Inspirational

Storm, Dyrholaey, Iceland, 2012

I have come across another photographer producing fantastic black and white images that just make me want to get out there with my gear. His name is Jonathan Chritchley and he shoots landscapes, frequently featuring water in some way.

There is a beautiful simplicity about his work and Chritchley masters the light so perfectly. If you like the shot above, check out his website for a gallery of gorgeous shots.

I read about him in a feature in the November 2013 issue of the excellent Black and White Photography magazine. The article's author, editor Elizabeth Roberts, reveals that Chritchley is a perfectionist and quotes some advice he gives to up-and-coming photographers: "Stick to what you love, shoot for you, only listen to criticism from those who are better than you, be a perfectionist and never let a photograph get out that you're not 150 per cent happy with".

Plenty of food for thought in those words.

Incidentally, Chritchley will be bringing out his first book, entitled Silver, next month. It will be published by Boom and Vang.

'Arrangements in Black and Gray'

I am becoming more and more interested in, and enthusiastic about, black and white photography and a visit yesterday to an exhibition at Lacock Abbey, Wiltshire, provided plenty of inspiration.

Entitled Arrangements in Black and Grey, it featured the work of six photographers, who use a wide variety of equipment to capture their images.

The photographer who impressed me most was Mark Voce, of Yorkshire (markvoce.com). The top four photos above are by Mark and they show the wonderful tonal qualities of monochrome. As Mark says in the exhibition notes: “Without the use of colour the photograph, in order to be successful, depends upon the use of, and the relationship between, form and texture”.

He also says that black and white photography is “one step away from reality” and “allows a greater amount of freedom and artistic interpretation to help capture the true feeling of a particular scene”.

I like this enhanced ability to convey mood and feeling, which can also be seen in the photo of Versailles by Nettie Edwards (bottom right) and even in a still life by Trevor Ashby (bottom left). Interestingly, all three photographers use different techniques - Voce a digital SLR (and sometimes large format film camera), Ashby a film camera and Edwards an iPhone plus various apps.