Monday, January 24, 2011

B&W or Color? Trees Outside UNESCO Nakajin Castle Okinawa, Japan (Photos)

Photos taken outside UNESCO World Heritage Site Nakajin Castle Okinawa, Japan

This photo was taken today on a pretty dismal day. We had dark skies, cold wind and I used a camera I haven't seen in a while without a tripod. I simply set the Panasonic DMZ-FZ50 on a rock, used the LCD screen to make adjustments and fired away with the 10-second timer set.

It was one of those days where I figured it would be a waste of good digital film to go inside the Castle at Nakajin and shoot photos. I 'll go back when I like the lighting conditions and shoot some other time.

This little forest and rock garden are outside the castle grounds and probably don't get the attention of many tourists or cameramen so, I decided to give them some publicity.

Only now, I can't decide whether the shot looks better in B& W or Color. What do you think?

In order to make comments on this blog post easier for maximum participation, I have temporarily changed settings to allow all comments without word verification. Thank's in advance for your opinions.  Spammers please show mercy. I won't!



12 comments:

Ryan said...

I can't decide either Mike, although I'm leaning slightly towards colour. Great shots of this publicity starved enclave.

RyukyuMike said...

Ryan,
Thanks. I kinda lean towards the red, blue and greens, too. Just hate shootin when there's no blue in the sky.
Enclave? Wow, I never spoke that word. I'll have to go out and give it a try. Like, I could tell people I'm an enclave photographer!

Gene said...

Hard to say ,think the color has more lively look . Nice of you to sk ,Mike.

RyukyuMike said...

Gene,
Thanks. I just wish I'd have had a bright blue sky in the background. I'll work on it though. No Photoshoppin, just many more castle trips, 'til I getter dun right !

hal said...

Love the light behind the trees

RyukyuMike said...

Hal,
Thanks. Wish you'd have mentioned color or B&W. I prefer blue skies and sometimes when you don't have the right colors and contrast many folks use the B&W option ts salvage an otherwise good photo.

hal said...

Sorry Mike. I guess since the light shines through equally well in both, I didn't have a preference. Looking again, I'll cast my vote for the B&W.

Evan Benner said...

I'm bad at judging B&W vs color. However, with reference to B&W, do you have a preference over shooting in B&W versus shooting in color and converting to B&W afterwards? Your advice would be very much appreciated!

RyukyuMike said...

Evan,
That's an easy one to answer. Even if I wanted B&W to be the final outcome, I would shoot in color first and convert later.
Some photographers would argue the point. But, I shoot RAW format, always. The data I capture in RAW allows me to do alot with the tones (highlights and shadows) as well as keep the file to produce as many variations as I'd like when I create the JPEGs.
Someone may see my B&W photo and ask if it's available in color. My answer would be "yes".
I hope this answers your question.

Cheers,
Mike

Evan Benner said...

Mike,
Thanks a bunch! I feel pretty much the same way, so that's reassuring.
Evan

RyukyuMike said...

Evan,
Glad to share my thoughts of photography with you.

Cheers,
Mike

RyukyuMike said...

Hal,
Thanks,again. It's always a good idea to look at some photos both ways, I think. B&W are lots cheaper to print, too !