It’s all there in Black and White

When reviewing my photos I’ve taken to converting them to black and white, often with pleasing results.  Even with landscapes where one is often captivated by the colours spread before our lens, conversion to black and white simplifies the composition  and sometimes reveals dynamics within the shot that went unnoticed in the riot of colour.  Instead of being bedazzled by the colours, the eye sees the values within the shot.  It’s the habit of many painters to view their paintings in black and white to determine balance within the painting, by judging the values. With abrupt or frequent value changes a b/w photo retains its energy, as in the first two.  In the last photo movement emerged as I find my eye swaying from side to side within the mountain shadows. But with more subtle value changes I find that the simplicity of black and white often encourages calmness and contemplation.

My own backyard

Sunset on Danny’s Cove on Lake Superior

Otway Sound, southern Chile

Glacier Alley in the Beagle Channel at the tip of South America

Buildings of La Boca, Buenos Aires in black and white

Chilean Fjords

Chilean Fjords

Morning on the Beagle Channel at the tip of South America

Laguna del Inca in the Chilean Andes

Jake’s Sunday Post is: Simplicity