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Tips to shoot great black and white photographs
Black and white photography has always enjoyed a seat on a pedestal by serious photographers and for good reason! Apart from the fact that it conveys a sense of nostalgia, B/W photography (or more generally Monochrome photography) is more subtle, interpretive and surreal. In fact, several photographers consider it as an art form and have invested their careers into this.
But, getting started in B/W photography is easy. Given below are some tips to shoot great B/W photographs.
What to shoot
B/W photography is less about the technicalities of shooting and more about the subject. These photos generally tell a story, highlight an emotion or expresses a feeling. So, try to think of what you want convey through this photo while composing the shot, rather than randomly shoot at an object.
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It's all about contrast
One of the main drawbacks of B/W photography is that it doesn't have the vibrancy of colour photos to draw the users attention. However the contrast in the photo more than makes up for it. Though you can change the contrast settings post processing, look for subjects where there is a natural contrast in the surroundings that adds a lot of character to the photo.
Hide and seek
Shadows and lights also play a major part B/W photography. In fact, professional photographers spend a considerable amount of time setting up the lighting for the shot.
As beginners though we cannot afford expensive lighting equipments, we need to be conscious about how light 'plays' on the subject. This can provide you some very interesting photo opportunities.
Shoot in colour
Though most cameras have an option to shoot in grayscale (or B/W), shooting in colour gives you more control over your shot. Use a basic free photo editing tool (such as Picasa or Paint.Net) to convert it to B/W later.
Lower the ISO
Lowering the ISO reduces the noise in the image. This needs to be kept in mind while shooting B/Ws because digital noise is more apparent. However, this can also be used in a creative sense. So fiddle around with the ISO to get the right amount of noise you want in your photo.
Hope these tips will help you get shooting in B/W. Until next time, keep clicking!