suntouched Loc: Sierra Vista AZ

:) Good answer! One reason I like B&W is for use with images with texture and drama. Storms and weather phenomena work well in B&W for one. Images with texture and hard edges work well with B&W- think rock formations, sand dunes, grasses, and trees- when you might want to shift the emphasis from color to shapes and shadows. Also street photography. That's just a couple of examples.

BlueMorel Loc: Southwest Michigan

For me, bw emphasizes structure and form, taking away the distractions of color, but there ARE a lot of bw photos that are better left color, and some don't have the eye. I have some bw myself that are great in color, bland in bw. But I also have some in bw that look bland in color.

I like the bw one better - perfect for bw. Great use of bw contrast.

anotherview Loc: California

The field of photography has room for all manner of expression within its constraints. And as with any craft, photography allows for variation in its practice. This rule has been in place naturally since the inception of photography.

I exit this thread pleased that I took up the doing of photography as a serious pastime in my later years. I learned how to do black-and-white photography as a second avenue along the way.

Have a good day all.

Booker

In B&W, composition, form, line, etc. are emphasized without the distraction of color. I shoot both and love both. About 75% of the time, I know when I am shooting the pics that I will later convert to B&W. some of my highest awards have been monochrome photos.

Capn_Dave

A B&W photograph that is well done excites the grey matter (which some of the Hoggers do not have much of) It causes one to think and to fill in the blanks.

Glenn Harve

The key element is "to my eyes". If all perceptions by people were the same, what would be the point of any art form? Think about dreams as a start. They are often about very powerful thoughts, yet many may not be in color. For many people, the dreams color, if any, is the least element of the dreams content. But the images of a dream can be most powerful.
It is a thing of perception, as all art forms are. Docmentatary photography is a different thing. If one discounts another's perceptions, who does that really reflect upon?

rlv567 Loc: Baguio City, Philippines

It's because they were taken at different times with a different crop - although the colored one would be better were it in focus.

Papa Joe Loc: Midwest U.S.

Harold, besides the obvious, like the examples you've been shown displaying a totally different world of tonal ranges from black to white and all the greys in between, there is that 'nostalgic' element, especially for those of us who were born into the B&W world, grew in and through it and even though we enjoy the ability now to 'do' color so easily... possibly it's just one way of hanging on to some of the pleasant past... simplicity at it's complex best, if that makes sense. I guess someone else phrased it well: "If you have to ask......

This brings to mind an event that took place with my two year old Granddaughter, Taylor, a long time ago. Embarking on a pretty long drive, we fixed everything nicely for Taylor in the back seat including the portable DVD player on which I started a movie for her to view during the ride. Shortly after starting out, she began whining and complaining that the player was 'broke'! Finally I had to stop and investigate. Seeing it was working fine I asked, ''What's wrong?" She said it was ''all black''! It was then I realized she had never seen a black and white movie! It was also then I began realizing how old I had become:o)

chrisg-optical Loc: New York, NY

You've been listening to the Paul Simon song too much -

B&W is also good for scenes or subjects with a lot of texture and not much color to begin with (rocky scenes or monochromatic sculptures to name two). B&W is another option in the photographers arsenal and allows for artistic expression without getting distracted by the beauty of color.

When I walk around New York City, for example, there is not much color to speak of in certain settings.... light grey sidewalks, dark grey/ black asphalt, granite grey buildings and water towers, etc., so much of NYC street photography lends itself to use of B&W.

gvarner Loc: Central Oregon Coast

I like the emotion and impact in B&W photos of weatherd faces and weathered wood. There is no way to capture that in color. Without color, it's much harder to portray the subtleties of emotion and the extra effort is very rewarding.

rrayr2002 Loc: New Jersey

Some photos just scream to be B&W!

Harry0 Loc: Gardena, Cal

One thing to consider is your brain. I'm serious!
People can process a specific amount of information thru a particular sense.
The amount of data in color can sometimes wash out your ability to discern detail. Comics and cartoons are great at using this. So do the special effects in many action movies. And that "vivid" mode will help disguise the lack of sharpness.
Take another look at the two examples. At first glance, the B&W one is sharper.
There was an old hippy thing about mixing B&W shapes in the mobile above baby cribs for this.
Plus I too "grew up" on B&W, when ISO 100 was a "fast" film. There were kits and plans for turning a closet into a darkroom- simple process, simple chemicals, fast results. There's something special about a slow chemical reaction of a long, small aperture shot that we don't yet get with digital.
So put that camera in B&W mode, and notice how much you need to focus better.

Retina Loc: Near Charleston,SC

Yes, there is often bantering here and it's not helpful, but some interesting perspectives as well. That's the risk with such a subjective topic regardless of the intentions behind the original question. On the positive side, much of the discussion and some of the posted photos may renew in some members their interest in photography as art more than a hobby that is too easily distracted by technology for its own sake.

Raz Theo Loc: Music City

Not to quibble but your "examples" seem to be manipulated to make your point. The b/w (which I happen to prefer) seems overly sharp and the color version appears to be softened, diffused a bit. Just sayin'.

jeryh Loc: Oxfordshire UK

I used to work as a stringer for a lifestyle mag. I was told when I started that what I had to remember that I was employed to sell a dream;
colour boy, and lots of it !