Black & White for Weddings?
May 15, 2018 04:39:04 #
May 15, 2018 17:01:48 #
Here's my take. I shoot in color, absolutely LOVE black and white and do convert several that I think would be perfect in black and white, but in my area....I'm the exception. While going through photos to select for the album, I often get "Oooh, I like that one, I wish it was in color." So, I end up using the original, because that's what they want for their memories.
Maybe it is because I had my first darkroom when I was 12, but I would prefer all my artistic photos to be in black and white.
Maybe it is because I had my first darkroom when I was 12, but I would prefer all my artistic photos to be in black and white.
May 15, 2018 18:34:36 #
May 15, 2018 18:52:17 #
May 15, 2018 18:53:28 #
May 16, 2018 11:22:12 #
I really like good black & white photos. If I do a wedding and I think a shot will work better in black & white, then I show the couple both versions. I get more takers for the B&W versions than I do for the colour.
Saildog83 wrote:
Was having fun in Monochrome during the Wedding!!
May 16, 2018 11:27:09 #
DebAnn wrote:
I really like good black & white photos. If I do a wedding and I think a shot will work better in black & white, then I show the couple both versions. I get more takers for the B&W versions than I do for the colour.
Wow DebAnn, that would be nice. I bet fewer than 5% of what I show in black and white ever gets chosen for an album. Even if I choose all the photos, when I show them the proof, I still get the "ooh, I wish that one was in color." Maybe it's a regional thing. My daughter who sometimes assists, and owns her own reception hall, tells me it's because the brides take so much care in choosing "their colors" that they want to see them in every photo. I guess I'm too old, or "gender challenged" to understand that part, if there are plenty of color photos there.
May 16, 2018 11:28:23 #
Tim Stapp wrote:
B&W camera to play with is coming. Your choice of format; 35 mm or 4x5.
May 16, 2018 11:35:29 #
Well, you know what they say, "there's no accounting for taste!" I am finding that more people are stating a preference for black and white these days. I recently produced a large photo book for the family, depicting about 50 years and 66 people. I did the whole thing in black and white and got lots of orders from family members. My next wedding is in July and I already know the bride likes my black & whites so I feel like a lucky woman.
bkyser wrote:
Wow DebAnn, that would be nice. I bet fewer than... (show quote)
May 16, 2018 18:42:11 #
I have a wedding coming up in August in which the bride requested that some be in B&W. I asked if digital or film :). I suspect the request might be due to a mother of the couple is a photographer.
May 18, 2018 09:24:43 #
Tim Stapp wrote:
I have a wedding coming up in August in which the bride requested that some be in B&W. I asked if digital or film :). I suspect the request might be due to a mother of the couple is a photographer.
I turn some black and white, but really can't explain why. Sometimes it sits well with me, creates a mood, and makes me want to keep viewing and sometimes the B&W just doesn't work at all. I suppose if you have time you could turn all of the finished pics B&W and let them choose. Then do some final tweaking on the photos they like in B&W.
May 18, 2018 16:03:23 #
Tim Stapp wrote:
I have a wedding coming up in August in which the bride requested that some be in B&W. I asked if digital or film :). I suspect the request might be due to a mother of the couple is a photographer.
... AND it looks great in an album, especially the getting ready shots (for some reason) always look better to me in black and white.
Jun 2, 2018 01:03:00 #
greg vescuso
Loc: Ozark,Mo.
I don't shoot as many weddings as most of the photographers on here. So my opinion may not mean anything. But I believe if your going to make a black and white image for a bride it has to have meaning and or emotional value to overcome the brides need to show off all her wonderful colors she has put so much time and thought into. Here are two examples of emotional images and why I chose black and white for one and color for the other.
I chose B&W for this shot so no colors distracted from the Father of the Bride
(Download)
I chose color for this shot because none of the colors draws you away from the Bride and her Father.
