3 Techniques to Enhance Your Photos in Black and White

You probably practice black and white photography because it fits perfectly with your character and your way of seeing the world. But have you ever thought about categorizing black and white techniques to channel your creativity? Have you ever tried to define specific themes within this realm to better define your style?

In this article, I will give you three techniques for black and white photography. They will allow you to better incorporate this creative photo technique. You will be able to avoid unnecessary questions at the time of shooting and processing. You will become more efficient, thereby becoming more creative because you will have more time to spend on details and design.

Landscape in black and white of Arches National Park in US.

This article will help you understand how to implement a new tool in your photography toolbox. By implementing it, you will make your photos even more interesting and instill in them true meaning.

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The Origins

The advent of digital photography has allowed more people than ever before to practice photography. This means of expression has been democratized. Everyone is now able to take pictures with a mobile phone, a tablet, or a digital camera. Software has followed the same trend. It is increasingly easy to use and is available on all media.

In short, anything is possible, and anyone can do it.

However, taking good pictures has never been so difficult. Indeed, the offer is plethoric. Everyone has an opinion on equipment, development, and decisions made out in the field. Forums and websites are full of tips and tricks. The number of books on photographic technique is exploding.

Finally, everyone knows or thinks they know so much about this topic. But few photographers create good pictures. The reason? Too many techniques and too many tools kill creativity. Most photographers have this blank sheet syndrome. They have the knowledge and the equipment, but they do not know where to start.

This is one of the reasons I decided to create this blog about the photography approach.

Black and white photography is no exception to the rule. The literature on the subject is incredibly rich. Black and white photos are everywhere.

And yet, transitioning to only black and white is a real headache for many photographers. They do not know where to start. They test software and experiment using techniques without achieving an interesting result.

You may be one of those photographers. But if you are reading this column, you have identified your problem and want to find a solution. You have made the first step.

In my work as a professional photographer, I face the same problem as you. I cannot spend my time evaluating technical solutions for my business as a photographic artist. My time is not extensible. My days are only 24 hours long, just like yours. I have become very analytical and systematic in my photographic activity. And because of its reward, I have decided to share with you three techniques to build and create your black and white photos, so that you may also achieve success.

You may want to add your own. I never pretend to know everything. But at least you will have a starting point to better frame your black and white photos.

But before explaining them to you, I would like to go back to some essential points of black and white photography.

Why and How: Creating Black and White Photos.

Composing a Black and White Photo

The use of black and white photography should be a conscious choice for you.

When you take a picture in the field, with very few exceptions, your camera takes color pictures.

Even RAW files can be attached to a given gamut.

All photos taken by any camera are in color. It is your choice if they become black and white photos. However, when you compose a photo and if you want to turn it into black and white, you must think in terms of black and white. You must learn to speak its language.

The first step to building your photo is to compose it for black and white. I want to remind you that photographic composition means organizing the photographic elements of your scene in a harmonious way.

When composing for a color photo, you can afford to be forgiving and not rigorous. Indeed, color can be an illusion. It can easily hide mistakes. A color can catch the eye. It can catch and attract the attention of a person who will not notice your small mistakes in the organization of your composition. When you compose a black and white photo, you must be very rigorous and precise. Color is no longer there to hide and mask the imperfections of a photo.

This is the main reason why I like black and white photography. It forces you to think, to reflect, and to leave nothing to chance. Black and white photography is a real school that will teach you the meaning of excellence.

A black and white photo requires formalism to compose well. To properly compose a black and white photo, you must:

Consider the patterns present in the scene.
Look for possible symmetry.
Identify lines and shapes.
Study the sense of movement in the scene.

Visual Ambiguity

Before addressing the framing in black and white, it seems important to me to address an essential point that you must make to create photos that have impact. Your work will hold the attention of the viewer upon his first glance.

It is the concept of visual ambiguity. I will not go into the whole theory of the concept here, because entire theses have been devoted to it.

Simply put, visual ambiguity is the fact of interpreting an image in two separate ways. The same viewer can interpret and perceive the same image in two ways. He may see totally different things in it.

One of the most famous examples is the drawing titled "What's Inside a Man's Brain? At first glance, we see Freud's head. But when you look at it, you see a naked female body. Search on the Internet and you will find it. I advise you to search with the words 'What's On a Man's Mind'. The Internet is full of these kinds of images. Most of them are drawings.

Visual ambiguity is based on the very properties of vision, which intricately link perception, memory, and cognition.

They are also known as hidden, potential, or accidental images. These images pose difficulties for analysis and often present a challenge for interpretation.

The most important thing for you, photographer, is to remember that the visual ambiguity of your photos will force the viewer to analyze your photos twice.

