What I love about the black-and-white image is it deconstructs a scene and reduces it to its forms and tones. It also evokes certain emotion that a colour photography can’t do
What I like about black and white photography is the way it changes my perception of reality as I normally see it. It also enhances textures, shapes and makes us avoid some of the distractions that colour creates. Greetings from the Basque Country!
what I like about BW is that you are able to really showcase the most important part of the images. plus I just learned a bit more of that software. Thanks!
Thanks for the great video! I love black and white because it emphasizes how photography is always a craft, not a straightforward representation of reality. In that sense, it puts you right away inside a different world, almost like a dream :)
I didn't realise that there was still a free version available. Great news and thanks for that. It's now installed on my PC once more. Loved it when I used it in the past.
Loving B&W as photos become ageless, clean, dramatic, minimalist, moody, poignant, or whatever else you want to convey in the moment - without the distraction of colour. Loving the work - keep it up and stay safe.
Samuel , thank you for a clear and concise video, as a novice photographer it has given me a lot of inspiration to start using black and white. Great work 👍
Really helpful video, I've been playing with the trial version to see if it was something that would add to my workflow and i hadn't quite understood how the control points worked. This really helped
The thing I love most about black and white is the consistency you can get. Also it somewhat makes you focus more and look for things, whereas in colour the subject would stand out more. I really need to shoot more black and white, great video as always Sam and brilliant photos! 🔥
Been shooting in B&W mode for the past one month and I haven't stopped, even if in the end I revert back to colors as the final product. In that one month I felt something truly different when shooting in B&W, some certain detachment from what I saw in the real world, and ability to at least trying to understand what's going on in the world I just photographed. With that, thanks once again for introducing the film noir/B&W street critique challenge last month!
With black and white I am after certain qualities that photographic image making contains. The power of composition can be used to develop a path for the viewer’s eye around an image. Colour often masks this path and dilutes the dramatic qualities of an image. I want to shoot with tonal lenses that introduce plasticity and lend volume and texture to objects. Black and white excels in its ability to depict shape and volume. Printing on silver based media and lighting the image on the gallery wall brings an image in monochrome to life. The structure of grain is important too. High acutance developers like Rodinal give very structured grain that the eye keys onto and adds definition by making the grain sharpen and create edges between tonal values. I haven’t tried Silver EFX yet but it seems like a useful tool for enhancing digital monochrome images.
Thank you! Regarding Silver Efex, some years ago I had to convert photos to b&w for a book, and I was shocked by how great I could make them look with just a few steps. Really great tonal range in the conversions without a lot of work. I didn't know there was a free version and will of course check it right away.
Not only is the black and white aesthetic timeless, I also believe that shooting in monochrome has made me a better photographer. By zeroing in and paying more attention to composition instead of color, I’ve been able to grow my skills in a big way.
Hi Samuel. really love your videos. I learned a lot of tips and tricks. Do you have any tips on how to shoot low budget black and white photos (gears and editing apps)? Thanks!
@@SamuelStreetlife I, like so many others, have lusted after Leica forever. Today, I bit the bullet and am trading in my x-pro3 and 4 lenses to get an M-P typ240, used. I have m glass already for my M3. My justification is now any lens I own will work for both my film and digital cameras, both ways, without an adapter. AHHHHHHHH. (Thanks for the inspiration).
I experimented lately shooting only b&w, mainly to focus on composition and get better at it, and now i when i shoot color i feel weird haha so i tried the software to see if i noticed any difference in my workflow and to be honest there isn't really thaaat much, but as you said, the control points tool are the best! so after one month trial i decided to buy the software haha
Great stuff Samual! Your authentic approach is super cool. Thank you! PS. I used the old NIK version for Apple Aperture. Will check to see options to upgrade to latest version.
Alright, because of this video I went and downloaded the free version to play around with it and re-edited a bunch of old black and white pictures and it's a lot of fun. What I like about black and white images is when they're a tad grainy and very gritty looking. That usually doesn't really quite klick with me in colour images.
