Photography

[Rey]

Yes, I like black and white, but I also like color too, depending on the subject. I think black and white looks good on subjects that are old, almost as if the photo came from another time. I also like the mood a black and white photo can present. There is just something about the absence of color, combined with the grainy look of the film, that can create a whole feeling or mood. I often notice this when looking at photos of the past. It almost seems like history has no color. Do you think of nice bright colors when you think about the depression era of the 1930’s? No, in those hard times, when looking at photos now, it seems that world was a colorless and depressing place. But if you find those rare color photos from that time, you will see of course, the colors were all there. Even some of the clothing styles of the time were quite colorful. Here is link that I found to some color photographs of the era. It is amazing to see this time in color:

http://blogs.denverpost.com/captured/201...1943/2363/

But, back to black and white. When I took the photography class, all those many years ago, of course we used real film. There were no digital cameras yet. To keep it easier to learn, it was all in black and white too. I remember mixing all the chemical potions together and pouring them in the trays. Putting the film on the enlarger and exposing the photographic paper for just the right number of seconds. Rocking the tray back and forth with your paper in there and watching the image magically appear. It was quite a task just to get the end result, a picture. The moody grainy effect I mentioned above was also much more apparent with real film, than a digital photo today.

I remember when the first digital images appeared. There at the school, in the mid 80's, there was a digital image of Einstein on the old Apple II+ computer. The monitor was that green monochrome, the resolution I think 279 pixels across. It did look like him though, with a little imagination. But digital photography is here to stay now I think, and I like it alright, it is a lot easier to work with. But maybe a little more sterile? My black and white photo a few posts back has none of the film induced moodiness I have been talking about. I know you can add some with programs like photoshop, but then it becomes a bit more, I don't know, artificial?

"Can all this machinery making modern...", Ha, you get the idea.

-Rey