Colour is descriptive. Black and white is interpretive.
Elliott Erwitt
The choice between colour or monochrome for a photo is a very subjective one. Some people simply don’t like black and white photography, seeing it as old-fashioned, unnatural and unnecessary. Why remove the colour from a scene, they ask, when we see the world in colour. Why show things as less vibrant, less varied, less colourful than they really are?
Others swear by black and white as the only true photographic art form. Colour is too representative, not properly creative. But for me this isn’t a black and white issue (sorry, couldn’t resist that pun!) For some images colour seems to work better, for others monochrome, and for many I feel both versions have merit, bringing out different aspects of a subject. In a recent post about black and white photography of people I pointed out how colour can be a distraction, drawing your eyes away from the person’s face to focus on their clothes or surroundings.
For this end of year Monochrome Madness round-up I’ve selected some favourite shots from my monthly Changing Seasons galleries for conversion to black and white. And I’m doubling up with a link to the Lens Artists challenge, also looking for favourite shots from the past year.
It’s worth saying that these don’t necessarily represent my very favourite shot from each month, as I looked for images that would work well in monochrome. But they are all among my favourites! A few of them were previously shared in these monochrome edits but most were originally in colour and have been converted for this post using Nik Silver Efex Pro as always.
My feature photo was taken in Tynemouth, north east England, in May
JANUARY
Victoria & Albert Museum, London
FEBRUARY
Palacio de Bellas Artes, Mexico City
MARCH
Magnolia, Ealing, west London
APRIL
Tulip, Ealing, west London
MAY
Split, Croatia
JUNE
View from Battersea Power Station, London
JULY
The Meeting Place, St Pancras Station, London
AUGUST
Sunflower, Gibside, Tyne & Wear, England
SEPTEMBER
Golden Gate Bridge, San Francisco, California
OCTOBER
Bodie State Historic Park, California
NOVEMBER
Squirrel, London Wetlands Centre, Barnes
DECEMBER
Tottenham, north London
I last visited Marrakesh in September 2016 when all these photos were taken
52 Comments
Patricia Moed
What a wonderful collection! Your choice of B&W was inspired. I love your first image. So crisp, sharp, and detailed. And all the ones from June to December. Have a wonderful 2025!
Sarah Wilkie
Thanks so much Patti 😊 I’m glad you like the B&W treatments and those shots in particular!
Leya
Brilliant choice to go with B&W, Sarah! All very beautifully shown and my favourite among all these favourites is the Golden Gate Bridge – such an unusual perspective! The squirrel is a cutie too.
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you Ann Christine 🙂 Several people have commented on the perspective of the Golden Gate bridge which surprises me a little as it was taken from a much-visited viewpoint at its northern end 🙂
Teresa
These images all look great in b&w. And the squirrel … perfect 👍
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you Teresa 😊 I’m rather fond of him myself!
Monkey's Tale
A great round up for the year. I think I like Golden Gate Bridge the best. Maggie
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you Maggie, I’m pleased you enjoyed the round-up 🙂
Jim Earlam
Really enjoyed that gallery Sarah, fantastic pictures, particularly St Pancras 😀
Sarah Wilkie
Thanks so much Jim 😊 St Pancras seems to be the general favourite and yet it’s a purely serendipitous shot, spotted from our table when we had a meal at a restaurant there and taken with my phone. They do say that the best camera is the one you have with you at the time 😀
Jim Earlam
And we all have a phone camera with us these days!
Paul
Hello Sarah, A great collection as usual. Glad to see that you made it to Bodie. I particularly like you shot of the Golden Gate Bridge. I wonder if you’ve ever considered (or if you use on occasion) an ND filter.
Paul
Sarah Wilkie
Hi Paul, and thanks for the comment. I’m planning a full post on Bodie for (hopefully) tomorrow. It was one of my favourite places on the trip!
I used to use an ND filter on my old film SLR but haven’t bothered since moving to the digital bridge camera. However I do sometimes replicate the effect by adding one in post-editing, using Nik Silver Efex (or Color Efex if a colour image). The latter has a graduated ND filter I find particularly useful.
Klausbernd
Dear Sarah
We really love B&W photography. It shows that it is an artefact and doesn’t give the illusion that it is a copy of reality. For our taste, it especially works for pictures with clear black and white differences and graphic pictures.
We especially like your picture taken at St Pancras Stn.
Thanks for sharing
The Fab Four of Cley
🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you – that St Pancras shot seems to be emerging as a favourite with several people 🙂
margaret21
I don’t know how you chose – but these are great b/ws.