Drama and nostalgic feelings, that's what I like about b/w. Thanks for sharing your process, I didn't know about silver efex, but I can see is an awesome tool, I'll check it up. :D
Silver Efex is a fantastic programme. You don’t have to run it as a plug-in- you can also use it a standalone app by finding the executable file and making a link for the desktop.
@@SamuelStreetlife Yes - I find for my preferred high contrast B&W shots, TIF files produce results Indistinguishable from direct RAW files via the plug-in.
@@RichardLaurence yes you can edit a TIFF file similar to a RAW file (lightroom converts the RAW file to TIFF for silver efex anyways). But what I wanted to say with that is that you would still need to convert your RAW into TIFF files with another software (unless you can shoot in TIFF) before importing files into Silver Efex. For me it makes no sense to use Silver Efex as standalone software if I have to convert my RAW file in Lightroom anyways :) but its still cool that you can use Silver Efex without Lightroom! Actually saves a lot of time when you want to change or re-edit existing Silver Efex edits.
I think b&w can be very powerful especially with street photography as it captures the moment in its purest form and leads the viewer directly to the story being told. In terms of ‚learning‘ photography b&w always helps me to focus on light and composition without the distraction of color/color settings. Thanks for the video! :-)
Great video. Joined the membership program or however it is called and I can't find the video that you reference at the end: how to prepare files for print
What I like the most about black and white is that there are no colours you have to worry about while composing an image. I've "limited" myself to only use b&w when I take photographs of people, so that I have to focus on light and shadows only.
I love black and white photography because sometimes colors aren't necessary and they draw out attention from the composition or with what you want to communicate with the shot. Also, as you said a lot in the video, it is dramatic 😂😂😂
Great video, thank you. Still I have an Off Topic question: Does anyone else has problems installing the Nik Collection for macOS Big Sur? The installer tells me over and over that I have to run macOS 10.7 or newer, but I already downloaded the latest version of macOS. Can somebody help me out?
I mostly edit my images to B&W as I find colour distracting from what I’m trying to show. The tonal range, and that old fashioned look that I used to see in newspapers before they began printing in colour, takes me back to a time when the majority of images were B&W... even the tv 🙂 If it warrants it, I will keep an image as a full-colour image but it has to be something that doesn't work in B&W for me, to not convert.
Hi Samuel, I noticed that there’s a difference between Lightroom and SilverEfex when it comes to black levels. When bringing down blacks in SFex to „0“ it should be true black with no structure, right? But when I save the picture to LR it does not show me the blacks as crushed as I want it in my BnW images, they still look a bit soft and not „clipped“. I like the black level deep and clipped, but I can’t get there with SilverEfex. Anyone having tipps on this point?
I just love the powerful emotions that contrasty black and white street photographs show! Also, I may have to purchase Silver Efex now 😅 They could sponsor you and give us some discount code, it would be nice 😜
Hehe. I actually tried to join their Affiliate Program yesterday but my request is still pending :D If I get a discount code I will add it in the description!
I would like to win your beautiful BnW street photography! Well, what I love about BnW photography... because BnW gives me more chance to imagine about the photography itself than with colour..., I think. Keep it up, Lintaro san. I like what your photos and vids!! Good luck!
Hi Samuel. I mainly use a Fuji xt2 (which I love to death😬!) But for street, is does kinda stick out like a sore thumb..😑..I did a lot of research on what’s a good discrete street cam.. and BAM! , found your channel talking about the Ricoh!..days later I took the plunge and found a used mint gr ii .... and..holy crap has this thing impressed me!!...the black and whites that come out of it are pure magic and inspire me so much!..quick question..do u use full manual more or mostly snap, or a combination of the two depending on?...might be a dumb question 🤣..but I’m still getting used to navigating it..doesn’t help that the manual is all in Japanese 🤦♂️..anyway.. really appreciate your channel! Subbed for sure🤘!
Thanks for this video Samuel. Very informative! I'm curious though, what printer do you use for making your B&W prints? I'm interested in getting one for personal work, probably nothing larger than A4 size prints, but it's hard to figure out what is a "must have" vs "must be nice" for printer specs. Also, any plans for workshops in Tokyo this year?
