Separation

One important element of black and white photography is contrast. In the absence of colour, focusing on enhancing tonal contrast or separation between elements can make subjects or details stand out. Lately I’ve been trying to find areas of high contrast to highlight subjects. In this set of photos, I’m trying to get the two dark/shadowy subjects in front of the relatively white/light background.

I’ve got a nice reflection happening here and these two subjects are split between the pillar. The person on the left stands out as they are mostly in shadow against a white background. The subject on the right is just creeping into the dark area of the pillar.

Now the subject on the right is really starting to blend into the background. If it wasn’t for the really nice highlight on the top of their head, they would be relatively hidden. At this point, I’ve realised that I probably haven't framed this photo the way I want.

Now that there is only one subject in frame, they are in a good position and are standing out better against the white background. The nice highlight on top of the head is gone now though and I’m realising that the better light is to the right of the pillar.

When I sat down at this location, I really fixated on the pillar and the reflection. I framed my photo in a quadrant which probably wasn’t the best choice. The light was much better to the right of the frame and it probably would have highlighted the subject if there was less of the reflection in the picture. I still find it challenging to visualise how a subject will look when they walk through a frame.