Black and White...what's the secret?

[Dubie]

I shot a roll of B&W last week and it just doesn't look right. The colors seem "off" either too dark and too grey and not enough white. But first I must tell you I used basic kodak film you buy at the drug store and used the automatic mode on my Nikon n60. Is this because once you get the picture you can work with it to get the look you want. They just don't have the same coloring as the pics you see in magazines.

 

[Big Mike]

used the automatic mode on my Nikon n60

Is this because once you get the picture you can work with it to get the look you want.

It may be a little of both. Surly any photo in a magazine has been 'worked' in some way. Either digitally or in the darkroom. Also, it really helps to know what you are shooting, and what you are metering...and what you want the image to look like.

You were probably using C41 (color process) B&W film...which is fine. But true B&W film is much better for getting the stunning results that you might be thinking about.

 

[Dubie]

Thanks Mike. I'll get it eventually. They always look so beautiful in all the magazines.

 

[LeftyRodriguez]

If you're serious about getting into B&W film photography, you might want to eventually learn to process it yourself. It's fairly cheap to get into and doesn't require a darkroom per se, unless you're going to start printing. Once you've processed it yourself, you can use a film scanner to scan the negs and do any fine corrections in PS or The Gimp or whatever your favourite photo software is.

 

[Dubie]

If you're serious about getting into B&W film photography, you might want to eventually learn to process it yourself. It's fairly cheap to get into and doesn't require a darkroom per se, unless you're going to start printing. Once you've processed it yourself, you can use a film scanner to scan the negs and do any fine corrections in PS or The Gimp or whatever your favourite photo software is.

Thanks Lefty. I actually started a class this semester for camera and composition. Next semester I will take a B&W class. I really needed to learn how to use the camera first But B&W is my favorite way to go.