B&W or Color?

[slimodin]

Looking for critique on this image in B&W or color.

Blach&White by Shawn Bwell, on Flickr

Color by Shawn Bwell, on Flickr

 

[slimodin]

Maybe a bit more edit with B&W

DSC_1646 by Shawn Bwell, on Flickr

 

[sashbar]

Color. There is no reason to go B&W that i can think of - no bold lines, no good separation from the background, no contrast, no drama, nothing. This is just a sculpture of a pig and an accidental pink-ish cast of its cheek is the only detail that attracts my attention. Probably, you try hard, the green lines on the pig may draw parallelas with old horsemen monuments it you know what i mean.. In B&W to me personally the image is not interesting at all, to be honest.

 

[Dagwood56]

I prefer the color version because the viewer can tell the statue is bronze. In the b&w version it could be made of almost anything and it just blends into the background too much. The green grass actually helps to set the statue apart from the background in the color version.

 

[snowbear121 52]

Oooooo . . . bronze bacon!

I like the color, but my eyes keep going to the grass on the left. Maybe if you darkened up the background a bit, like in the second B&W, but keep piggy the same brightness.

 

[TCampbell]

That's an interesting question... but rather than answer it directly, let me give you my thought process.

Images have a number of things going for them... texture, lighting and shadows, contrast, pattern or rhythm, structure, leading lines, perhaps tension, etc.

COLOR... on the other hand, is an element of the image that can be very strong. So strong, that if what you want to do is bring out the OTHER elements of the image, then removing the color can eliminate a distraction. The image goes from a documentary shot the eye is expecting, to something less real because the color we'd see in real life has been removed. We can only look at whatever is left over.

SO... if what I want to do is bring out the textures, or structure, etc. (especially if I have a nice high-contrast image) then I'll consider converting it to black and white.

But sometimes the colors help make the mood. Floral scenes, sunsets, etc. are often about the warmth, vibrancy, or even softness of the color. Color can add excitement in a scene that you want to appear edgy (a night club scene, for example) -- and desaturating color (use of muted values) can sometimes provide a kind of softness. So in these cases, I leave the color in.