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Photography vocabulary · Editing & Retouching

Black and white

Meaning in photography, with examples

adjectiveCore term

In photography, black and white means: Made only of shades of gray from black to white, without any color. Also called monochrome.

In Turkish: siyah beyaz, monokrom

How it is used

Hyphenated before a noun (a black-and-white photo) and also used as a noun phrase: shoot in black and white, convert to black and white. Popular in street, documentary and fine art photography. B&W is a common abbreviation.

Example sentences

  1. This portrait works better in black and white; the colors were distracting.

  2. She converts all her street shots to black and white.

Common collocations

  • convert to black and white
  • black-and-white film
  • black-and-white portrait
  • shoot in black and white
  • contrastThe difference between the light and dark areas of an image. High contrast has deep blacks and bright whites; low contrast looks flatter and softer.
  • street photographyCandid photography of everyday life and people in public places, usually unposed and taken without directing anyone.
  • saturationHow strong and intense the colors in an image are. Zero saturation gives black and white; very high saturation looks loud and unnatural.
  • dodge and burnTo lighten (dodge) and darken (burn) selected areas of a photo to shape the light, add depth or guide the eye. The names come from darkroom printing.

More terms: Editing & Retouching

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