rando Loc: Rochester NY

Just wondering why street photography is mostly B&W? Is it just a tradition or do people just like the look?

bfur396

I also have been wondering why B&W.

travelwp Loc: New Jersey

In my opinion, there can be something in a scene with bright colors that is not central to the reason the photo was taken. Your eye is attracted to the bright color and the reason for the shot is lost. If the central theme is also in color, then it works. I have examples of both color and B&W:

http://travelwp.com/index-street-photography.htm

rjaywallace Loc: Wisconsin

Some photographers "see" in b&w, preferring to keep the distraction of color out of the equation. Others notice and "see" the impact of juxtaposed color in everyday things all around us. Both approaches work and are valid. There is no strict b&w rule.

Apaflo Loc: Anchorage, Alaska

A very interesting question, though perhaps not of any real significance because one way or another everyone just "feels" comfortable with one or the other, and for this or that reason. Hence there is no single answer that will be satisfactory to everyone.

Start with the concept that was oft repeated when film was it: Photographing people in color makes a picture of their clothes, shoot in B&W and you get pictures of their soul.

That is probably true, but the real reasons to shoot more in BW was because color film was much more expensive and much more tedious to process. The third important reason comes into play at a higher level of abstraction, where color is merely another layer of compositional complexity that has to be understood, it's just easier to compose an image in B&W.

Of course for some types of photography color is all there is. Sunset/sunrise pictures, the Aurora Borealis, most flowers, and other situations where the color is in fact the subject.

But for Street Photography color is never the subject. It is nothing but an added layer of compositional abstraction that is very difficult to control when shooting candid images of fleeting moments. That is where digital photography has changed Street, because we can shoot in color and then decide later if the color adds to the image or is just the usual distraction.

jaymatt Loc: Alexandria, Indiana

As Apaflo said, "But for Street Photography color is never the subject."

I have posted street photography in color and in black and white, but mostly black and white, because the color sometimes gets in the way of the idea in the image. Whenever I am drawn to to the color in a street image, I post in monochrome because the color becomes the photo rather than the image. That makes sense to me, anyway.

camerapapi Loc: Miami, Fl.

Images in b&w have been the standard for street photography. It started like that and in my humble opinion it renders subjects better.

Apaflo Loc: Anchorage, Alaska

Sure, except when color helps the composition render a subject better.

It isn't really that BW is better in that respect, it's just one heck of a lot harder to do color. But when color is done right it is an improvement over BW.

The difference between Street Photography and almost anything else is simply that color cannot be the actual subject for Street Photography. Street is about life. It's about the intangible relationships that develop between visible objects that demonstrate life in the way we live it. Those relationships may involve objects that have color, but the color is not the subject of the photograph. Intangible things are not color! A well composed image that has colors might very well better portrait life than a BW that lacks that layer of abstraction in the composition. But the problem is in the idea of "well composed", because the extra layer of complexity that color adds to the tool box called composition is just very difficult to deal with at the speed we need to use with Street Photography.

BW that is good is fine. Color that is also good is better, but if the color isn't good then BW is still fine!

ebrunner Loc: New Jersey Shore

For me it is partly because of the camera I prefer to shoot street photos with. I have been using a Yashica 124G and, since I like to develop my own film and don't do color yet, I shoot in B&W most of the time.
Erich

cambriaman Loc: Central CA Coast

I think monochrome focuses the viewing on the content and composition. Color is distracting.

rando Loc: Rochester NY

Thanks for your take.

waegwan Loc: Mae Won Li

I think TLRs and B&W are the perfect street combo but when you have a chance, try shooting color slides in 120. I have shot Fuji Velvia in what they call RVP 50. It is pretty awesome and developing color slides is easy and printing from them is cool too.

waegwan Loc: Mae Won Li

I bet if you go out and shoot some street stuff and look at it in B&W and in color (easy to do with digital) you will answer your own question. :-)

rando Loc: Rochester NY

Good suggestion.