artspan contemporary art
Artspan Portal: Black & White Photography
Introduction to Black & White Photography
Photography could be said to date back to the late 10th century, with the invention of the camera obscura (and even further back to the pinhole camera). With the discovery of silver nitrate, silver chloride, and with experimention in light and chemical reactions, the stage was set for the usable process of photography. French inventor Louis Daguerre developed the daguerreotype at approximately the same time that William Fox Talbot was doing similar experiments in England. Many inventors added to each other's findings, and it was Alexander Wolcott who, in 1840, received the first American patent in photography. Since then, black and white photography has changed the face of art and established an entirely new way of seeing in the arts and media. Photojournalists like Capa, Eisenstadt, and Bourke-White caught the public imagination with their black-and-white images of the world. And art photographers like Henri Cartier-Bresson and Ansel Adams drew our attention to the forms and shapes of nature, set into high contrast through monochrome. For over 60 years, all photographs were in black and white but by 1903 the technology to create color photos had developed, relegating black and white photography to a new role. Despite the popularity of color, black and white photography remained coveted and honored, delivering a unique authority and beauty to art photography and documentary photography. It is also cost-effective and a good teaching tool which is why photography students still cut their teeth in black and white photo labs.Featured Members
Newest Work
Resources: Black & White Photography
Art Suppliers (see all)
- Adorama
- One of the largest photo retailers and mail order suppliers; serving photographers with cameras,...
- American Photographic Resources Inc.
- The leading supplier of props, backgrounds, studio lighting equipment, photo frames, and photo...
- B & H Photo, Video, & Pro Audio
- The Professional's Source of Digital Cameras, 35MM Camera Equipment, Photo Printers and more.
Associations (see all)
- Alaska Society of Outdoor and Nature Photographers
-
Anchorage, AK
Educational non-profit organization dedicated to promoting public education,... - Boston West Photographic Society
- Framingham, MA
- Calgary Photographic Society
- Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Books (see all)
- Advanced Black & White Digital Photography (A Lark Photography Book)
- Digital photographers can now attain the enduring beauty of black-and-white photography in their...
- Anton Corbijn: Star Trak
- Best of Black and White: Erotic Photography
- Does anybody really know the "next-generation photographers," the successors to Newton,...
Education (see all)
- International Center Of Photography
-
New York, NY
Certificate in Photojournalism - University of Florida
-
Gainesville, FL
MFA in Creative Photography - University of Michigan
-
Ann Arbor, MI
MFA Art and Design
Education (see all)
- Cranbrook Academy of Art
-
Bloomfield Hills, MI
MFA in Fibers Arts - Memphis College of Art
-
Memphis, TN
MFA in Fiber/Surface Design - Parsons: The New School For Design
-
New York, NY
MFA in Photography
Galleries (see all)
- Anderson Photo Gallery
-
Lunenburg, Nova Scotia
A commercial gallery featuring contemporary fine art photographers... - Brancolini Grimaldi Arte Contemporanea
-
Rome, Italy
Florence, Italy
Represents several of the most important photographers. - ClampArt
-
New York, NY
Specializes in a broad range of Modern and Contemporary Paintings, Prints, and...
Museums (see all)
- American Museum of Photography
- A virtual museum.
- Museum of Fine Arts, Budapest
- Budapest, Hungary
- The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts
- Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Publications (see all)
- Black and White Magazine
- A high-quality journal for collectors of fine photography.
- EyesCoffee.com
- Black and White Photography Magazine Made in HongKong.
- Lenswork
- Lenswork is a book-quality, paper-based, anthology-style periodical publication which focuses on...