51% - 49%

Last week’s session of Thinking Photography (yes, I know I missed a week . .  mea culpa) was on Monochrome images and it involved looking at and thinking about what might make a photographer decide to make a photograph in monochrome versus color.  As usual, Charlie Waite was full of thoughtful insights, and encouraged us to voice not only our questions, but our thoughts about some of the points he made.  

Some of the images Charlie showed presented the same image in color and then in black and white, with an explanation as to why he thinks one is more successful than the other.  Other images were solely in black and white and were accompanied by a description as to why they are only in black and white.  In the end, we walked away with several principles for us to consider when making an image, and Charlie’s encouragement for us to commit to seeing through, to a final print, any image we believe should be rendered in monochrome at the time we make it in the field.  

One comment on an image pair struck a note and immediately brought an image of my own to mind.  Charlie’s image was of Chateau de Sully in France.  We’d discussed it the previous week in color, and this week he showed it in color and black and white.  After discussing the qualities evident in each, version he said, “This is one of those rare images that can go either way.  Really, I’d say this one is 51% - 49%.

Well, as I’ve mentioned recently, I’ve been browsing through my images for another project I’m working on and a particular image came to mind when Charlie said that.  It was made one morning at Cape Arago, when Ann and I took advantage of an exceptionally low, lower-low tide at dawn.  I was surprised not only at how far the ocean had receded, but also at what was revealed.

That morning I made several images of kelp.  As you can see, the kelp was this incredible, intense golden color that seemed to glow.  It was juxtaposed with these giant purple leaves that seemed to add to the intensity of the golden globes of the kelp.  In addition to finding a satisfying composition, it took a bit of manipulation with a polarizing filter to remove some, but not all, of the sheen on the leaves . It was so beautiful I wanted to capture both the intensity of the colors and the vibrant reflections from the wet leaves.

Something about it called out to me to look at it in black and white.  So I recall at the time pulling out my monochrome viewing filter (a colored filter I have on a lanyard that helps you see things in monochrome and aids in decision-making for black and white photography) and being mesmerized by what was before me.  At the time I made the image, I was confident that I was going to develop the image two ways.

So I have a couple of questions for you:

(1) 51% - 49%?

(2) Which way?