Black & White Photography

When I was housekeeping my bookshef last weekend, I found my portofilio of my early photographic work. Most of them are black & white photographs.

Remember the day when I first learnt photography was black & white photography based on Zone System, it was a joyful experience as I managed the entire photographic process from image composition, metering & exposure calculation, film development to photograph printing using full manual control (the manual-control camera, the manual film development tank, the manual print enlarger). It was a sophisticated process but I enjoyed the satisfaction of true photography.

This photo was taken at "Tung Ping Chau" in Hong Kong, a nice scenic location. It was a rainy day and I intentionally took the picture with low contrast acquiring a moody feel.

Nowadays, digital photography is so convenient with everything automatic and digitalized. Though creativity is the key to photography and most of the exposure and darkroom techniques are replaced by photo-editing software in computers, I do believe it is necessary to possess traditional photographic skill/knowledge (lighting, exposure, zone control...) so that the maximum enjoyment and achievement can be obtained through the viewfinder.

This photo was also taken at "Tung Ping Chau" with a high contrast image composition.