THE BEAUTY OF BLACK AND WHITE

Sometimes a photograph looks better in black and white--it is largely a judgement call depending on the photographer's visual expectation of the final scene. I choose black and white when the inclusion of color would detract from the scene; for instance, in this picture, a distracting background of green plant matter would take away from the primary subject, that is the milkweed pod and the emerging seeds. my purpose was to lend attention to the emergence of the newly formed seeds in relation to the light focused upon them. Another photographer might do this differently; they might keep the color and draw attention to another part of the photo. In my opinion, the absence of color adds to a more concentrated focus on subject matter, so I try to use black and white whenever I can. The advantage of digital is that you can see your scene in most cameras either way (color or black/white) and decide which final print or file is your best representation. This is a good practice to develop; seeing your files in both mediums will be a great start in learning how to see a subject in different ways--eventually you will be able to do this little trick without the cameras assistance. Good luck and keep shooting!