It is simply perfect for photo art because every time a viewer takes the time to read one of your photos, they will establish a relationship with it. Isn't that what you are looking for? It is a method of building interesting photos.

You should try to create more photos that have a strong visual ambiguity. This way, your photos will be studied carefully and, above all, analyzed.

To build and create photos that have a strong visual ambiguity, it is enough that the main subject is only revealed by looking at the photo for a long time. This is the opposite of documentary or illustrative photography where the subject is seen in an obvious way, without analysis and interpretation.

Black and white photography is a perfect technique to build pictures with strong visual ambiguity. It is a technique that allows for interpretation to take place. By looking at black and white photos, a viewer will establish a link between the images and the photographer.

First, however, you will need to create visual ambiguity. You may need to create mysterious pictures, which are not readable at first glance. They must be interpreted in different ways.

Framing in Black and White

When you compose a scene, you choose all the photographic elements and organize them in a harmonious way.

The next step is to fit this scene into a photo. This is the framing process.

The choice of the framing is an essential step because you have chosen the scene according to your photographic approach. You have composed according to the harmony. The framing is what the viewers will see. They are not in the field with you.

I used to say during my photo workshops that the framing reinforces the composition and your photographic approach. That is why you must take exceptional care of it.

The photographic framing inscribes your vision and your signature in a finished scene. You may select to display your photo in a rectangle in the format 3:2, 16:9, 2:1, 22:9 or in the square format of ratio 1:1.

Your way of framing brings an extraordinarily strong element to the content of your photos whether it is the emotions you want to express, the messages you want to transmit, or the aestheticism you want to highlight.

Black and white photography is much more difficult and complex to implement than color photography. Indeed, in black and white, the elements of composition are less numerous than in color.

In a black and white photo, you only have 256 shades of grey, white, and black, whereas in a color photo you have millions.

In a black and white photo, you have light and dark areas. These are what create the contrast that makes black and white photos so interesting.

These are called “tones” in photography. When framing in black and white, the tonal elements can be vertical, horizontal, or slanted. You must choose them well and arrange them to create a framing that will give strength to your composition.

Another way to frame well in black and white is to use a frame within a frame. For example, a hole in the foliage of a tree can be used to show a landscape.

If you manage to mix vertical, horizontal, and slanted tones withing a framed photograph, you will produce an extraordinarily strong image because it will be easily readable.

The Photographic Language of Black and White

4 Tips to Help You Define Your Photographic Statement and Pursue Efficiency

A gelada male photographed in Ethiopia with my 'Back to Black' style.

Reason #5 for Defining Your Photographic Statement: Pursuing Photographic Intentionality

I am sure that when you look at pictures, you try to analyze and judge them. You may be using objective criteria as I had explained in other columns.

Objectively comparing different works is one way of looking at photography. It is well suited for photo contests and/or some social networks to make editorial choices. But do you think this choice is justified when you look at the artistic activity of another photographer and compare it with your own photos? Would it not be interesting and useful for you to add the dimension of the photographer's intentionality?

I define photographic intentionality as the process that progresses towards the creation of your photographs.

For me, photographic intentionality is more important than photographic analysis or judgment.

The idea is that when you look at photos, you don't just look at the result, but you also consider the process used for their creation. You will ask yourself questions about the history or the aesthetics.

I think that judging and analyzing a series of photos by ignoring the photographic intentionality is similar to having deciphered only half of the meaning of the photos. The rest of the images lie in the dark.

Don't you find this idea attractive and interesting?

Have you ever noticed that very technically weak photos had an extraordinary impact? I won't name names of any specific artists, but I have many references in mind. I can think of photos that are blurry, badly framed, with approximate colorimetry. And yet, many experts agree that they are great. This is simply because the photographic intentionality is very strong. The photographic statement is dominant and visible.

The photographic statement comes before the work. This notion of intentionality was born in the 1970s. This fundamental movement that questions the whole of contemporary art led to what we know today as the form of performances or ephemeral art.

Finally, the resulting photo becomes only a document factor attesting an action of the photographer. The photographic statement becomes the place. By defining it for your photographic activity, you will define your own photographic intentionality.

Now perhaps you may better understand why you should define your photo approach.

Tip #1 for Defining Your Photographic Statement: Analyze the Activities of Other Photographers

When defining your photographic statement, you should not reinvent the wheel. That would be a waste of your time. Other photographers before you have asked themselves the same question. Take advantage of it! Look, read, and analyze what they did with their photographic activity.

When analyzing another photographer's activity or photo work, first study their photographic vision. It should come through in their photos. Take a piece of paper and a pencil to write down your ideas. If this photographer has published books, read them. Browse their website if they have one. Proceed in the same way for identifying their photographic signature.

