Choices

I am often asked why I chose to release a given photo in B&W versus color. While it is true that I have no ready analytical answer, there is seldom any hesitation on my part when I do so. Some photographs just seem to tell their story better in B&W. I suspect it has to do with giving the brain a bit of a hiccup: Hey, no color! In our super-saturated world, the absence of color becomes provocative.

Here is a photo of a rusty derelict truck. It is a pretty cool photo in color, and it works well.



Here is the same photo rendered in B&W.



All the story telling points are still instantly recognizable; the truck is junk, it is rusty and dilapidated. However, I think the antiquity of the truck and the sense of age is better conveyed in the colorless image. [Note: I did add a bit of edge blur in the B&W image that is not present in the color version.]

You are free to disagree with me, of course, and if you do I would love to hear your reasons.