Posing for Mommy: b&w version

Posted by Marion (Cincinnati, United States) on 28 March 2009 in People & Portrait and Portfolio.

I don't really like my b&w and if you have any suggestions for me, I would love to hear them - thanks for your support! :) Also, tomorrow I have the same shot in color. :)

Hello everyone!
I am just starting to catch up on my photos again, so please keep coming back!
Thanks for stopping by and hope to see you again. Any comments are appreciated! Oh, and please do not use my pictures without my permission. Thanks so much! Have a wonderful day!

Comments (9)

Jean-François from Les Issambres, France

cette photo est géniale ****************************************

28 Mar 2009 5:57am

Moridi from Tehran, Iran

Very nice B&W shot.
Thank you.

28 Mar 2009 7:37am

Charles from New York, United States

I am not really great at black and white portraits so suggestions are somewhat limited if you are looking to change this. Maybe more contrast?

28 Mar 2009 12:34pm

@Charles: Thanks Charles. I will keep trying :)

Lee from Fort Frances Ontario, Canada

I think it is an excellent shot the way it is. I tend to agree with Charles. A little more contrast. Or, perhaps some darker tones and brighter whites. However, I also am not a b&w composer. Just a colourblind shutterbug. You have a great weekend.

28 Mar 2009 12:46pm

@Lee: I wished I knew how to get brigther whites and darker blacks. I had already adjusted pretty much all the options. Maybe I need a different editing program which will allow more detailed adjustments than the one I am working with.

Mary from PA, United States

These portraits of you daughter as so wonderful....I love her wisps of hair in the breeze, they are so sharp....the lighting is wonderful on all of them in my opinion. And Such cute expressions! She is delightful! I would agree with Charles on the contrast, it might give it a boost, though I 'm not good with b&w myself. But I do like this very much!

28 Mar 2009 1:39pm

@Mary: Thank you Mary. One of my big problems that I have encountered is that my laptop's monitor is set up completely differently than my pc monitor and when I have pictures edited to my satisfaction on it and upload them to am3, they look terrible on my other pc. I have to figure out a way to calibrate both monitors because this is getting really frustrating for me. Sandrine suggested to have some prints made and work from them to set the monitor straight, so that is what I will do. Now I only have the problem of selecting some prints to upload. There are so many to choose from :) Have a great Sunday!

Earnest from Oklahoma, United States

It looks good to me. Very good portraiture..

28 Mar 2009 4:43pm

Ross Collins from Wellington, New Zealand

I prefer the colour versions, personally. This seems a little 'cold', but the pose is excellent!

29 Mar 2009 1:12am

Mandy Provan from Johannesburg, South Africa

HI Marion. I think there is definitely a place for Black and White. I prefer the colour versionof this shot, but for no other reason thyan that pink scarf around her neck is SO wonderfully bright and it just sceams "Little Girl"! :) As for tips on Black and White, Contrast will help, but a quick little trick to give this one a bit more depth is to just boost the shadows and then increase teh highlights. I'm not sure if you have CS3 or Lightroom, but if you do, then play around with those levels and see what you come up with. As you work with the shots you'll find which ones look better better in B/W and which ones work better in colour. I personally find that if there is a bit more depth in the colours in the backgroud, so if you have quite a nice variety of darker and lighter shades, it makes for an interesting B/W. I really hope this has helped. :)

30 Mar 2009 6:35am

akarui from Kagoshima, Japan

This BW portrait is nice but there is a lack of contrast. There are so many ways of converting a picture in BW... You can make a search on google for your software. Desaturation is the worst method and for portraits the red channel is often very good.

3 Apr 2009 12:31am

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