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06/19/2004 12:56:08 PM · #1 |
Can anyone give me their "work" process that they find creates their best B & W work (that was not originally shot in B & W)? There are some really exceptional B & W's here, and then some that just look dull and flat. I would like to hear some of the "tips" or important things to know when doing this. Thank you for helping!
Edit: I have PS Elements and Digital Image Pro 9 for post-editing.
Message edited by author 2004-06-19 12:58:05.
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06/19/2004 01:10:16 PM · #2 |
This is a good question.
I convert many colour images by simply clicking the B & W button in Apple's iPhoto.
Occasionally, when I'm already editing in PS Elelements, I Remove Colour. C'est ça.
I've tried converting to Grayscale (Elements) and got, what I perceive to be, the same results.
Some people, I know, feel very strongly about a certain way of conversion, claiming that there are ways to retain more grey tones via one way than the other. If, in fact, this is true, I need to be enlightened. :-)
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06/19/2004 01:36:09 PM · #3 |
While this is not my work flow, I have a feeling it should be. Petteri Sulonen gets better results than most.
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06/19/2004 02:33:40 PM · #4 |
Sometimes I split the image to RGB channels and use one of the channels (often the green) for b/w, or recombine two of the three channels and desaturate.
Does anyone know how to get good printable black and whites? When I print my attempts, they often look way too dark.
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06/19/2004 02:38:36 PM · #5 |
I do it in various ways until I like the image.
First, I simply try the Desaturate tool in Photoshop.
I often use the channel mixer, and move the sliders around until I get the tones I want.
Another great way is to switch to Lab Color, select the Lightness channel, and then convert to Greyscale Mode, rejecting the other channels. This can be done in RGB as well, by selecting the channel that looks best.
Another way I just learned (but knew all along) is to use the Hue/Saturation window and desaturate each color separately, adding lightness or darkness until the photo looks good.
Just experiment. I will often try all of these methods until I know which method I like best.
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06/19/2004 03:54:53 PM · #6 |
In Digital Image Pro I use the Black and White option - but sometimes I use the hue & Saturation - THEN i adjust contrast and brightness until I like it.
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06/19/2004 04:04:29 PM · #7 |
Take a shot at night, outside with limited light. This will get you a natural b/w effect with no gimmickry.
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06/19/2004 11:26:29 PM · #8 |
Two easy ways to convert to black and white in Elements give quite different results. Image->Mode->Grayscale just discards the color information (convert back to RGB if you want to tint the image). Remove Color keeps the image in RGB mode and tends to map the greens to a bit darker gray. Neither gives you any control over the mapping from color to grayscale.
David's suggestion to desaturate each color separately in the Hue/Saturation window works well in Elements. It is a bit cumbersome, but you can get really fine control if you learn how to use the controls in that window. There are other ways too, with varied results and degrees of control.
Once the photo is grayscale, it is a lot easier to make natural-looking adjustments using the standard tools since you don't have to worry about color matching.
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06/20/2004 12:37:34 AM · #9 |
The way I used to do it was using the channel mixer and checking the grayscale box. The you adjust the sliders till you get what you like. I always tried to keep the total of the three sliders around 100% to keep a nice tonal range.
The way I use almost exclusivly now is using the Digidan method.
1) Create a hue/saturation layer using the color blending option.
2) Create another hue/saturation layer using normal blending and desaturate the master all the way to the left.
3) Go back to the first hue/saturation layer and slide the hue slider slowly back and forth.
You will have great control over the tonality using this method. It's much faster than the channel mixer method too!
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