Black and White images of color

If you read this blog you know I enjoy photography and the study of history. I am passionate about taking the opportunity to combine those two interests when the chance avails itself.

In a development (forgive the photo humor) that is completely out of step with my general personality, I like to experiment with both the camera and with the resulting image. During my nine years as an instructor’s assistant at a community college in California I helped students learn about black and white film photography and, whether the students learned anything or not, it was an amazingly educational experience for me. It was during this time that I first began to experiment with my images.

I have some examples here, accompanied by a description of what each set of images contain.

 OBJECTIVE: Using my Photoshop program, render images from two Civil War battlefields from their current appearance to something approaching their 1863 look. Then convert the color images to black and white images that show the way photographers of the era might have shot them.

TOOLS: My trusty Nikon D90 (one image required a monopod) and Photoshop Elements 11.

TIP: It helps to know what you are looking at from an historical perspective. I have studied both battles.

 This first set of images is at Gettysburg on the northern end of the Wheatfield, aimed south. Little Round Top is visible in the background. I had to do some light Photoshop clone stamp work to rid the image of some monuments (which were not there at the time of the battle) for the black and white version. The Wheatfield saw some awful fighting on July 2, 1863. The 20-acre location changed hands, I believe, six times before the Confederates finally gained possession. The inclusion of Little Round Top is appropriate: After chasing the Federals from the Wheatfield, a group of Southerners marched against the small hill, only to be pushed back to the Wheatfield.

From the north end of the Wheatfield at Gettysburg.

Same image, with some monuments.

The black and white image gives off a stronger statement, I feel, than the color shot. Understand, they are different versions of the exact same image, but the B&W has a different feel.

 The second pair is also from Gettysburg, in the area where the cavalry units met on July 3, 1863. The fighting in this area started with an ambush, so I ducked behind some handy trees and collected this image of the Rummel Farm. It is a working farm today, so I had to be sure the buildings do not look too modern when I framed the image.

Here the black and white image is actually an infra-red application. I like the way this increases the contrast between the black of the leaves of the tree I am behind with the lighter colors of the farm buildings and the grassy area between the two.

 

 

 

 

 

Here I like both images. The infra-red application makes a neat difference.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The third collection comes from the site of the Battle of Chickamauga. Look at the color image to see the monuments I removed before converting to black and white. The tall monument is the South Carolina memorial, sitting on a portion of the hill leading to Horseshoe Ridge. This was a terribly dangerous place to be on July 20, 1863. The Confederates pushed up this hill most of the afternoon before finally taking control around sundown.

 

 

Lesser known than Little Round Top, this hill was the location of some grizzly fighting. When I see this image, I think of the Confederates disappearing into the trees on their way to the source of the bullets and cannon balls the Union soldiers were shooting at them.

 

The color image was captured in the early spring with the colors are not dramatic.

Even knowing then history, the color shot is not too exciting. But converting the image to black and white changes my reaction. Does it do anything for you?

 

 

 

 

Finally, one of my favorite markers at Gettysburg. I think the history explains itself. The black and white image gives this marker a gritty feel. Every time I see it, I think about the men who helped locate the spot and I assume they were veterans of the fighting there. I wonder what they saw and heard, mentally, as they determined the spot where the marker should be placed decades after the war.

Full disclosure here: I burned in most of the lettering for the images of this marker. Age has made the marker difficult to read in a photograph.

 

You will doubtlessly be able to find ways to experiment, photographically. It is my hope that one of those experiments will be with a film camera loaded with a roll of black and white. You’ll find that shooting with a film camera forces you to generate better habits because you don’t have an endless supply of images. Digital photography, with all of its technical advantages, makes for lazy photographers.

I encourage you to visit Civil War battlefields and bring a camera. But do so with at least a general understanding of what happened there. Visit with enthusiasm, by all means. But walk with respect.

         Thanks for reading.