This is The Digital Story Podcast 1,057, June 23, 2026. Today's theme is, "When B&W Is Better (and when it isn't)" I'm Derrick Story.
During an interesting walk through a graveyard with dappled lighting, I was reminded of how powerful B&W photography can be. And at the same time, when it absolutely fails. Join me for a stroll so we can figure this out together. I hope you enjoy the show.
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When B&W Is Better (and when it isn't)
A few days ago we had a family hike that led us to a historic graveyard atop a hill in western Sonoma County. I was carrying my OM System OM-3 with the Olympus 14-42mm EZ zoom. It was the perfect camera for this day - compact, light, creative.
One of the things that I like about the OM-3, and the Nikon Zf, is that they both have physical dials that makes it easy to toggle back and forth between color and B&W photography. This made it easy to creatively approach the weathered statues and gravestones beneath the canopy of trees in the morning light.
At first, I began with color only. I looked for juxtapositions of flowers and objects against the monochrome tones of the graveyard. Then I would see a splash of light break through the tree canopy and switch to B&W to better highlight the illuminated object.
Some of my compositions worked, and others did not. Afterward, while examining the entire shoot on my MacBook Air, I drew some conclusions about when color was the better choice, or when monochrome shined.
Object Separation was a key factor. When a beam of light broke through the trees and illuminated a statue, for example, then B&W worked very well. The contrast of the darker background with a bright subject worked great. Monochrome held the highlight detail better and provided some dramatic images.
But when the lighting was more consistent, the shots sometimes looked too busy in B&W. Tree branches and leaves were the same tones as the headstones and it was difficult to distinguish one subject from another without resorting to a telephoto lens and wide aperture, which I did not have with me.
But in color, there were distinct differences between foliage greens, purple flowers, leaves on the ground, and tokens left behind by visitors. Even the gravestones and statues were a variety of shades of brown, green, and gray. I could better draw the viewer's eye to the main subject using color differences.
That being said, my hero shots were the dramatic B&Ws. And the entire shoot was a good reminder to be open to both approaches. Both monochromes and color produced good shots, just not on the same scenes.
Preparing for Costa Rica
When you're listening to this, I'll be in Costa Rica with Rob and 10 of my best friends. I'll file a field report from the cloud forest for next week's show. But in the meantime, here's a bit about my preparations for the trip.
This Week in the News
Discovering and Using the Unique Features of OM System Cameras as featured on PetaPixel.com
Fujifilm X100VI vs. Panasonic Lumix LX10: Which Compact Is Actually Better for Travel? as featured on FStoppers.com
The Case for Micro Four Thirds Sensors in 2026g as featured on FStoppers.com
Virtual Camera Club News
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See you next week!
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