@@SamuelStreetlife thank you for your answer Samuel! It is always incredible how a so small camera such Ricoh is able to keep up to Leica. As IQ, then the content of the pic depends by the quality of the photographer, and in this case it is always good.
really good tips samuel. 👌 adobe should have bought silver efex. You probably can't edit S&W images that well anywhere. The control points are really nice.
No I don't want adobe to buy silver efex! I don't want to pay for another subscription :D I love how silver efex is "only" a plug in. But I wouldn't mind a control point feature in LR or PS :)
@@SamuelStreetlife yes, that's right, paying for an extra program would really not be nice for your wallet. 😀 Whereas when adobe incorporates something, the development usually stagnates quite strongly.
I have always loved black & White Photography! I think the photographer has to stop & think how to make this pictures stand out more. You can’t just rely on color to catch your attention.
I like black and white photography. But I hate most black and white conversions. People use black and white as a way to save bad pictures often. When it's the creative choice I tend to like the photos alot more.
love your videos! but it kills me to see you did b&w in Lightroom just by dragging the saturation all the way down. Wouldn't it be much better to change the profile to monochrome? then you have all the channels as well. Pretty sure it was available in LR in 2021 already :D :)) ok let me finish the video now ..
In my opinion, Black and white removes the factor of...time. It usually makes any photo "intemporal", and sometimes, that's the most important feeling that ultimately makes us enjoy a photo for the feeling it transpires and not for anything accessory.
I'm still dirty at the fact I payed for the entire Nik collection in the past, and my Mac died. Now they won't honour any Nik versions from the previous developer so that money's gone 🤷🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️
I paid for NIK as well but you can't blame DXO they never received any money from you. As Samuel has said, DXO still provide the free version that they paid Google for.
The first 1000 people to use the link will get a free trial of Skillshare Premium Membership: skl.sh/samuellstreetlife02211
What I love about the black-and-white image is it deconstructs a scene and reduces it to its forms and tones. It also evokes certain emotion that a colour photography can’t do
Agree!
What I like about black and white photography is the way it changes my perception of reality as I normally see it. It also enhances textures, shapes and makes us avoid some of the distractions that colour creates.
Greetings from the Basque Country!
Th Nik Collection is now 30% off until March 28th! -> bit.ly/3bxVhSh
Excellent video, Samuel, I like your process for black and whites! What a difference
what I like about BW is that you are able to really showcase the most important part of the images. plus I just learned a bit more of that software. Thanks!
Thanks for the great video! I love black and white because it emphasizes how photography is always a craft, not a straightforward representation of reality. In that sense, it puts you right away inside a different world, almost like a dream :)
Thank you Samuel. Great work.
Have a nice day
Thank you! Appreciate it! Love what you guys are doing.
I didn't realise that there was still a free version available. Great news and thanks for that. It's now installed on my PC once more. Loved it when I used it in the past.
Loving B&W as photos become ageless, clean, dramatic, minimalist, moody, poignant, or whatever else you want to convey in the moment - without the distraction of colour. Loving the work - keep it up and stay safe.
Samuel , thank you for a clear and concise video, as a novice photographer it has given me a lot of inspiration to start using black and white. Great work 👍
My pleasure Brian! I'm glad it was helpful!
Really helpful video, I've been playing with the trial version to see if it was something that would add to my workflow and i hadn't quite understood how the control points worked. This really helped
Fast and efficient video….thanks, very useful.
Really like what you did with the video editing! Great job, great video and great pictures!
The thing I love most about black and white is the consistency you can get. Also it somewhat makes you focus more and look for things, whereas in colour the subject would stand out more. I really need to shoot more black and white, great video as always Sam and brilliant photos! 🔥
Been shooting in B&W mode for the past one month and I haven't stopped, even if in the end I revert back to colors as the final product. In that one month I felt something truly different when shooting in B&W, some certain detachment from what I saw in the real world, and ability to at least trying to understand what's going on in the world I just photographed.
With that, thanks once again for introducing the film noir/B&W street critique challenge last month!
Silver Efex Pro is great. I have used it for years and have been very happy with it.
Wow I always knew about the Nik collection didn't know how intricate it is. Bravo!
Separate note. No offense but in the future I'll use this video to make me sleepy.
