Color vs. B&W

Color is just another technical aspect a photographer can employ to create an image. Just as a photographer can utilize light or alter the focus of his lens, color is a tool that can be used to highlight a certain aspect of the picture, provoke a response and add another dimension to the work. Despite these advantages, I prefer black and white photography (at this point in time anyways). Color can certainly be visually alluring and fascinating, but I think it also has the potential to distract from the subject matter.

Photographer Andri Cauldwell tells us, “to see in color is a delight for the eye but to see in black and white is a delight for the soul”. Seeing in black and white is a delight for the soul because it is something we do not experience all that often. We, as human beings, are not capable of seeing in black and white on our own. It is only with a camera that we are able to transform our world of color into a world of black and white which, in some respects, makes the art of black and white photography more valuable and appealing. Without color, the image is more “raw”, forcing the viewer to focus even more on what has been captured and consider the reasons for doing so. I think that with black and white photography, the subject matter tends to be where the emphasis lies but with color photography, the color has the potential to capture this emphasis.