Black and White Wedding Photography
Those who have met me personally or attended any of my talks on photography will know that I have a massive passion for black and white photography-especially black and white wedding photography.
Although black and white work is intrinsic in my wedding photography, there is, of course, a place for colour too.
When I think back to the kinds of photography, I was attracted to too in my early years, and when I look at the majority of photobooks I have on my bookshelf, black and white certainly seems to take precedence.
As a wedding photographer, it is my responsibility to ensure that the photographs I take, are where possible, well exposed, make use of the available light and have good compositional or storytelling elements.
Whether I’m shooting in black and white, or colour, those parameters don’t change.
However, when shooting for black and white, I most definitely look more towards the light and the story.
The emotion and passion within a photograph can often be felt stronger by the viewer, in my opinion, in a black and white image.
“My rule of thumb, when it comes to my photographs is that if the image is about colour or colour, is a core feature, then it should remain in colour.
If a photograph is about emotion or human interaction, I tend to look at it from a Black and White Wedding Photography point of view.”
A Black and White Wedding Photo Film
This Wedding Photo Film is from Alice & Tim’s lovely Nutbourne Vineyard Wedding.
They specifically requested a full monochrome coverage, and I think the unique nature of their wedding works very well in black and white.
The wedding above was such a fantastic event, and I know the bride and groom loved the day.
I wanted to bring out the best of the day, and I think the whole of the photo film does the day justice.
Above and beyond technically shooting the image, there are those three core elements of any good photograph that I’m always striving to include in each picture I take; light, composition and moment.
More Black and White Wedding Photography
On a very personal note, I adore black and white photography
Ever since I starting understanding photography, many years ago, monochromatic images have had some magical appeal.
I genuinely believe that weddings are always colourful and vibrant events.
However, black and white has its place.
Especially when I am looking for emotion, frame-filling images of people hugging, that tender touch etc.
As I mentioned previously, that doesn’t mean there is no place for colourful wedding images.
If you look at my latest Journal entries, for example, you’ll see lots of colours – and rightly so.
According to Wikipedia;
“Monochrome photography is photography where each position on an image can record and show a different amount of light, but not a different hue.
It includes all forms of black-and-white photography, which produce images containing tones of neutral grey ranging from black to white.
Other hues besides grey, such as sepia, cyan or brown can also be used in monochrome photography.
In the contemporary world, monochrome photography is mostly used for artistic purposes and specific technical imaging applications, rather than for visually accurate reproduction of scenes.”
That all sounds very technical, but all you should know is that it means somebody who understands black and white photography also understands light.
