Building on the basics of Shutter, Aperture and ISO to control Exposure.
Hi <<First Name>>,
I hope you had a chance to experiment and perfect your use of White Balance last month. So, this time we're going to look at another white - Black and White.
Most cameras have a mode or picture style that lets you capture Black and White images (B&W) instead of color. Sometimes this is referred to as monochrome. I bet that you worry about using it since you're not sure how it will come out. Or you have used it and chimped* at your monitor and saw a washed out whiteish, greyish image and switched back to color. I Hope to be able to inspire you to take another shot at it.
*Chimping: the act of looking at your monitor every time a picture is taken, pointing at it and uttering - "Ooh, ooh, ooh."
The first thing to consider is how much contrast there is in the scene. This is sometimes hard to do until you learn to stop looking at the colors in your scene. For a good B&W image you need to have a high amount of contrast - the difference between the light in the tones in the image.
A few years ago I discovered a way to learn to distinguish a high contrast image versus a low contrast image by using my iPhone. Using the native camera app, click on the filters and select Mono, Tonal, or Noir. Use your camera to visualize the scene. Use this mode to analyze and learn why a particular subject shows more or less contrast.
If you found the scene and like it, then take out your Big-Boy camera, set it to B&W and take your shots.
Black and white photos in your home add interest and your family and guests will be drawn to it because it has become unique. In the old days, it was the only kind of photography that there was. In fact, there were studios that would 'colorize' the B&W image. I have several of these from my Mom and Dad's era.
There are also several things that you can do with your B&W photos that make them fun.
This high contrast color shot loses some of its interest in that everything is green, grey or brown. Kind of a blah shot.
Once you take out the color, what remains are the darks and the lights, which take on unique forms and lines.
When all you have is dark and light, make it Black and White.
Was this helpful? Is there something that you want to hear about? Send me a note and I'll try to get the topic developed.
Cheers,
Michael
Coming in April will be the spring class at Manchester High School. - Class info and sign-up.
You will learn the basics of photography, including camera controls, how to compose a good image, the making of tack-sharp photos, practical lighting applications, and much more. We will review camera controls available in most dSLRs. They control Shutter, Aperture and ISO. Also, other things that affect camera operations. If you have a point-and-shoot camera and want to learn these features to make a buying choice you will learn a lot, but your hands-on participation will be limited.
Bring your digital camera (with instruction booklet) to class. Also bring photos you have taken saved as JPGs on a flash drive.
Topics covered:
Modes on the dial (Letting the camera do it), Exposure (Getting the right balance), Shutter speed (Freeze / Blur), Aperture (Depth of Field), Controls (On the camera, On the lens), Tethering and WiFi, Other Settings: Bracketing / HDR, Lenses, Lighting, Composition, Media storage, Gear, Care, Post Processing, Sharing
There are assignments from class-to-class:
Day-1 - Take Freeze Motion, Blur and Pan motion shots
Day-2 - Take shallow and deep depth of field shots
Day-3 - Take bracketed exposure shots
Day-4 - Take back-lit, side-lit shots
Day-5 - Take Zoom and Macro shots
Day-6 - No assignment, they can sign up for my monthly news-letter for more exercises.
These photography tips newsletters are free. I do take quite a bit of time to prepare them though and if you would be so kind as to once in a while donate a couple of bucks for the cause it would be greatly appreciated. Thank you so much.
