Creative Black and White (Digital Photography Tips and Techniques)

Learn to master the unique challenges of black and white photography, and create high-quality, beautiful images!

In this newly revised and expanded classic guide to black and white photography, renowned photographer Harold Davis breaks through the mystery of digital monochrome. Using more than 200 of his own stunning fully-captioned monochromatic images to illustrate, Davis walks you through the visual ideas that work well with black and white. He shares the technical approaches that you can use to create high-quality monochromatic photos.

With Creative Black & White you'll discover a deeper appreciation for what you can accomplish when taking portraits, landscapes, night photos, close-ups, and more. This book provides both inspiration and technical instruction. You may never photograph the world in quite the same way again!

Learn to see and think in black and white:

• Convert RAW files to black and white

• Use color information to create black and white photos in Lightroom and Photoshop

• Create monochromatic images using multi-RAW processing and HDR

• Learn how to apply solarization, tinting, toning, and other special effects

• Complete exposure data and the story behind every photo

TABLE OF CONTENTS

THE MONOCHROMATIC VISION

Past, Present, and Future

Thinking in Black and White

Contrast

Color Implied

The Tonal Landscape

Visual Implication

Seeing in Black and White

Pre-Visualization Techniques

Black and White Composition

Framing

Patterns and Lines

Shape and Form

High Key

Low Key

Shades of Gray

Finding Monochromatic Subjects

Black and White at Night

Photographing People

Portraiture in Black and White

BLACK AND WHITE IN THE DIGITAL ERA

Digital Black and White Roadmap

The RAW Advantage

Black and White in Adobe Camera RAW

Black and White in Lightroom

Grayscale Conversion Using Presets

HSL Conversion

Exposure Gradients and Adjustments

Exporting Virtual Copies into Photoshop as Layers

Multiple Layers and Masking in Photoshop

Multi-RAW Processing in Photoshop

Black and White in Photoshop

Blending with Black

Using the Channel Mixer

Black & White Adjustment Layers

Silver Efex Pro

Topaz B&W Effects

OnOne Perfect B&W

The Digital Analog to the Analog Zone System

Combining Conversions in Photoshop

CREATIVE BLACK AND WHITE OPPORTUNITIES

Lighting and Monochromatic Photos

Creating High-Key Effects

Creating Low-Key Effects

HDR in Black and White

Shooting for HDR

Using HDR Software

Toning and Tinting

Tinting with a Black & White Adjustment Layer

Split Toning

The Ansel Adams Effect

Selective Color

Hand Coloring

Using LAB Color

Inverting the L Channel

Equalizing LAB Channels

Swapping Tonalities

Using Blending Modes

LAB Inversions

Soft Focus

Adding Soft Focus

Pinhole Effect

Solarization

Using Curves to Solarize an Image

Simulating the Blossfeldt Effect

Duotone and Tritone Effects

Adding and Reducing Noise

Film Effects

Infrared Camera Conversions

Infrared Conversion without an IR Camera

Creating X-Ray Images

MOBILE BLACK AND WHITE

Black and White using a Cell Phone Camera

Working with Snapseed

Toward a Monochromatic Mobile Workflow

Notes and Resources

Glossary

Index