Originally more affordable, on the technical plan, than the color for the realization at home of argentic editions, star of the photo-report and the street photographs, today the monochrome continues to attract the followers of the digital technology.
Every software indeed contains its lot of specific tools for the black and white and the number of plug-ins dedicated keeps increasing.
Then, the black and the white, the latest fad or the real artistic choice? We propose you in this case a complete study of this practice photoschedule at the same time through these technical aspects, both in the shooting and in the treatment of the file, but also through these artistic aspects.
The black and the white proceeds of a voluntary choice on behalf of the photographer. According to what criteria? Can all the photos be converted in his monochrome version? Looks for what the photographer who chooses the black and the white? Are there various styles? Finally, every domain of the photography can be handled in black and white and if yes, how.
Before approaching all these questions, let us make a small overview of some big references of the monochrome picture.
2. A little history
If the first color photo appears to the end of 1860s, it will be necessary to wait about hundred years before the color does not supplant quantitatively the black and the white. The photography began, for technical reasons, its history in monochrome, certain artists are going to seal the link.
So Brewed, Boubat, Cartier-Bresson, Doisneau, Izis, Ronis puts the ranging-poles of a humanist and Parisian photography and are going to write it most right-hand pages contributing to bind for years the genre which we qualify as " photo of street " to the black and the white today.
It is the whole legend which builds itself and is engraved on our reports drawing a monochromatic capital, bouillonnante of life, rich in diverse atmospheres.
It is the vision at the same time historic, social, poetic, popular that is going to participate in a certain image not only of the French capital, but also the photography in the World.
At the same time, on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean, Walker Evans draws, dumped after picture a portrait of America in crisis (that of the 1929). Two decades later, Robert Frank will affect a vast project over several years and a Leica of a " visual study of a civilization " which will give rise to the cult book " The Americans ".
3. Evolution of the practice
Since the practice however evolved and other domains which until now seemed less convenient to a practice black and white, see since a few years, arise from monochrome productions which reinvent the style.
In portrait, since Nadar, number of artists practised this kind of photography with talent. Among the most known, let us quote Richard Avedon, Jean-Loup Sieff or more current Anton Corbijn which also excelled at this domain and are often quoted as references of a kind widely practised today.
In landscape, Michael Kenna's works and of the one who was his assistant Rolfe Horn, both followers of the long installation and the at the same time sober kind, very contrasted in the extremely rigorous composition, developed a style which makes numerous emulators today. The black and the white in long installation stresses the strangeness and the unreal atmosphere of pictures.
Today the black and the white diversifies and invests even other domains where nothing supposed that he would gain at it his legitimacy. And nevertheless … Nick Brandt or Laurent Baheux shows us how much the animal photo wins in force in the monochrome evocation of the wild world. Finally, the possibilities of contrast and work on the texture also return the black and the very interesting white for the macro.
Then certainly the color is more spread today, but the black and the white keeps its aura and always seduces number of photographers, finding in this style a way of getting to the basics of the expression of their art.
Black and White
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