[Leica] Black, white and monochrom issue

[tedgrant at shaw.ca (tedgrant at shaw.ca)]

Lew Schwartz OFFERED:

Subject: [Leica] Black, white and monochrom issue
> I've been thinking about this for a while, so I'll just throw it out here:
>
> It's inconceivable to me that there will ever be a point in time that
> artists, as they learn their craft, will ever stop producing sketches or
> fully modeled, shaded drawings in black and white. There will also also be
> artists who produce amazing work this way as an end in itself and not as a
> stepping stone to more complex color work. Form, line, shading, volume,
> etc... are independent of color.
>
> Why should photography be any different? It makes perfect sense to me that
> some photographers should and will choose to work exclusively in black and
> white, analog or monochrome digital.

Hi Lew,
Around the end of the '70's and beginning of the '80's everything was moving 
in colour. I was told by any number of art directors and photo editors, 
"black & white was dead, so get over it!" And get on with shooting 
everything in colour.

HOWEVER? I had just moved to Victoria from Ottawa, like moving from the 
Capital of Action Stations to the hinterland and generally out of main 
stream agencies etc.

But what happened? I was farther away and became in greater demand!  Which 
meant I was flying from the far west side of Canada back to the main stream 
nearly weekly.  During the hours of flying and looking through huge numbers 
of magazines and seeing what other passengers were reading. I noticed a B&W 
resurgence beginning in the first 4-5 years of the '80's and during some art 
director conversations!

Big name auto manufactures, European cars, Mercedes and a couple of others. 
Calvin Kline clothing and many other clothing manufactures began to use B&W 
because of a difference in "content attraction!"  Even the car manufactures 
began shooting B&W TV commercials .

I went for an interview in Vancouver and in my 16X20 portfolio were a number 
of B&W prints. Head boss art director was amazed....... "OH do you know how 
to shoot B&W? I've been looking for a real photographer who knows how! 
Everybody shoots colour and those who say, >>> Oh yeah sure I can shoot B&W 
nothing to it!<<<< But they just don't have a clue! It always looks like 
crap!"  Your stuff here is magnificent! "I smiled!" :-)

My response?  ........ "yeah sort of for about 30 years or so."  What would 
you like me to shoot? Got myself a 3 week shoot all in B&W! I smiled a 
lot!!!! :-) :-) "IT WAS COMING BACK AND IT DID!"

Then what began to happen was a sort of balance between B&W and colour 
occurred and kind of stayed that way up to the era of digital!  NOW? We've 
been blinded and side swiped once again by colour!  BUT?

And here we go again, I believe the resurgence is beginning! OK so Leica are 
coming out with the monochrome M! Did any of us realize, like maybe someone 
in that organization is a tad smarter than we generally give them credit 
for? And a much larger use of B&W in publications and advertising is 
actually just around the corner?

It wouldn't surprise me one iota. It will always be here. As you say, some 
people just work in B&W and they always will as long as there is a market 
for it and demand for it. And Galleries continue hanging the images.

I suppose we shall see within a year or two? Shorter time?  Longer time? 
But I'd bet B&W will once again be as mainstream as colour. But whomever is 
shooting it, had better know what the hell B&W images are all about and not 
just converted images shot in colour!  Yep sometimes it works beautifully as 
we've seen right here from the Crew.

But then we see something shot in B&W and?????????? "HOLY MACKEREL THAT'S 
FANTASTIC!"
Like I say, "We shall see?"

cheers,
Dr. ted