With black and white I am after certain qualities that photographic image making contains. The power of composition can be used to develop a path for the viewer’s eye around an image. Colour often masks this path and dilutes the dramatic qualities of an image. I want to shoot with tonal lenses that introduce plasticity and lend volume and texture to objects. Black and white excels in its ability to depict shape and volume. Printing on silver based media and lighting the image on the gallery wall brings an image in monochrome to life. The structure of grain is important too. High acutance developers like Rodinal give very structured grain that the eye keys onto and adds definition by making the grain sharpen and create edges between tonal values. I haven’t tried Silver EFX yet but it seems like a useful tool for enhancing digital monochrome images.
I love how black and white makes a photo feel so much more moody and full of depth
Been using Silver efex pro for a couple of years now. Astonishing results in general. Subbed 👍
Big fan of Silver Efex Pro. Thanks for the video.
Thank you! Regarding Silver Efex, some years ago I had to convert photos to b&w for a book, and I was shocked by how great I could make them look with just a few steps. Really great tonal range in the conversions without a lot of work. I didn't know there was a free version and will of course check it right away.
I think black and white photography is more emotional. Love it !
Lovely lovely shots.
Thanks John!
thanx for showing me this plug-in, have heard of it but this is the first time I have seen it used
what i love about b&w is the removal of color distraction all you get left is peace no matter how chaos is happening in the picture
Black and white is timeless!
Not only is the black and white aesthetic timeless, I also believe that shooting in monochrome has made me a better photographer. By zeroing in and paying more attention to composition instead of color, I’ve been able to grow my skills in a big way.
Thanks for the refresher.... had gotten away from the S E app
Best thing about black and white is the drama it ads to the scene. It’s timeless.
Thank you, I am currently working on a black and white project and this info is invaluable.
Nice! Good luck with that project!
I love that it makes you think differently at the time of shooting, it makes you a better photographer (also big fan here samuel!)
What I love about black and white is its simplicity
Thank you so much for this good sir! )
Samuel, Love this video and your upcoming book. Could you tell us which self-publishing printer that your book is printed by ?
THanks, Charles
Hi Samuel. really love your videos. I learned a lot of tips and tricks. Do you have any tips on how to shoot low budget black and white photos (gears and editing apps)? Thanks!
IT MUST BE NICE. Finally showing off the Leica on the UA-cam, front and center, black tape off and all. Nice.
Hehe. Sometimes you gotta show off lol
@@SamuelStreetlife I, like so many others, have lusted after Leica forever. Today, I bit the bullet and am trading in my x-pro3 and 4 lenses to get an M-P typ240, used. I have m glass already for my M3. My justification is now any lens I own will work for both my film and digital cameras, both ways, without an adapter. AHHHHHHHH. (Thanks for the inspiration).
Good reminder to use Silver Efex, that control point technology is awesome. I don't use it enough!
I experimented lately shooting only b&w, mainly to focus on composition and get better at it, and now i when i shoot color i feel weird haha so i tried the software to see if i noticed any difference in my workflow and to be honest there isn't really thaaat much, but as you said, the control points tool are the best! so after one month trial i decided to buy the software haha
I like the control points
I love bnw photos at it gives more feelings into the photo.
Great stuff Samual! Your authentic approach is super cool. Thank you! PS. I used the old NIK version for Apple Aperture. Will check to see options to upgrade to latest version.
Alright, because of this video I went and downloaded the free version to play around with it and re-edited a bunch of old black and white pictures and it's a lot of fun.
What I like about black and white images is when they're a tad grainy and very gritty looking. That usually doesn't really quite klick with me in colour images.
Saal digital prints on Baryta paper are just 👌🏽
Drama and nostalgic feelings, that's what I like about b/w. Thanks for sharing your process, I didn't know about silver efex, but I can see is an awesome tool, I'll check it up. :D
Great work. I like B&W photography. They reality is focused to the main things of seeing. Best wishes from Hanover, Wilhelm Heim
very good result, personally I use snapseed When you are comfortable using them with the layers very good results on blacks and whites
Silver Efex is a fantastic programme. You don’t have to run it as a plug-in- you can also use it a standalone app by finding the executable file and making a link for the desktop.
