Tips for Better Black and White Photography

Hello folks. Better black and white photography requires working on one’s ability to see in black and white. What we do from an intent, revisualization and post processing for colour will not work for black and white and indeed the all too common response to a less than satisfying colour image in flipping it to monochrome will bring an even less satisfying black and white.

Human Limitations

Our human eyes, what I refer to as the Mark One Mod Zero Eyeball has evolved to see in colour and in daylight. Our night vision is basically awful because in low light we lose saturation in colour which is where our eyes are biased. While our cameras will use contrast detection for focus, humans are less interested in contrast than in colour, followed by the detection of movement.

Black and White photography IS the realm of contrast, not colour saturation and so we must work to see in black and white. This is hard as it is contrary to our eyesight development. But we can do it.

When you squint, you reduce the impact of colour and see contrast more effectively. You also reduce the dynamic range accepted into the brain.

Contrast and Limited Dynamic Range

Seeing in black and white involves seeing contrast first and minimal dynamic range as a secondary. In this example image by Edward Weston, we see high contrast and limited dynamic range. This image has punch and is compelling because it has so much contrast and limited dynamic range.

These simple guides of seeking contrast and limited dynamic range help you see images (previsualization) that will work well as black and white.

Film vs Digital

The reality is that the film of the day that was used had only 5-6 stops of dynamic range at all. Today, our camera sensors commonly have 12 stops of dynamic range, which is massively beneficial for colour images. Also the sensors see in colour with two green receptors, one red receptor and one blue receptor in each quad of the pixel array. Your camera, like you, cannot see in black and white. Thus to make compelling black and white images we all have work to do.

In addition to working on finding subjects that work in black and white (lots of contrast, limited dynamic range) we cannot forget that the image must have a story, and for that you must have an intent prior to squeezing the shutter.

Post Processing

When we look at the work of Ansel Adams or Yousef Karsh, we find images, made from prints, that show enormous fine detail and range, while still maintaining the contrast so critical to black and white images. This happened entirely in the darkroom. It did not happen in camera although those photographers understood the limits of film and made exposure decisions based on where they wanted the different tonal ranges to fall. Understanding this in depth requires the investment of your time to learn the Zone System and then to learn to apply it to a wider dynamic range availability than when it was first laid out. This is powerful knowledge but beyond the scope of this article.

Those photographers printed their negatives and used the processes of dodging and burning to manage the tonal range of the final print. Adams may have composed and taken four or five images on a single outing, but he would spend days in the darkroom on a single print.

You have tools like Lightroom Classic, but using LrC for monochrome is different than for colour because you want to maintaining enhance contrast using tools like Curves and manipulating the luminance of colour ranges using the tool that is called HSL when working with colour and is called black and white when working in monochrome. You will note that the tool has the sliders labelled with colours because the core image IS colour.

In the post processing is where you use the curves, whites, blacks, shadows, highlights and black and white sliders to achieve the perspective of wider dynamic range without losing contrast, but you do so digitally instead of chemically. Consider the following two images, showing dynamic range manipulation, although these were done in chemistry rather than digital.

In both images, it is contrast that makes them striking and the photographer has extended the dynamic range in the chemical darkroom. You may also notice that there are no pure whites. This decision adds to the ability of the image to pop

In Summary

Better black and white photography requires the photographer to learn to see in black and white. A common mistake is to follow guidance to change the camera display to monochrome. This is actually detrimental to the committed photographer because what happens is an arbitrary application of a generic monochrome conversion to a colour image. If you really want to learn to see in black and white, learn to see, don’t become dependent on a lousy parlour trick.

Thank you as always for reading. Please submit a comment or a question. If you shop at B&H Photo Video, please do so through the link on the page as it pays me a small commission. Until next time, peace.

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