This will help you understand how to define your approach.

The other advantage is that you will enrich your photographic culture.

I'm not telling you to copy other photographers either. You must be inspired by them. You will pick up ideas, values, and ways of working to improve yourself.

Never forget that real innovations are rare. They require a lot of experience and talent. Most of the time, to create, we just collect a mix of different techniques, styles, and personal preferences to arrive at something new. But the fundamentals are not really new. This is how we progress to arrive one day at real innovation with an innovative approach.

Study not only well-known photographers, but also lesser-known ones. Analyze the activity of photographers who are both inside and outside of your theme. The process of defining a photographic statement is not tied to a theme. It is an intellectual act. The important thing is to acquire the reflex.

Why and How You Must Stepping Out of Your Photographic Comfort Zone to Create Interesting Photos.

Tip #2 for Defining Your Photographic Statement: Perfect It Over Time

Photographic time is long. It lasts a lifetime. It is not the time of a photo, a collection, or a project. It is a long process. Your goal is to one day achieve photographic excellence even if it seems impossible. But that is your goal.

It will take time to define your photographic statement. Its definition will be refined over weeks, months, and years. This concerns your photographic signature as well as your photographic vision.

This is quite normal. Since 2010, I have never stopped refining my own photographic statement. The general idea was there since the first day, but I have specified certain words and certain styles as time passed.

You will improve. You will evolve. You will no longer be satisfied with mindlessly browsing photos on social networks or in magazines.

You will gain your photographic independence. You will get better with time. This is what I've found when reading the biographies of many photographers.

This is also the path I follow on a daily basis. But just because it takes a long time doesn't mean you shouldn't start today. Every process starts with a first step. It is the most difficult to take. It is the most important. Then you must keep improving and keep moving forward. Little by little you will encounter joy and friendship. It is a rewarding experience to recognize your own growth as time passes.

You will reach nirvana when you are able to create a true photographic style. I have experienced this, and it was on that very day that I knew I had reached a real milestone.

Fine Art Collections in Color.

Tip #3 for Defining Your Photographic Statement: Choose a Maximum of 3 or 4 Styles

The definition of photographic styles will allow you to create your photographic signature.

That is to say, the way you will show the world around you.

You can choose high-hey, low-key, minimalist, dreamy, ethereal, etc. You can combine styles. For example, choose high-hey minimalist, low-key in color, low-key in black and white. The combinations are numerous.

You must choose styles according to your sensitivity and your soul. But define a maximum of only 3 or 4. If you choose more, you will lose yourself in the field of creativity. The photographic styles are also safeguards that prevent you from taking the wrong path.

For me, the culmination is when you manage to define a style that is unique to you. It's a style that no one else uses. That's when you'll stand out from the crowd and become identifiable.

It will take a lot of work. You must have experimented with many techniques. But believe me, this is a moment you will never forget.

Tip #4 for Defining Your Photographic Statement: Ask Others for their Impressions

In order to define your photographic statement, I advise you to first write it down and then to select 10 photos that you will have taken. Next, choose 4 or 5 people you trust, photographers who may or may not be in your circle. Submit your text and photos to them.

Ask them for their opinions. You must explain to them that you expect oral or written comments that contain honest constructive criticism. Do not settle for good or bad feedback.

The purpose of this exercise is to see if you are on the right track. Based on their feedback, you will make the necessary adjustments. Doing this is essential. Remember, you are creating photos for yourself to express the world. But you are doing it for an audience. You have to make sure that they are listening and especially receptive. This is the application of the principle of the virtuous circle of photography.

Some comments may not be pleasant to read, listen to, or encounter. Go beyond that. You need to take the essence of the comments that will be made to you.

When I submit collection ideas to people I trust, I take every comment seriously. I don't leave anything out. That's what keeps me going.

If you are an avid follower of social networks, you can also test your feelings on your followers. Not being a social networker at all, I won't be able to give you a method, but nothing prevents you from trying.

Although you define your photographic statement, its validation depends on the opinion of the outside world.

5 Steps for Developing a Photographic Mindset.

Finally

I hope this column will help you define your photographic statement if you haven't already done so.

It is one of the pillars of your business. If you don't define it, you will have little chance of creating interesting and meaningful photos. You will not be able to last in time. Don't forget that defining photographic statement progresses through two stages:

Your photographic vision.
Your photographic signature.

Your photographic statement will be refined over time. It is not fixed in place. It will evolve just like you. It will allow you to achieve that closeness to the photographic excellence for which we are each searching for.

I wish you a good trip.

This article will help you understand how to implement a new tool in your photography toolbox. By implementing it, you will make your photos even more interesting and instill in them true meaning.

Fine Art Collections In 1 Click.