Light, Shadow, Line and Form. The Timeless Charm and Versatility of Black and White Photography.

Introduction: The Creation of Photography

Inventions to capture images and work with light or radiation have been around and technologically worked on for centuries, from the camera obscura of the 17th century to the camera lucida (Latin: “light chamber”) of the early 19th century to most recent digital cameras and lenses. A combination of arts and sciences, photography has involved the use of the sun, silver salts, special papers, glass negatives, zinc, and pewter.

Louis Daguerre is acknowledged as the inventor of the first practical process of photography. He used an iodized silver plate in a camera, resulting in a lasting image if exposed to mercury vapors and then fixed by a solution of common salt.

The word “camera” come from the Latin camera, “a vault or vaulted room.” The Greek kamara means ” vaulter chamber, anything with an arched cover.” Invention of lenses was part of the advance of the photographic arts, and many specialized lenses are available. ‘Lens” means a “glass to regulate light rays” and stems from the Latin lens, “a lentil”, an analogy of the double convex shape.

Photography remains a means of visual communication and expression.

1. Black and white (or monochrome) photography offers these creative advantages:

A. Emphasis on contrast and texture: Eliminating color shifts the focus to the contrast between light and shadow, highlighting textures and patterns that might be overlooked in color photography.
B. Timeless and classic aesthetic: There is a sense of nostalgia, creating a perception of historic artistry and sophistication. A black and white photograph makes modern scenes look like they belong in another era, lending a heritage quality to the image.
C. Emotional impact: the simplicity of a black and white photograph intensifies the mood and feeling of the image.
D. Focus on composition: The photographer and viewer can enjoy the benefits of a thoughtfully composed image focusing on shapes, lines, and forms.
E. Lighting: In situations where color photography may make the scene washed out or overly saturated, black and white images may handle the tricky light variations and reduce distractions. The viewer is then drawn to the elements within the frame.

2. A Gallery of Photographs

scenes in Chicago's West Loop
This image of structures in Chicago’s West Loop features the Fifth Third Building, one of the structures of the Union Station multiplex, in the foreground. In the background are 200 South Wacker Drive and the Sears (Willis) Tower. Medium: 35mm Ilford XP2 Super 400 film. Date created: 8 May 2021.
images of Chicago Union Station on film
The corridor containing entrances to the Metropolitan Lounge, other passenger waiting areas, and the Great Hall of Chicago Union Station are captured in this image. Shades from black to skylit white include subtle variations of gray in the lintel and brackets in the foreground and barrel-vaulted coffered ceiling spanning the corridor. Medium: Ilford XP2 Super 400 C-41 process Black and White film. Date created: 8 October 2022
images of downtown Chicago taken on film
Shapes and forms in tones ranging from the black lines of the Casino Club to the white of the sky and the shades of grays in the surrounding structures create this image taken in downtown Chicago. The spiral in the center is a parking structure connected to the Hancock Center (now 875 North Michigan Avenue). Lines in the foreground draw the view into the background. Medium: Ilford XP2 Super 400 C-41 Black and White Film.
images of the Civic Opera House taken on film
Shadows, lines, and forms in varying degrees of gray create this image taken looking east from 2 North Riverside Plaza. Dominating the image is the Civic Opera House (1929). To the left of center is 110 North Wacker Drive. Surrounding structure reflect in its glass walls. Subtleties of shading are found in windows and masonry. Medium: Ilford XP2 Super 400 C-41 Black and White Film.
staircases at Chicago Union Station
Colonnades along the south staircase and in the Great Hall of Chicago Union Station are shown here, along with part of the coffered ceiling, light fixtures, and decorated frieze between the columns and ceiling. Medium: color digital photograph reduced to gray shades. Reducing a photograph to gray tones enhances the depth and dimension of the subject.
Corinthian Colonnade. Chicago Union Station.
This view is from the colonnade dividing the entrance corridor from the ground level at Jackson Boulevard and South Clinton Street from the Great Hall of Chicago Union Station. It includes the south staircase connecting the Great Hall at South Canal Street. Features include the Corinthian columns, coffered ceiling, and light fixtures along the staircase. Medium: digital in color, reduced to black and white shades.
Riverside, Illinois Railroad Depot and METRA Station
The historic railroad depot in the Village of Riverside, Illinois is a one-story symmetrical building in the Prairie Style of architecture. The structure dates to 1901. It was designed by Walter Theodore Krausch, an American architect and engineer who worked for the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy (CB&Q) Railroad. I chose to present the building in black & white because of the timeless aesthetic of simplicity, and to focus on the simplicity of the lines and forms rather than the minutiae of the colors of the bricks, tiles, and ballast of the railroad tracks as the lighting conditions changed. Medium: digital color photograph reduced to monochrome.

