Black and White

An experiment.

By Thomas Feng

November 4^th, 2018

I shot my first ever roll of black and white film using Ilford HP4 Plus at 125 ISO box speed. It was fun experimenting with it, and seeing the results made me reflect on photography.

Contrast

Contrast is essential in black and white photography, and it forces a shift in perspective from shooting a moment in time to painting a monochrome scene.

Line and Shape

Without colour, the power of geometry comes out. It starts with the straight lines of a background to the contrasting diagonals and the placement of surrounding objects. In the photograph below, I love the pentagonal zones of stacked trash and the contrast of the graffiti'd trucks with the plain asphalt concrete foreground.

Textures

Black and white emphasises the contrast in textures: the painted walls on the left versus the plain walls on the right; the evenly stacked bricks on the edges with the jagged, bumpy cobblestones; the solid plastic chair swallowed by lines everywhere else.

Architecture

Buildings and photographs become timeless in black and white. The only time ticking in the pictures below are of the Bryant & May clock in Richmond, and I love how the afternoon sun creates shadows on the facade and brings out more shapes on the building. I think the photo below is one which only suits black and white.

Mood

A strength of my photography I think is the mood and atmosphere I capture, and the medium of black and white film only accentuated it further. A portrait takes on extra nostalgia.

And the excitement of the stadium is shown below with the faces of the kids, the players running onto the field, the crowd standing waiting for the match to begin. With colour out of the equation, it is easier to focus on the expressions on faces and the overall atmosphere.

Imagination

My favourite aspect of black and white photography is that it makes room for the imagination of the mind to wander.

Naturally, we want to fill the scene with colours which alters what we each see drastically. The many greys from the gradients, colours and patterns of my jacket bring out an intimacy in the photo which otherwise would have been overlooked.

I want to be more creative with my photos and my writing. It starts with taking more risks and adding different styles to my repertoire. It also requires more time and effort on my end.

I thoroughly enjoyed the challenge of black and white film and I will shoot more in the future.

Let me know what you think of these photos or about a time when you tried a new method of doing an activity you do all the time by contacting me. I'd love to hear from you.