Color vs. Black-and-White

In finding the reference to my last blog posting, I discovered that the original photograph, taken by Frederic Larson in 1998, was in color! What a difference!! Yet, is it?

I have to admit, I like BOTH versions of this photograph. The color version shows us the sky, in a way that was not very visible in the black-and-white version. Also, we get the strong red lines mixing with the gray and white in the blanket. And we see the siding is a mottled, sandy-mud brown. Still, the boys stand out in their dark jackets. Maybe the roundness of the bedroll is a little more prominent. Other than that, it's not much different. Except for the sky. Yes, that definitely changes the picture. The sky makes the image altogether more hopeful, more positive; the boys feel safer here in a world where the sky is blue. Indeed, they ARE safe, in this rolling home-away-from-home. Transients they may be, but the edginess of their life is no longer so evident.

Hmm - maybe there's something to this black-and-white thing. It's as if the loss of color lets us look in on the view in a totally different manner. We concentrate on the essence, rather than being seduced by the eye-candy of color. Well, I'm still debating: Should I try taking more photos in black-and-white? It feels like such a LOSS to me. But when I see evidence like this, it makes me wonder. Isn't it at least worth exploring?