Conclusion

Black and white photography remains a fun, challenging, and creative way for any photographer at any skill level to enjoy artistic expression. Ensure that your equipment is clean and in good working order, pay attention to metering, focusing, and the suggested settings for the medium you are using (ISO, color temperature, shutter speeds, aperture). Load and wind film carefully, and when finished rewind gently and place in a canister. Make notes while in the field, such as lighting conditions, weather conditions, and what interested you about the subject or the setting. Also note your camera’s settings for each frame, as aperture or shutter speed may change as lighting changes.

Pure forms of lines, shapes, and structures will emerge in the images, focusing attention on lighting and the composition.

Modern photographers connect to the beginnings of the art of writing with light, linking the digital world to the earliest days of film photography. Trends are transcended, making the images timeless and engaging.

Explore your ways of storytelling and expression through black and white photography and enjoy fresh perspectives and deeper appreciation for the craft.

Glossary

  1. Colonnade. A colonnade is a row of regularly spaced columns typically supporting an entablature of a building’s portico.
  2. Frieze. In classical architecture, the frieze is the wide central section of the entablature. It may be plain or decorated with relief sculptures, as in the frieze above the staircase in the gallery photograph.
  3. Monochrome. Monochrome, at its core, refers to images that consist of varying tones of a single color. This term is often used interchangeably with black and white photography, but it can encompass any single-color palette.

Resources.

  1. “Advantages of black and white photography.” Microsoft. (2024). Copilot. https://copilot.microsoft.com/.
  2. “Advantages of monochrome photography.” Microsoft. (2024). Copilot. https://copilot.microsoft.com/.
  3. “Importance of black and white photography.” Microsoft. (2024). Copilot. https://copilot.microsoft.com/.
  4. Wikipedia contributors. “Frieze.” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, 30 Oct. 2023. Web. 15 Nov. 2024.
  5. The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. “camera lucida”. Encyclopedia Britannica, 31 Aug. 2024, https://www.britannica.com/technology/camera-lucida. Accessed 17 March 2025.
  6. “Monochrome.” Microsoft. (2024). Copilot. https://copilot.microsoft.com/.
  7. Grundberg, Andy, Gernsheim, Helmut Erich Robert, Newhall, Beaumont,
    Rosenblum, Naomi. “history of photography”. Encyclopedia Britannica, 15 Feb. 2025, https://www.britannica.com/technology/photography. Accessed 17 March 2025.
  8. The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. “Louis Daguerre”. Encyclopedia Britannica, 14 Nov. 2024, https://www.britannica.com/biography/Louis-Daguerre. Accessed 17 March 2025.
  9. Harper, Douglas. “Etymology of camera.” Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com/word/camera. Accessed 17 March 2025.
  10. Harper Douglas, “Etymology of lens,” Online Etymology Dictionary, accessed March 17, 2025, https://www.etymonline.com/word/lens.
  11. Wikipedia contributors. “Walter Theodore Krausch.” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, 8 Jun. 2024. Web. 17 Mar. 2025.
  12. “Colonnade.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/colonnade. Accessed 17 Mar. 2025.

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Published by Divi Logan

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