(Download)
Jun 2, 2018 08:59:35 #
greg vescuso wrote:
I don't shoot as many weddings as most of the photographers on here. So my opinion may not mean anything. But I believe if your going to make a black and white image for a bride it has to have meaning and or emotional value to overcome the brides need to show off all her wonderful colors she has put so much time and thought into. Here are two examples of emotional images and why I chose black and white for one and color for the other.
There is no "black and white" (pun intended) rule to any type of color treatment, however IMHO you made the right choice with the second picture. The warm window light and coloring in the flowers adds to the warm connection between these two.
Jun 2, 2018 12:01:53 #
Personally speaking, black and white wedding photography holds a special place in my heart because when I started out in the business, in the late 1950s and early 60s, THAT was pretty much hyte state of the art. That's how I cut my teeth and it was extremely high quality stuff!
We shot with 4x5 press cameras, multiple lighting and the images were sharp but smooth- silkily wedding dresses, detailed lace, rich black but detailed tuxedos- lots of dramatic effects and regardless of the heavy and bulky all MANUAL gear, there were plenty of spontaneous candids to go with the elegant formals. The images were virtually grain-less and there were lovely papers with lustrous and silken finishes to accentuate the fabrics and the skin tones. Well- so much for nostalgia!
Back in the day, that's what most reputable and popular studios offered. Color photography was costly to produce as per wedding albums and custom color prints and there was the issue of permanence- the old “type “C” prints were known to fade, even in dark storage.
Why I say “nostalgia”?- my issue here is not what I want to offer as a photographer, what I consider artistic or what I love to do. I want to talk about what the CLIENTS-the BRIDES AND GROOMS want and why the may opt for black and white, color or anything else. Understanding this may help us address the OP's question..
SNOB APPEAL: Some folks- customers, say that black and white photography is more artistic- they may have a point? When, however, I would discuss this concept, many of them, those that requested black and white work, most did not allude to line, texture, contrast, mood or any of the photographic or artistic concepts we associate with monochromatic imagery. They just heard it's more artsy or the just wanted something “different” .
PHOTOJOURNALISM? There was a trend, in some “high society circles” where they wanted pure journalistic coverage. They had an aversion to any kind of posed images, they considered the photography an intrusive element in their wedding day and somehow equated sort of grainy, dim, black and white images with authentic photojournalism. Yet they would plan delicate pastel colors for their bridesmaid's gowns, the flowers and be ultra-fussy about the COLOR of the tablecloths at the reception- go figure! One bride, brought me a copy of LIFE magazine with war images and insisted on THAT “look”. In the heyday of Hasselbald medium format, I shot her wedding with three Leica M cameras on Tri-X film, pushed to 800 and processed in Ethol UFG- she was elated! I even shot a roll of Royal-X pan (@6400) at the ceremony, processed in DK-50 there was grain the size of mothballs! LOVELY!
Some folks want that “retro-look” like “Mom's or Grandma's wedding album”! Sometimes it's Mom or Grandma who comes up with this theme.
So here I am- here we are...in the nowadays. I am still, believe it or not, in the ALBUM business, so album design and theme are a big deal in my business. I sit down with each couple and find out what they expect- it is important, to me, to reflect THEIR taste in THEIR coverage. Most of them just let me do my thing. I might include some monochromatic images if I feel they are appropriate for certain shots. I do explain that I don't advise shooting or converting to black and white just for the sake of doing that. In the last 20 years, I have not had a request for an all black and white wedding coverage- I would do it if requested.
At one point in time, I charged MORE for all black and white coverages for a logical reason. I still had maintained a complete black and white darkroom and would hand process and print the entire job on fine archival papers in the traditional manner. They wanted authenticity and they were willing to pay the difference. I discontinued that about 10 years back as the chemicals and materials became more and more inaccessible and of course, many disappeared entirely.
