“When you photograph people in colour, you photograph their clothes. But when you photograph people in black and white, you photograph their souls.” —Ted Grant
Black and white photos have been my favorites since I was a young and my dad let me use his Polaroid to take pictures. There was always B&W film in the camera and I was fine with that. It's all about expressions. My sister sitting on the couch looking not so happy about me taking her photo. Behind her, my dad sitting in "his" chair. Today, when I look at these photos, the brown plaid chairs from the 70s don't even faze me. It's the people and the time I remember. No other distractions.
Color can be the most beautiful thing in a photo, but it can also be a distraction. My portraits have always been about showing who people are, stripping away everything else to capture something you don’t get to see every day. I decided to make the switch to black and white portraits to embrace that nostalgic, intimate, honest feeling I love so much about those old family pictures.
In the photo below of Owen and Leo, you aren't paying any attention to the bright red sweatshirt or the orange specs of Fish Crackers in the air. It's all about the looks on their faces. Just two little boys enjoying some crackers.
Another advantage of black and white is fitting them into your decor. The photo below on the wall over the bed may not look as "fit in" if it were in color. The baby has a yellow shirt on and she has a blue one. In black and white, it's just beautiful tones of black to gray to white. It's not distracting, just relaxing to look at.
Please don't wait.
Whether you choose to print in black and white or color, take the portrait of (or for) your loved ones. It's so important to have them to hand down to your children and grandchildren.
I'm flexible with time and am available to come set up wherever you are (in a mask) or you are welcome to come to my beautiful studio.
Stay safe. Keep the faith.
Please call/text or email me and we can talk further. P 315.221.9903 E mary@marycd.com
Thank you for reading my blog. See you soon.