Black and White Photography tips:
Here are some tips on how to make a beautiful Black and White photograph. I live by this when shooting Black and White.
1. When shooting B&W photography it’s important that you learn to see in black and white. Remember you don’t have color to draw the eye when shooting B&W photography, so you have to find shapes and tones to compose your photo. Study the colors and study the your environment picture all the gray tones and picture everything in B&W. I will keep it short and sweet. If you have any others please share on the comments below.
2. Always shoot in color, it is important that you always shoot in color. Most cameras out there have a B&W setting DO NOT USE IT. If you shoot everything in color you will have more control of the gray scale in post production once you convert it.
The Man In White
3. Always use the lowest ISO setting possible. This will get rid of the noise in the photograph and you will end up with a great clear photograph. If you are looking for noise do it in post production. I like to add noise to (some) B&W but I always do it in post production that way I still have a very high resolution high quality photo.
4. Always shoot RAW, most DSLRS shoot in RAW (and any camera now a days), again this gives you more control of the image in post production thus making a better B&W photograph. If you don’t have this setting on your camera, don’t worry, you can still make an amazing B&W photograph shooting JPEG.
5. Contrast is very important when shooting B&W photography, it sets the mood it, it defines your lines, it brings out shapes and shadows you would never be able to see in color photography. Play around with it and make it work for you.
Did I miss any? Please leave them in the comments below.
Always remember that practice makes perfect, and always have fun out there.
very nice images, and great tips…love B&W!
Great post and loving your site!
Looking forward to exploring further.
Thanks for your advice, love your site.
Thank you everyone, Im glad you find this useful :)
Love the site, great tips and really enjoyed the photos. I do have a question about the photo with the tree, what caused the rings?
Thanks and keep up the good work.
Thank you Bill, Im not sure what Rings you are referring to..?
These photos are so captivating. I’ve always been drawn to dead trees in the fog, so that’s my favorite.
Thank you Jessica
great work!
Great tips.. Black and white is my preference. I always shoot in color.. it is great to know that other people see things in black and white..
Bravo Edin. You continue to inspire & amaze!
Perfect,Sir….No more comments for me….
Thank you Thiha
I do black and white photography and these tips are exactly what I follow mostly. Nice article.
Thank you Waheed, Im glad we share the same passion.
You can shoot in B&W as the RAW always retains all the color data.
Thank you for the comment Dean, you have to remember lots of people shoot jpeg.
Filters can be used to tremendous advantage in black and white, too.
Great article, I enjoy your work!
Thank you Michael, very true, filters can make a huge difference.
First if you really want to learn how to shoot B&W get a used film camera and shoot B&W film. The inability to change your mind and the cost involved in each frame will train you to see much faster than fiddling with photoshop trying to make a mediocre color photo into something you perceive as better as a B&W photo.
The only other comment I can make is if you shoot in raw and use the b&w mode on your camera you are actually taking a color photo the preview is black and white but when you open the photo in a raw editor if it doesn’t come up in color go to the saturation slider and slide it to the right and bingo it’s color.
Worthy advice… Thank you.