I no longer worry about the longevity of mu color prints- I worry more about the longevity if some of the marriages I have photographed- even the ones in my own family. In December, my lovely wife, long time business partner (da boss) and best fried and I will celebrate our 50 the year of marriage. I am a lucky guy! She deserves the Congressional Medal of Honor, the Purple Heart, the Victoria Cross (Canada) and the Noble Peace Prize for putting up with this nutty photographer for half a century and helping me run this insane business. I only wish this kinda good luck to all the brides and grooms out there- in black and white and color!
Best regards, Ed
We shot with 4x5 press cameras, multiple lighting and the images were sharp but smooth- silkily wedding dresses, detailed lace, rich black but detailed tuxedos- lots of dramatic effects and regardless of the heavy and bulky all MANUAL gear, there were plenty of spontaneous candids to go with the elegant formals. The images were virtually grain-less and there were lovely papers with lustrous and silken finishes to accentuate the fabrics and the skin tones. Well- so much for nostalgia!
Back in the day, that's what most reputable and popular studios offered. Color photography was costly to produce as per wedding albums and custom color prints and there was the issue of permanence- the old “type “C” prints were known to fade, even in dark storage.
Why I say “nostalgia”?- my issue here is not what I want to offer as a photographer, what I consider artistic or what I love to do. I want to talk about what the CLIENTS-the BRIDES AND GROOMS want and why the may opt for black and white, color or anything else. Understanding this may help us address the OP's question..
SNOB APPEAL: Some folks- customers, say that black and white photography is more artistic- they may have a point? When, however, I would discuss this concept, many of them, those that requested black and white work, most did not allude to line, texture, contrast, mood or any of the photographic or artistic concepts we associate with monochromatic imagery. They just heard it's more artsy or the just wanted something “different” .
PHOTOJOURNALISM? There was a trend, in some “high society circles” where they wanted pure journalistic coverage. They had an aversion to any kind of posed images, they considered the photography an intrusive element in their wedding day and somehow equated sort of grainy, dim, black and white images with authentic photojournalism. Yet they would plan delicate pastel colors for their bridesmaid's gowns, the flowers and be ultra-fussy about the COLOR of the tablecloths at the reception- go figure! One bride, brought me a copy of LIFE magazine with war images and insisted on THAT “look”. In the heyday of Hasselbald medium format, I shot her wedding with three Leica M cameras on Tri-X film, pushed to 800 and processed in Ethol UFG- she was elated! I even shot a roll of Royal-X pan (@6400) at the ceremony, processed in DK-50 there was grain the size of mothballs! LOVELY!
Some folks want that “retro-look” like “Mom's or Grandma's wedding album”! Sometimes it's Mom or Grandma who comes up with this theme.
So here I am- here we are...in the nowadays. I am still, believe it or not, in the ALBUM business, so album design and theme are a big deal in my business. I sit down with each couple and find out what they expect- it is important, to me, to reflect THEIR taste in THEIR coverage. Most of them just let me do my thing. I might include some monochromatic images if I feel they are appropriate for certain shots. I do explain that I don't advise shooting or converting to black and white just for the sake of doing that. In the last 20 years, I have not had a request for an all black and white wedding coverage- I would do it if requested.
At one point in time, I charged MORE for all black and white coverages for a logical reason. I still had maintained a complete black and white darkroom and would hand process and print the entire job on fine archival papers in the traditional manner. They wanted authenticity and they were willing to pay the difference. I discontinued that about 10 years back as the chemicals and materials became more and more inaccessible and of course, many disappeared entirely.
I no longer worry about the longevity of mu color prints- I worry more about the longevity if some of the marriages I have photographed- even the ones in my own family. In December, my lovely wife, long time business partner (da boss) and best fried and I will celebrate our 50 the year of marriage. I am a lucky guy! She deserves the Congressional Medal of Honor, the Purple Heart, the Victoria Cross (Canada) and the Noble Peace Prize for putting up with this nutty photographer for half a century and helping me run this insane business. I only wish this kinda good luck to all the brides and grooms out there- in black and white and color!
Best regards, Ed
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