Really?! Good to know...how do you do?
Great tip! I just tried it but you can only open Jpeg's and Tiff files. So you need to convert Raw files to Tiff files first.
@@matteoenricocattaneo I just searched for Silver efex in my explorer (windows) and then I found the folder with the plug in
@@SamuelStreetlife Yes - I find for my preferred high contrast B&W shots, TIF files produce results Indistinguishable from direct RAW files via the plug-in.
@@RichardLaurence yes you can edit a TIFF file similar to a RAW file (lightroom converts the RAW file to TIFF for silver efex anyways). But what I wanted to say with that is that you would still need to convert your RAW into TIFF files with another software (unless you can shoot in TIFF) before importing files into Silver Efex. For me it makes no sense to use Silver Efex as standalone software if I have to convert my RAW file in Lightroom anyways :) but its still cool that you can use Silver Efex without Lightroom! Actually saves a lot of time when you want to change or re-edit existing Silver Efex edits.
I think b&w can be very powerful especially with street photography as it captures the moment in its purest form and leads the viewer directly to the story being told.
In terms of ‚learning‘ photography b&w always helps me to focus on light and composition without the distraction of color/color settings.
Thanks for the video! :-)
Just one of the best tools available. Years ago i bought it, and 4 months later it became free of charge.....But it never left my workflow again.
Black and white is timeless.
I like the dreamlike view of b&w photography.
How are you printing your prints? (Inkjet, lab printing..?)
Great video 😊! I honestly prefer color but If I should pick one thing to like about BW is that it has this great dramatic effect.
Hehe, yes it can even make mundane scenes look like an apocalyptic movie scene : D
Great video. Joined the membership program or however it is called and I can't find the video that you reference at the end: how to prepare files for print
What I like the most about black and white is that there are no colours you have to worry about while composing an image. I've "limited" myself to only use b&w when I take photographs of people, so that I have to focus on light and shadows only.
I love black and white photography because sometimes colors aren't necessary and they draw out attention from the composition or with what you want to communicate with the shot. Also, as you said a lot in the video, it is dramatic 😂😂😂
Great video, thank you. Still I have an Off Topic question:
Does anyone else has problems installing the Nik Collection for macOS Big Sur? The installer tells me over and over that I have to run macOS 10.7 or newer, but I already downloaded the latest version of macOS. Can somebody help me out?
Nice worklow!
Thanks!
That intro 👌👌😎
Can't you use radial filters and lumi masks to get that thing "you cant do in LR" control point?
I like B&W because i can study light better than when i use colors
Thank you
What monitor do you use for your photo editing .
I mostly edit my images to B&W as I find colour distracting from what I’m trying to show.
The tonal range, and that old fashioned look that I used to see in newspapers before they began printing in colour, takes me back to a time when the majority of images were B&W... even the tv 🙂
If it warrants it, I will keep an image as a full-colour image but it has to be something that doesn't work in B&W for me, to not convert.
YES! Shout out for the green filter gang! lockdown is lonely..
Haha 😁 green filter for the win💪
Hi Samuel, I noticed that there’s a difference between Lightroom and SilverEfex when it comes to black levels. When bringing down blacks in SFex to „0“ it should be true black with no structure, right? But when I save the picture to LR it does not show me the blacks as crushed as I want it in my BnW images, they still look a bit soft and not „clipped“. I like the black level deep and clipped, but I can’t get there with SilverEfex. Anyone having tipps on this point?
I like the ability to exaggerate features of the photo in b&w.
I just love the powerful emotions that contrasty black and white street photographs show!
Also, I may have to purchase Silver Efex now 😅
They could sponsor you and give us some discount code, it would be nice 😜
Hehe. I actually tried to join their Affiliate Program yesterday but my request is still pending :D If I get a discount code I will add it in the description!
@@SamuelStreetlife Awesome!
The prints in the video did you print them on your own printer at home or did you let a laboratory print?? (which one?)
I ordered them from Saal-Digital.de. I think they are available in europe.
In your opinion, for Fujifilm; Acros or regular Monochrome? Why?
