As a model portfolio photographer I love black and white photos. I believe they tell the naked truth of the model and take away the distractions.

 

I love black and white photos of people. In my opinion, the best portfolios include at least a few black and white pictures. The contrast is sharper with this type of image and you can pick out more details in the face as well.

 

These images concentrate on the person’s features rather than the colors at work. Just my .02 worth -- Bob

 

Cameras have made great strides in progress over the years. Today’s digital camera can capture the finest details and the most delicate ranges of colors. However, sometimes regular black and white photos are far more interesting than color prints especially when you consider the subject.

 

Do you take a lot of pictures? Well, if the answer is no, then you should start. Pictures are the keys to great memories. I noticed that I did not start taking oodles of photos until I had my first child. Suddenly, I wanted to preserve every single pose. Some of my favorites are black and white photos.

 

These old-school pictures have a certain presence all their own. It's almost like they show a deeper emotion. There's something to be said about the lack of color. It allows us to see beyond the mere cosmetic factor. This is why my wife and I love to shoot plenty of black and white photos of our children and family.

 

How many photos do you have in you album?

 

Are you keeping it updated as the years go by? Remember, you won't ever get them back. It's probably time to start preserving those special times. When I flip open an old photo album and glance through the variety of black and white photos from my parents' childhood, I am simply amazed. For some reason it's hard to remember our parents were children once too.

 

We only know them as the adults they have become. I want my children to be able to do the same thing with me one day. So far my wife and I have accumulated around a dozen photo albums. We have two or three of them made up of black and white photos. Some people actually prefer black and white photos since they tend to hide imperfections a little better. However, now days the digital cameras are so widespread and simple. So many photos are taken and downloaded to our laptops.

 

This is much less expensive if you don't print them out.

 

In this modern world of color, it's rather hard to come by classic black and white photos anymore. If you've not dabbled in this area of photography, I suggest that you at least give it a shot.

 

 

Too much color can make the onlooker lose focus. Sharp black and white photos provide focus and clarity that is often lost when there is a lot of color in the portrait. You may think that you want a color photograph to set off your ice-blue eyes but a black and white photo will work even better because of the sleek contrast.

 

Also, you can always opt to have some color remaining in the photographs. Many professional photographers create amazing images through adding a little color to black and white photos. This really targets the focus of the subject.

 

For example, one of the most striking wedding images is a black and white photo of a bride and groom. The bride is holding a bouquet of roses. The photographer adds a deep red hue to the flowers and leaves the rest of the photograph in its original state. This creates breathtaking contrast that will impress and inspire.

 

So if you want to focus on your eyes, you could still have the classic, clean feel of black and white photos while still incorporating the light blue color of your eyes as well. The process works the same as in the wedding example. The focus of this image will be eyes instead of flowers.

 

I enjoy the color-sparse images so much that I often take my digital images and create black and white photos out of them. There are endless options available in Photoshop. You can quickly learn how to navigate through the program to develop black and white photos that suit your subject as well as your tastes.

 

Some artists are inspired by the process as well. Creating drawings of people is often best started from black and white photos. The details tend to be sharper and the image is far easier to recreate, especially if the artist is using charcoal or pencil.

 

Fashion and glamour models generally love color ( art modeling screams for bw ) but sometimes certain subjects call for black and white photos.

 

With today’s digital camera and programs like Photoshop, you can experiment with color or the lack of color if you so choose. Even sepia tone is gaining attention again.

 

Even if you are not a fashion or artistic model take some great black and white photos of your family and loved ones. If you would like a preview of some extraordinary black and white photos, you can always surf the web and find a spectrum to choose from. The quality is not lost in black and white photos, it's merely the color.

 

After dealing with both sides of the coin and working with scores of female models, I don't think I will ever prefer color images over black and white photos. On the other hand, I love colorful outfits when doing model portfolios ... How ironic!

 

Bob

bobpardue.com