{"id":73035,"date":"2020-11-20T23:00:21","date_gmt":"2020-11-20T23:00:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/fujifilmnxtc.wpenginepowered.com\/stories\/shooting-portraits-in-black-white\/"},"modified":"2020-11-20T23:00:21","modified_gmt":"2020-11-20T23:00:21","slug":"shooting-portraits-in-black-white","status":"publish","type":"story","link":"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/th-th\/stories\/shooting-portraits-in-black-white\/","title":{"rendered":"Shooting Portraits in Black &#038; White"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><p>Of all of the subjects you could tackle in black &amp; white, portraits are among the most powerful. Let\u2019s look at how a lack of color can translate into an abundance of character and personality.<\/p>\n<p>Creating portraits in black &amp; white is a great way of putting the viewer\u2019s attention firmly where it needs to be \u2013 on your subject. Without the distraction of color, we are free to focus on the subject\u2019s expression and character, or better see their unique features like freckles, wrinkles, or stubble. In short, black &amp; white portraits just have more soul.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<ul class=\"wp_flexbox col2\">\n<li><img data-preload-after-window-load=\"preload\" data-preload-delay=\"300\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/fujifilm-x.b-cdn.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/mclark_indiancreek_DSF1158v1117.jpg?width=581\" alt=\"Learn photography with Fujifilm, Shooting Portraits in Black &amp; White\" width=\"581\" height=\" 871\" loading=\"lazy\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\">\u00a9 Michael Clark<\/li>\n<li><img data-preload-after-window-load=\"preload\" data-preload-delay=\"300\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/fujifilm-x.b-cdn.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/BEvans_Paris_StreetPortraits_001.jpg?width=581\" alt=\"Learn photography with Fujifilm, Shooting Portraits in Black &amp; White\" width=\"581\" height=\" 871\" loading=\"lazy\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\">\u00a9 Benedict Evans<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><p>Your approach should mimic that of black &amp; white photography itself:\u00a0keep it simple, unfussy, and stripped back. Try to inject some contrast into the image by choosing a dark background behind a light subject, or a light background behind a darker one. You should also try to look for lighting that illuminates your subject slightly from the side from a single source, rather than from all directions \u2013\u00a0a bit of shadow on the face is no bad thing in a monochrome portrait.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p><p><img data-preload-after-window-load=\"preload\" data-preload-delay=\"300\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/fujifilm-x.b-cdn.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/Lane-5242-1.jpg?width=1200&#038;height=1500\" alt=\"Learn photography with Fujifilm, Shooting Portraits in Black &amp; White\" width=\"1200\" height=\"1500\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-3819791\" loading=\"lazy\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\">\u00a9 Bobbi Lane<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p><p>You can see if the picture in front of you is looking good as a potential monochrome photograph by composing it with your camera switched to one of its black &amp; white Film Simulation modes:\u00a0MONOCHROME or ACROS.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p><p><img data-preload-after-window-load=\"preload\" data-preload-delay=\"300\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/fujifilm-x.b-cdn.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/vlcsnap-2020-03-24-17h25m52s653.jpg?width=1500&#038;height=844\" alt=\"Learn photography with Fujifilm, Shooting Portraits in Black &amp; White\" width=\"1500\" height=\"844\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-3819935\" loading=\"lazy\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\"><\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p><p>Otherwise, many of the rules of color portraiture still apply when photographing in black &amp; white. Try to select wide apertures (small f-stops) using Aperture Priority mode and with some distance between your subject and the background. This will help your subject stand out against a soft, blurry background (an effect that can look wonderful in high-contrast monochrome). A short telephoto lens also helps, as it lets you fill the frame with your subject\u2019s face without getting too close or crowding them.<\/p>\n<p>Also try to keep your subject\u2019s eyes in focus \u2013 they\u2019re not known as the \u2019windows to the soul\u2019 for nothing, especially in monochrome. You can do this automatically by using your camera\u2019s Face\/Eye Detection, which will let you keep your concentration firmly where you need it \u2013\u00a0on your subject.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p><p>\u00a0<img data-preload-after-window-load=\"preload\" data-preload-delay=\"300\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/fujifilm-x.b-cdn.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/MONOCHROME_EL-2-2.jpg?width=1500&#038;height=1000\" alt=\"Learn photography with Fujifilm, Shooting Portraits in Black &amp; White\" width=\"1500\" height=\"1000\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-3819983\" loading=\"lazy\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\"><\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p><h3>Your Next Steps<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>CHALLENGE <\/strong>Pick someone to photograph in black &amp; white and show us what you can do. Subjects that have distinctive features work best \u2013 like freckles or wrinkles. Post your favorite image to social media with the hashtag #MyFujifilmLegacy #blackandwhite. You can also submit your work <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/th-th\/myfujifilmlegacy\/\" rel=\"noopener\">here<\/a> for a chance to be featured on our social media channels.<\/li>\n<li><strong>LEARN<\/strong> Download our booklet\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/th-th\/special\/booklets\/see-the-world-in-black-white-with-fujifilm-x-series.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">See the World in Black and White with FUJIFILM X Series<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Header image \u00a9 Seth K Hughes<\/p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Of all of the subjects you could tackle in black &amp; white, portraits are among the most powerful. Let\u2019s look at how a lack of color can translate into an abundance of character and personality. Creating portraits in black &amp; white is a great way of putting the viewer\u2019s attention firmly where it needs to [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":0,"template":"","category":[2427,1202,2329,1251,565],"post_tag":[],"b2b-solutions":[],"class_list":["post-73035","story","type-story","status-publish","hentry","category-articles-type-stories","category-category","category-tips-category-stories","category-type-stories","category-stories"],"pp_statuses_selecting_workflow":false,"pp_workflow_action":"current","pp_status_selection":"publish","acf":[],"fujifilm_category_label":"Tips","publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-10-15 20:28:53","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/th-th\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/story\/73035","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/th-th\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/story"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/th-th\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/story"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/th-th\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/8"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/th-th\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=73035"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/th-th\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/category?post=73035"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/th-th\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/post_tag?post=73035"},{"taxonomy":"b2b-solutions","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/th-th\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/b2b-solutions?post=73035"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}