I prefer Acros because it has its own unique grain and I like the slightly faded look.
What about the industries secret " TRUEGRAIN 2" ??
I would like to win your beautiful BnW street photography! Well, what I love about BnW photography... because BnW gives me more chance to imagine about the photography itself than with colour..., I think. Keep it up, Lintaro san. I like what your photos and vids!! Good luck!
I use Silver Efex quite often. Love it. Great overview here of your processing...and I learned a couple of things!!! Thanks :-)
Nice! Thanks for watching Alex :)
How nice if silver efex pro can run in iPad Lightroom, unfortunately it cannot
3:11 Cenk Hoca. :)
Hi Samuel. I mainly use a Fuji xt2 (which I love to death😬!)
But for street, is does kinda stick out like a sore thumb..😑..I did a lot of research on what’s a good discrete street cam.. and BAM! , found your channel talking about the Ricoh!..days later I took the plunge and found a used mint gr ii .... and..holy crap has this thing impressed me!!...the black and whites that come out of it are pure magic and inspire me so much!..quick question..do u use full manual more or mostly snap, or a combination of the two depending on?...might be a dumb question 🤣..but I’m still getting used to navigating it..doesn’t help that the manual is all in Japanese 🤦♂️..anyway.. really appreciate your channel! Subbed for sure🤘!
Hello Samuel, can't seem to find the Silver Efex Skillshare class. Can you hook me up with a link maybe? thank you !
Thanks for this video Samuel. Very informative! I'm curious though, what printer do you use for making your B&W prints? I'm interested in getting one for personal work, probably nothing larger than A4 size prints, but it's hard to figure out what is a "must have" vs "must be nice" for printer specs.
Also, any plans for workshops in Tokyo this year?
7:20 "Infected/Not Infected"
Gr or Leica have you used for these shots?
First shot I was editing was a GR III file and the second one was from my Leica M 262.
@@SamuelStreetlife thank you for your answer Samuel! It is always incredible how a so small camera such Ricoh is able to keep up to Leica. As IQ, then the content of the pic depends by the quality of the photographer, and in this case it is always good.
really good tips samuel. 👌 adobe should have bought silver efex. You probably can't edit S&W images that well anywhere. The control points are really nice.
No I don't want adobe to buy silver efex! I don't want to pay for another subscription :D I love how silver efex is "only" a plug in. But I wouldn't mind a control point feature in LR or PS :)
@@SamuelStreetlife yes, that's right, paying for an extra program would really not be nice for your wallet. 😀 Whereas when adobe incorporates something, the development usually stagnates quite strongly.
I have always loved black & White Photography! I think the photographer has to stop & think how to make this pictures stand out more. You can’t just rely on color to catch your attention.
I like black and white photography. But I hate most black and white conversions. People use black and white as a way to save bad pictures often. When it's the creative choice I tend to like the photos alot more.
Silver Efex Pro is the closest I have come to replicating my film days.
I love the emotions that black and white photos bring 👍👍
Ps. This is for the giveaway 😁
Haha : D 👍 Qualified!
@@SamuelStreetlife 😁
love your videos! but it kills me to see you did b&w in Lightroom just by dragging the saturation all the way down. Wouldn't it be much better to change the profile to monochrome? then you have all the channels as well. Pretty sure it was available in LR in 2021 already :D :)) ok let me finish the video now ..
ok, great controls in the Nik Collection :))) thanks for this :)
In my opinion, Black and white removes the factor of...time.
It usually makes any photo "intemporal", and sometimes, that's the most important feeling that ultimately makes us enjoy a photo for the feeling it transpires and not for anything accessory.
MORE CONTROL POINTS SAMUEL
MOOOOOOORE!!!!
lol
haha. Not enough controoool!
I'm still dirty at the fact I payed for the entire Nik collection in the past, and my Mac died. Now they won't honour any Nik versions from the previous developer so that money's gone 🤷🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️
I paid for NIK as well but you can't blame DXO they never received any money from you. As Samuel has said, DXO still provide the free version that they paid Google for.
Lol did anyone else get Bob Ross vibes watching this?
Nice but nothing can touch film.
No film ? That’s cheating