Every time I reveal a portrait in black & white my dad says the same thing... "Don't do those black & white ones... we have color now."
It's funny and cute, but it's not even a question to me.
In case you haven't noticed from my portfolio, I love color. I love it when color pops off the picture and when families choose colorful clothes that compliment each other. But I also love the drama, or the simplicity that a black & white photo can bring.
I found the perfect example the other day:
That is what it looked like SOOC (straight out of camera) on my computer. I wasn't super excited about it, so I started changing a few things.
I fixed those under eye circles, since it was such a close up. The eyes were the first thing that jumped out at me, so I wanted the focus to be on them. I also softened the skin a bit and tweaked the color to give a creamy texture.
I liked it, but it wasn't as awesome as I was hoping for... so I added a bit more warmth...
I still wasn't overly excited about the results, so I decided to try some black and white. I went with a black & white preset that I love...
But it was
not the right choice for this picture. I wanted something softer... something that brought my eyes out and made my skin silky smooth.
And voila. When I saw this, I knew I'd found just what I was looking for in this picture. The background was no longer a distraction and everything seems peaceful, calm, and clean. I feel like I can take a deep breath and relax.
It's one of my favorite things about photography... the creative touch. It's fun, rewarding, and lets my clients know that I spend quality time on each of their images to make sure that everything is perfect.
