Black & White

While I love color. Rich vibrant blue skies and emerald green grass. The pastel reds and oranges of a sunset, part of me very much enjoys black and white. I assume that many photographers go through phases. I would have to say that I am defiantly in a black and white phase. My brain is starting to not see colors but the great tonality between the lightest lights and the darkest darks of a particular scene. I have great appreciation for the B&W photographers that have come before me. Those that were forced into B&W because there was no other option and those that have chosen to make that there medium of choice when there were great color films and digital capture available to them. I feel lucky to be a photographer in a time when there are so many options available to us. We can snap a photograph in color and than turn it into a great black and white print to hang on our walls if we so choose.
Particularly I am in a toned black and white mood lately. Sepia, brown tones, and mostly platinum toned photographs and prints. I have only seen a hand full of platinum toned prints and have not toned my own in a wet darkroom the traditional way, though I would love the opportunity, I have only tried to mimic digitally what the masters have done chemically.