It’s time to catch up with Picture Black & White and theme five (of six): nature. It did seem counter-intuitive to be focusing on nature when there is so much vibrant color to be found, but we found the beauty, the detail, and the texture of what is in nature to be so beautiful in black and white. I have particularly loved the community-building in the class and want to remember some of the lovely compliments people have given me about some of my images, so I’ve included a few here.
The Sky is the Limit: We often wait for sunset to shoot the skies above for the glorious colors, but when you’ve got a monochromatic mind all you have to look for is depth, texture and light.
Storm clouds about to cover up the blue sky and sunlight.
- That is just stunning.
- Very dramatic!
- Beautiful! I love when the light hits the clouds like that. Great image!
- Love the contrast in the clouds!
- i LOVE this in b&w!!
- Fabulous storm clouds!!
- Spectacular! Love all the tones in this!
- So many layers! Great contrasts.
- wow. what depth!
- sensational!! love all the layers and how the sun lights that one puff of cloud ~ awesome : )
- wow that is one fierce sky!
- Love the branches in the foreground. Pretty!
- Love the feel of this!! magnificent ~ love how you framed this! : )
- Wonderful contrast! Love the little berries!
- Very cool shot
- I really like how the light sky divides the frame… just beautiful!
Grounded: Perhaps it’s the unexpected angle, the curious perspective or the feeling that it evokes. Use the ground as your muse. Explore, discover, connect with the earth under your feet today and see what happens!
Enjoying this lovely little droplet in post-processing.
- poetry!
- oooh! Stunning!!! That focus is amazing!!!
- wow, fantastic light and focus!
- oh wow soooo beautiful!! :-))
- the droplet is perfect!
- Gorgeous…just love that little drop!!
- That water droplet is like a hidden gem. Great capture.
- Absolutely amazing. Love what looks like an entanglement between grass and the clover.
- Beautiful b&w, love your focus and of course the water drop
- beautiful! love the angle here with the droplet of water….
- This is gorgeous! Frameworthy for sure!
Clover in my backyard
- I love seeing the little hairs on the clover. Nice!
- Love the focus and light!
- Beautiful light and detail!
- love the light :-)) and how it brings out all the charming details :-))
- this is so pretty!
- love your photo! the light is amazing.
- Such fabulous focus, lovely tones!!
- I never knew clover had the fine little hairs on the leaves. Great detail!
Lens on Landscape: Take a look at the landscape around you and look for magnificence, splendor, glory. Consider shape and texture balance and of course lights and darks. Get lost in your landscape today.
It was fun converting this to B&W since my reason for taking it originally was the fall foliage. I used an HDR-like filter to bring out the contrast.
- I like the way you’ve captured the dense foliage… I’ve tried this and it’s harder than it looks… great job.
- lovely details and composition. great bw capture :-))
- looks like a path to somewhere lovely
- i love how the road keeps it all in control. just wonderful.
Getting Intimate: When the tiniest and seemingly insignificant things appear larger than life in our images, we are drawn in and even enchanted. There is a magic and mystery that lies beneath what is usually obvious to the eye. Revealing something poetic of the inner workings of nature can be so creatively satisfying.
- Great macro! I love the wispiness.
- Such beautfiul wisps!! Great capture!
- so delicate and lovely!
- like fireworks! beautiful … : )
- Ahhh – delightful!
- Love all the wispy parts!!
The Growth Process: How can you frame the growth process in nature in a way that somehow distills what can seem intangible? Black and white shots that we find in nature today can help us to focus more on the gesture than anything else so watch for a twist, a turn, a bend, a bow or anything that shows that process.
Gerber daisy before it unfolds its petals
- oh such great stuff. love all the interesting details in here :-))
- Awesome! I love this. The light and lines are great.
- stunning macro!!
- amazing … such wonderment all about us! great photo! : )
- This is wonderful! Love the little droplets of water on it and all the beautiful tones.
- Gorgeous, love the light
- OMG – the detail on this is fantastic!!!
- amazing light and texture – love it!
- great and awesome light shining on these buds :-)) pretty cool all the details
- So delicate
- Love the hairy little things.! Beautiful light.
- this pretty much took my breath away … amazing. : )
See previous Picture Black & White posts: graphic elements and light, texture, and messages.
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What a neat way to acknowledge the good you’ve accomplished. A wonderful way/place to create that is a reminder when things might be looking dark. Thanks for the idea. I need to spend more time here … gee whiz … now that Behind the Scenes is over and I didn’t get here much! I’ll be back. ;->
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Beautiful photos Naomi! I really love bw, but sometimes it can be hard to choose to take photos in bw (analogue, with film…) but I almost always like a bw better when it comes to print it and hang on a wall. It is more rewarding with bw in the long time. Bw last for ever!
Marie
Beautiful and Stunning. The view in black and why is always peaceful and beautiful. And you captured each pictured, so beautifully. Great post.
Thank you so much for such wonderful words. I’m happy you are following along too!
Breathtaking, dramatic, stunning. There is something unforgettable about a black and white image. It creates a mood of mystery, curiosity, of emotions and feelings giving life to a scene, a moment, an object. It becomes a timeless piece. Beautiful post. As for the Texan sky during a rain or a storm, totally spectacular! Thanks for sharing your world. Best wishes to you and your family.
Your writing is magical! Thanks for reading.
Inspiring love all the processing great work
i love looking back at your picture b&w photos. they are so beautiful!
You have captured such beauty in nature! I love the “wow” impact that I get when I look at your beautiful black and white images!! They are all simply stunning!
truly amazing photos. how funny, one of the girls in my art group asked just yesterday if I preferred color or black and white photos and I responded color w/o even thinking. now I’m not so sure!
I was the same way. I still prefer color, but this class taught me to notice so much more in an image… texture, shadows, lines, etc.
What lovely black and white photos…somehow when the color is stripped away, the images become more profound. Beautiful!