In an age of saturated filters and endless color grading, black-and-white portraits might seem old-fashioned. Yet scroll through any major photography award shortlist and you will find that monochrome images still dominate the portrait categories. There is something about the absence of color that makes a face feel more immediate.

“Color tells you about the world around a person,” says Brooklyn portrait photographer Elise Martin. “Black and white tells you about the person.”

Light Is Everything

Without color to guide the eye, light does all the work. Martin prefers a single soft source, such as a large window or a softbox placed to one side, which sculpts the cheekbones and reveals the texture of skin, hair and fabric. A dark background helps the face glow.

Advertisement

“Freckles, fine lines, a stray curl: in monochrome, they become beautiful details,” she says. “People often love their black-and-white portraits more than their color ones because they look timeless instead of styled.” Composition also changes in black and white. Without color to separate elements, photographers rely on contrast, shape and tone. A dark sweater against a dark background can make a face appear to float, while a light background creates an airy, graphic feel. Martin often frames her subjects tightly, filling the frame with the face to emphasize the eyes. “The eyes are where the story is,” she says. “Everything else supports them.” She also pays attention to hands, which can add emotion and context when placed thoughtfully near the face or resting naturally, rather than posed in a stiff or awkward way.

Making The Conversion

Most professionals shoot in color and convert later, which gives them more control. In editing software, they adjust individual color channels to lighten or darken specific tones. Brightening the red and orange channels, for example, softens skin, while darkening blue makes clothing and backgrounds richer.

Contrast should be handled carefully. Too much and the image looks harsh; too little and it looks flat. Martin aims for deep blacks, clean whites and a full range of grays in between.

Above all, she says, connection matters more than technique. “The best portraits happen in the quiet moment between poses,” she explains. “When someone stops performing and simply looks at you, that is the photograph.”

Advertisement