The magic of black and white photography never ends! It is, even today, the most distinguished form of photography that has a charm and depth about it that no colour photographs can probably achieve. Also, the feeling of timelessness it gives makes it exceptional.

In fact, black and white photography is more aptly called monochromatic photography. The only colour channel used is grey. Such a monochromatic picture has a frame built with a range of grey shades, varying in intensity and depth. The topic of monochromatic photography in photography courses asks for a unique method of treatment and approach to photography. It has to be learned to be mastered.

It takes a very creative perspective for capturing a monochromatic photograph. One needs to think beyond colour and focus more on elements such as tones, textures and shapes to create a meaningful and impactful picture. This skill is developed in a photography school, under expert guidance.

Let’s proceed to learn some tips to achieve great results in monochromatic photography.

Seek clear contrasts.

In monochrome, while choosing a subject, ensure that there is enough contrast that can be played with to your advantage to create sharper black and white photos. Deeper contrasts often bring greater definition to the portrayal of an image.

Let shapes bring definition.

If your subject in the frame has very apparent identifiable shapes and clear bordering or leading lines, they can bring a lot of definition and gravity to the image clicked. Do not miss such frames as they are the most suitable ones to shoot in the black and white mode.

Find a good range of tones.

Given that monochromatic pictures are built with variations of the grey shade, clicking a frame with great scope for getting a good range of tones will be the best thing to do. Tones play a huge role in capturing excellent pictures especially when the subject is either mostly light toned or mostly dark.

Bring out the textures.

You must have seen images in black and white like dry leaves with prominent veins or tree barks with highly defined patterns. There are many such subjects you can choose where there is rich texture involved. Getting the shot in the right natural light setting or depending on that strong side light to bring out the definition can create wonderful images with a play of textures. They make the frame very artistic in most cases.

At Hamstech Institute, photography students are guided by expert professionals who motivate and guide them to master specialized photography modes like black and white photography.

Monochromatic photography is so impressive that at times you may even develop a greater liking for this specific craft and find better creative potential in it. In all, it is a wonderful and essential skill for any photographer to acquire.