Black and White Photography Prints
Nothing replaces the look and feel of a black and white photograph printed on quality paper. The Internet and it's black and white photography websites are great for simply displaying an image but once you have seen a quality fine art black and white print there's no turning back. Fine art prints can trigger an emotional response and draw the viewer into the mystery held within the spirit of an image. Thought provoking content, creative composition and the use of natural light make a black and white print something worth revisiting for many years to come.
The start of the process of making a print really begins with the composition of a photograph. When I am photographing a scene whether it's Toronto architecture or some other subject matter I try to visualize the end result while I'm composing the scene. This may sound like an obvious process but the details within the photograph are frequently what make the difference of a nice print and a great print. With architecture photography, the horizontal and vertical lines within the structure must be angled in such a way that when viewed the perspective is pleasing to the eye. In addition to the perspective component the positioning of signs, wires and other buildings in the background also contribute to the end result. Frequently a different vantage point is needed to correct or eliminate the distractions surrounding the building I'm shooting. It is quite common these days for photographers to use photoshop or some other software to eliminate things from an image. With my work what you are seeing is the real representation of the scene. In some cases, many cases actually, when I have found a unacceptable flaw within an image that could be corrected with photoshop, I have gone out and re-shot a location in the interest of keeping the print authentic and that's simply the way I work.
All the images here on BlackandWhitePhotography.ca were originally photographed in colour and then converted to black and white using a process I have developed over the years. This process includes creating a duotone image and the painstaking process of burning and dodging to create the right tone and feel. Basically my process is a digital version of what happens in a darkroom when shooting with film. I have used many fine art papers over the years but always seem to come back to Hahnemuhle fine art papers. I had used a Baryta paper for many years but now have settled on Photo Rag as my paper of choice.
There's a lot of work, care and creative energy that goes into the black and white images you see here on my website but as I stated earlier there's nothing like viewing the finished print of a photograph that holds special meaning to you.
Andy Brooks
