The Old Dairy Farm, a photo from Massachusetts, Northeast

Photographer's Note

The second workshop has a new version, comments please...

As I have said repeatedly, I am not a huge fan of B&W. This past week I saw some that I thought were very good, maybe better than a color version of the same shot. This is the same barn I posted a couple of weeks ago but this time I got up at 4AM and shot it during the sunrise.

Because this is just a test case for me I have included the exact same shot, same everything but the B&W selection. It was processed in Capture NX. Please let me know what you think and don’t worry about being too kind, I really want to know.

dareco, vmf-214, fulvio52, Royaldevon, frostymon, zmey, Floydian, crhieatt, adores, gunbud has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

vmf-214 (1648) 2008-07-12 21:16

Hi Greg,

Nice shot of the barn, Like the b&w photo and angle you took on the shot.

dareco (17136) 2008-07-13 1:12

Like you I was never a huge fan of b&w , but more and more I am coming to appreciate them. I do like this one more than the color version. I also really like the low pov which gives us a very nice angle on both of the buildings. The lighting and contrast are very good. And...as you know...I do love my old buildings :)

Budapestman (82620) 2008-07-13 8:36

Hi Greg,
Splendid shot from these old building with attractive composition. Very good choice the B&W, the soft lights are impressive. Beautiful elegy with superb realization, I like it very much. Have a nice Sunday
George

fulvio52 (8314) 2008-07-13 11:38

Hi Greg,
I know close to nothing at all about B&W, therefore I'm not the most qualified to judge your work, but I like what I see.
Intriguing, moody compo, with an eerie flavour. It definitely benefits from the B&W conversion.
Which often seems to be the case with certain subjects when the light in the original (color) version just isn't at its best. Meaning : this is a sunrise shot with very little light available, you did what you could under the circumstances.
Have a nice sunday, see ya later.
F.

Royaldevon (85856) 2008-07-13 13:03

Hello Greg,

I think b&w carries a stronger message in some instances so there is a case 'for' and a case 'against' its use.

In this instance, I think the b&w works best. It carries a stronger message of dereliction and disuse. There is nothing to sway the eyes into perceiving colour as softer or more gentle. This is very abrupt and direct! More of a sleleton!

I like your chosen viewpoint being able to see in to the yawning, empty mouths.

Kind regards,
Bev :-)

frostymon (191) 2008-07-14 6:20

The BW treatment for this photo, and when considering the subject matter, definitely surpasses the color photo. Also consider the colors and lighting of the color version. I'd say that in color, the lighting is flat and the colors aren't striking, whereas with the BW, the flat light isn't an issue since the contrast of paint/no paint on the structure takes the stage which also creates more of a feeling of abandonment...if anything, I would have lightened it up a bit and added more contrast. With my own photos, I will create a black and white image only if i am trying to create a mood or the lighting/contrast works better in BW...or I have not-so-great colors and even processing does nothing for the colors...

Thanks for showing and letting us have a nice BW v Color dialogue...quite refreshing.

zmey (7335) 2008-07-14 9:22

hello greg

i like the idea to present this scene in BW. helps to accentuate the textures and the abandoned-place mood. nonetheless, i feel, the shot is too dark and, if i may say so, too montotone-grayish (lacks contrast). how did you do your BW conversion? have you tried playing with chanels? i find that chanel conversion (rather than desaturation or other 1-step conversions) improves BW quality quite a bit.

warm regards,
kristaps

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Waylim (25436) 2008-07-14 14:16

Greg, I like the overall feel of this shot, I don't know if the crop is any benefitial, I would rather like to see more sky in this case perhaps if it's an open landscape view the panoramic view would be appropriate. I like the color version better. The black&white is a bit flat. Perhaps if you punch up the contrast and light a little be will help in the black and white. Everything else is as good as always. Thanks Greg.
Way

azleader (6) 2008-07-14 14:17

I am a huge fan of traditionalist B/W and have processed many of them.

Some scenes lend themselves well to B/W treatment and your composition is one of them. Old buildings, like yours, make especially good B/W subjects.

I fully agree with zmey that the image is way to dark. The tones look very are flat on my calibrated monitor.

B/W is particularly sensitive to tonal range and most need a full range of tonality from pure black (0,0,0) to pure white (255,255,255). If you look at the light curve for this image I think you will find that it does not so needs some adjustments. Looks like the top end doesn't get anywhere near pure white and I'm unsure you even achieve pure black.

There are zillions of ways to post process B/W that you could employ to improve the tonal richness of this fine composition. I believe you would find it well worth the effort.

Depending on software you have available I could give you some suggestions if you would like. If asked I'll process it here on my own machine and upload it to the workshop to show you what I mean. I'd use Photoshop CS2.

goldyrs (136) 2008-07-14 19:09

Sorry, very tired, so just marking your shot for now.
Goldy

Floydian (30970) 2008-07-15 6:10

Hi Greg,
The biggest problem here is the lack of real black and real white...it's all neutral grey. That makes it less interesting although the two houses look perfect for a deep b&w image...
Okay it's just a test...i will not hang to tight on that ;-)
Regards, Henk

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oochappan (4880) 2008-07-15 8:02

Gave it a try in the WS, all is there to bring it out in a incongruous way, started from colorversion.

[workshop] [compare] +

danasam (1075) 2008-07-15 9:20

Hi Greg, wonderful meaningful photo, excellent B&W work and perfect POV. very well done my friend.
Sam.

crhieatt (5347) 2008-07-16 5:51

Greg,
That, my friend, is a lot of workshops!!!!! Which is best.........oh god, I can't remember the number now! Never mind. But, perhaps, that is one problem with the ditigal system - an endless - literally endless - opportunity for other options! Save us!!!!

I like b&w (on the whole) and these two buildings are well suited to it - and to the pano format. Overall, the shot could do with a bit more brightness - maybe it was a dull dull day - certainly looks it. I still think you should venture inside - there just has to be some interesting "stuff" in there!

Regards
Colin

adores (46979) 2008-07-23 17:59

Hi Greg!
This really seems an old photo! Good way to show this old farm in ruins.I'm not really sure if I prefer this one or the colour version.

gunbud (34066) 2008-07-29 11:58

Hi Greg,
Black & white treatment works well with this image giving it a timeless feel and goes well with the somber decline of these old barns.
Excellent clarity and sharp details to this early moring image.
Regards, Tom