Sarah Wilkie
I’m not sure how I chose either! A mix of fiddling with a few images in the case of a couple of the months and just plumping for one that stood out in the other months 😀 Thank you Margaret 😊
Sofia Alves
Great choice on going monochrome, Sarah. Perfection 🙂
Sarah Wilkie
Thanks so much Sofia 😊
Vicki
The squirrel steals the show for me too.
A great variety of subjects. I was surprised to find how much I liked the view from Battersea Power Station. I’ve never thought much of B & W cityscapes before, so it just goes to show, there are always good photos (in subjects you may not have noticed before).
Sarah Wilkie
Thanks so much Vicki 😊 Personally I rather like cityscapes in black and white as it removes a lot of ‘fuss’ and lets the architecture stand out, so I’m glad you liked that one (even though, like you, I’m inclined to feel that the squirrel is the star of this batch of images!)
norasphotos4u
Beautiful gallery. I think the squirrel steals the show for me
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you Nora, he’s one of my own favourites 🙂
Rose
These images are absolutely lovely in black and white.
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you Rose 🙂
Suzanne
As you know, Sarah, I am a fan of monochrome as it makes the subject the focus and not the vibrancy of colour. That image of the mischief creating squirrel is classic.
Sarah Wilkie
Thanks so much Suzanne 😊 That squirrel shot almost looked monochrome in the original tbh, as it was quite a dull misty day!
Egídio
Sarah, what a marvelous collection! I liked them all, but am leaning to the London scene with the river (your June image). That is unique and unlike any other London photo I’ve ever seen.
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you Egidio 🙂 I think you get a different view from the Battersea Power Station because the building is on the western fringes of the city – plus it’s only been open for visits for the last year or so!
Egídio
You have a wonderful and different view there. Great photo!
kzmcb
Lovely shots, Sarah.
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you, I’m glad you like them 🙂
bushboy
Fabulous idea Sarah. I like monochrome and each photo has it’s own identity 😀
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you Brian 🙂
Andrea R Huelsenbeck
I also love the Golden Gate picture. It’s from a different angle than I’ve seen before. Just lovely.
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you Andrea 🙂 That shot was taken from the vista point at the northern end of the bridge, looking back at the city.
Rebecca
Black and white is certainly a choice when it comes to photography: it can make photos look dramatic and classy, and it’s evident in your photos! Thanks for sharing, Sarah 🙂
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you Rebecca 🙂 That’s an interesting perspective on black and white photography, ‘dramatic and classy’ – I like it!
Tina Schell
Lovely as always Sarah – and how creative to go with B&W. They all translate beautifully! I especially loved the Oct and Nov images. They couldn’t be more different but I loved both equally. Happy New Year to you!
Sarah Wilkie
Thanks so much Tina 😊 You’ve picked out two of my own favourites! If you liked October in particular you might enjoy my planned next post (probably to be published tomorrow) which will explore Bodie properly 🙂
Marie
I’ve gone through them a few times and I definitely prefer those with strong lines as opposed to the images from nature. St Pancras and Golden Gate Bridge are my particular favourites…..
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you for taking the time to study these Marie 🙂 I always like to hear which ones people like best, and why, but it’s also equally interesting to know which ones appeal less!
photobyjohnbo
I got an interesting response from your website, copied here, when I commented that color has its place, but so does black-and-white. Here’s the response I received from your server:
Not Acceptable!
An appropriate representation of the requested resource could not be found on this server. This error was generated by Mod_Security.
Sarah Wilkie
That’s an odd one, but I have been having problems with comments on my blog for months now – even I can’t always comment! I’m told by the Jetpack happiness engineers that the update due in a couple of days time should resolve it so I’m keeping my fingers crossed, but they did say that about the previous update so I’m not 100% optimistic!
photobyjohnbo
Good luck! That’s an error I’d not run across before.
ThingsHelenLoves
I like the monochrome, it gives the images a timeless quality. Especially The Meeting Place/ July, very striking.
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you Helen – I feel architecture often responds well to black and white treatment 🙂
Anne Sandler
Wow, Sarah! These are all winners in black and white.
Sarah Wilkie
Thanks so much Anne 😊
Sue
Well, Sarah, I have to say I do rather agree with you regarding the different merits of colour and. monochrome…nicely illustrated post!
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you Sue – I know that like me you enjoy both formats 🙂
Sue
😄