GOD's Light

[S_Sanyal]

Haha, thats too flattering a remark ("guide me") for a photographer/hobbyist as fresh as me who has just begun learning. This forum has plenty of very helpful and experienced photographers who can help much better than I, but since you asked, let me tell you some self-imposed considerations i follow.( I dont know if you'd consider these "fast tips and tricks" though, but yes, with time, all this long "gyaan" becomes instinctive and hence "fast")

1. B&w photos are ALL ABOUT LIGHT. COMPOSITION. TEXTURE. Basics in photography.
Since you dont have colour, you have to look more, before you press the shutter.To decide what works best. Not to say this is not required in colour photography but more so here. Its a disciplined approach. This is of course unavoidable when I shoot in film. I walk and do reconnaissance for more than 90% of the time that I consider my shooting time.

2. Under light, TONES. & CONTRASTS. Observe what could be possible range of tones you can get from a scene. As I shoot mostly b/w negative when I shoot film, this is a must for me. Ironically, colour comes into play here. Different lighting on reds, blues, greens and oranges can give varied grey tones (also play with filters). Classic examples are landscapes with a clear blue sky that give excellent deep rich almost blackish greys. So its important to expose your scene correctly depending on where in your picture frame you want your tones to be uncompromisingly strong, As I use a 27(or 28 ) year old Pentax K1000, it meters approximately from the centre of the frame, so I have to expose the meter before I compose, depending on the kind of tones I want. In film of course, there are other considerations like grain and contrast (Ilford100 and KodakTMax100 give very fine grain and all possible shades of grey, Ilford 400 or KodakTri-X are more grainy and contrasty so for more rustic finishes I use the latter while the former is better for long shots of landscape etc) The film talk is irrelevant if you shoot RAW on digital, as you can convert on PC but the considerations remain the same even then.

3. Textures add to the feel of any picture, especially rustic ones like the one that you have in the picture here; its so strong because of the weathered basalt stone on your Daitya Sudan temple; similar to Mandu..

Hope this crash tutorial helps though I must warn you, its coming from a complete amateur

[rohan_iiitc]

Thanks saptarishi,

Any input or advice is always important as they are have been practising in the same and when they can post one great image that means they have something which is well considered.

That was a good tuts, I dnt hava fil camera and i shoot with my DLSR so i knw i wil lose a bit more of data in digital as compared to film, but still i will try to put in more effort to understnd the bnw tone and contrast, grains and light which makes the BnW image more powerful.

Thanks agian