W helped to focus on the beautiful girl. |
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10/08/2012 10:26:16 AM · #11 |
| To me B&W adds more "soul", makes it more intimate... |
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11/10/2012 10:38:09 AM · #12 |
| Perhaps I'm missing something, but it seems that If there is a "must" way in any expression of art, it's time to pack one's bags. Some portraits (talking more on the creative rather than the stock studio type) look better in color, others look better converted or in b and w. Why not just try some both ways and go with what feels/looks best to you? Or, do both. |
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11/10/2012 10:41:58 AM · #13 |
Originally posted by dbove:
Perhaps I'm missing something, but it seems that If there is a "must" way in any expression of art, it's time to pack one's bags. Some portraits (talking more on the creative rather than the stock studio type) look better in color, others look better converted or in b and w. Why not just try some both ways and go with what feels/looks best to you? Or, do both. |
a rather astute observation really |
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11/10/2012 01:11:59 PM · #14 |
If you ask me, it all has to do with how human vision works. BW is satisfying in a way color can never be, because color carries with it emotional impact & also cultural symbolism. BW is just pure brain. Color starts getting the mind involved.
Art has always been full of rules. The Renaissance introduced many new rules for art, among them something called single-point perspective. Rules are useful. Breaking the rules instantly creates new rules. If you do nothing but follow the rules you're painting by numbers. It's good to know the rules, never good to follow them without question. |
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11/10/2012 01:51:42 PM · #15 |
Originally posted by dbove:
Perhaps I'm missing something, but it seems that If there is a "must" way in any expression of art, it's time to pack one's bags. Some portraits (talking more on the creative rather than the stock studio type) look better in color, others look better converted or in b and w. Why not just try some both ways and go with what feels/looks best to you? Or, do both. |
+1 |
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