There are two ways to create black and white photography: Shoot in black and white from the outset or edit color photos to convert them in production. There are benefits to both techniques, but it’s editing that gives you more liberties and control to ensure that your photos turn out perfectly.
If you shot in black and white before the digital era, you were stuck with the resulting photos—editing wasn’t much of a consideration. But, thanks to an abundance of digital software options like Create, it’s easier than ever to learn how to use black and white effects, and to steadily improve with them.
With so much possibility at hand for any given image, we consulted with a few experts about when (and why) to turn a color photo back to black (and white). Here are some lessons for photographers at all skill levels to think differently, and perhaps more critically, about producing black and white images.
1. Less Is More
Eliminating distractions is the key to shooting black and white, advised Ryan Mills. Mills proudly shoots with an old camera, a Sinar F 4×5 rail camera that shoots large format film. He shoots a wide variety of photos, but it’s with portraits that his black-and-white prowess shines through.
The equipment he uses requires him, and his subjects, to remain patient and calm—his subjects must sit still and hold their poses for some time while the shot is set up and taken. Yet, it also reinforces the need for intense focus on one thing. Try to avoid including other objects that can appear “camouflaged,” as Mills put it.
Still, the charm of many portraits comes from unstaged shots. A short delay between when Mills hits the button and when the picture is captured produces some wonderfully candid images of children’s restlessness.
“It creates something different” in how it presents people, said Mills.
2. Unlock What’s Missing
Portrait master, Erika Huffman, fell in love with black and white photography from an early age. She was drawn to the tones. “I’m thinking in black and white” on a shoot, she said. “I don’t remember things in color.”
When photographing a person, Huffman said, it’s as much about showing emotion and expression as demonstrating what’s not there: “Everybody can appreciate a beautiful sunset, but taking a picture of a sunset is never going to be as beautiful as taking a picture of a person.”
You don’t have to reserve your black and white format for portraits or candids of people, though. “Follow what feels right,” Huffman preached. The key to taking a great photo, she said, isn’t about lining up the right person or location, it’s a reflection of the practice and commitment that poured into it.
3. Concentrate on Shadows
“Pay attention to your shadows. Black and white really requires shadows,” Mills cautioned. Is it too bright? Too dark? Mills has worked with color photography, too, and understands which colors work better in black and white.
He started out with film, in color, and confesses that he “didn’t understand black and white” at the time and “thought it looked ugly.” However, once he invested himself and witnessed the impact that black and white can have on certain subjects, he became a believer in the art.
Beyond basic lighting, the skin tone and other physical features of subjects will affect the look of the final product. For example, pale skin often looks overexposed in black and white. Mills is working on a black and white project that follows up with the same young models each year, exploring the changes in their appearance as they age. The elderly, whose faces are etched with time, can have great impact in both color and black and white photographs.
When shooting portraits, study your subject’s complexion. Aim for texture in your photographs: It’s little details like freckles, laugh lines, and crow’s feet that tell the stories of still portraits.
If you’re ready to transmute your creations into the beloved black and white, Shutterstock Create‘s got everything you need. To begin, find an image from Shutterstock’s image library within the Create tool, or upload your own.
If you use the Shutterstock image library, simply type in keywords to find your favorite image. Click Download, license the image, then select Edit in Create. This will drop you right into the tool.
To find images inside Create, click Images and type in keywords to search our infamous stock library, or click Upload to select your own. Whichever route you take, your black and white options remain the same.
Once the image is on the canvas, click Effects, then scroll to the Black and White category. Here, you’ll find classic Black and White, Super B&W, Journo, and Silverscreen. Each of these options will adjust the lighting, shadows, and focal points differently. Know that you can always layer the same effect more than once, or layer different effects on top of each other.
If you need a couple more options, scroll past this category to the Camera Look section. Infrared, Toy Camera, and Mercury are also non-traditional (but oh so cool) black and white effects.
And lastly, if you want aspects of your image to be black and white without taking all the color out, simply scroll to Focal B&W in the Area section. Each option will have you adjust the intensity and fade as you see fit.
All of the above images were edited using a unique effect inside our tool. With the right subjects, shadows, and focus, you can take color images back to black and white basics.
Happy editing!
For more on all things black and white photography, be sure to check out:
License this cover image via dubasyk.
