Travel Photography – In Monochrome

As I was surfing through the net, I came across some works from some the leading snappers. You might have doubted how black and white pictures make an impression sturdier than colour snapshots.

When clicked with full passion and knowledge - black and white pictures can successfully tell a story and suggestively convey attitudes not seen in colour images. Yet, not every theme may be appropriate for capturing in black and white.

Here are few pointers to select when to you go for monotone images instead of colour &how to make a picture that leaves a long-lasting impression.

• B&W or color - Select to go for black and white when colour in the subject is not important, but you are trying to convey a mood, a story or an action related to your subject. A good illustration is a portrait of an elderly person, where you are trying to focus the wrinkles on his face but you are not very interested in the colors of his clothes.

• Subject Selection - Black and Whites work well in photographing portraits of people, people at work and in documenting an action or a process. It would also work well in comparatively darker surroundings where colours can’t be highlighted, high-contrast states and in places that have an old-fashioned feeling. Roadside chai stalls, lively markets in thin lanes are some good samples.

• Process your photograph - Use more innovative processing methods such as ‘Channel Mixer’ in Adobe Photoshop, where you have a superior control in deciding how the final image should look.