52 Photos Project: Black and White

52 Photos Project challenge this week is Black and White.

I thought I had posted this photo before, but I can't seem to find it, so I'm using it again.  Most of the images at Bella's 52 Photos Project this week are indeed black and white images, while I'm using a color image of a black and white subject.

Day 5 Black and White Challenge

I was nominated to participate in a 5 day Black and White Challenge by Rob Napola.  The object is to post one black and white photo every day for 5 days, and nominate another photographer to participate each of those days.  Today I nominate Debby Andreas.

Five Points South at dusk, Birmingham, Alabama.

Day 4 of the Black and White Challenge

I was nominated to participate in a 5 day Black and White Challenge by Rob Napola.  The object is to post one black and white photo every day for 5 days, and nominate another photographer to participate each of those days.  Today I nominate Terrie Broom.

Also, Bella's challenge this week for 52 Photos Project is "Numbers," so I'm also using this for that.

Day 3, Black and White Challenge

Day 3 of the Black and White Challenge.  Rob posted an urban decay shot, so I thought I would do a rural decay shot.  Shelby County, Alabama.

Day 2, Black and White Challenge

The Canada Geese have taken over some of the small lakes around here.  Sometimes there are hundreds of them at a time, especially when someone feeds them every day like at Star Lake in Hoover.

Day 2 of The  Black and White Challenge: I was nominated by Rob Napola.  The theme is to post one black and white photograph every day for five days and nominate another photographer to play along each day.  Today it is Scott Cobb's day to be nominated.

Day 1, Black and White Challenge

Day 1.

Morris Avenue is a cobblestone street right in the middle of downtown Birmingham and is a great place to shoot.  Many engagement photos and other portraits are shot there.  Our Catchlight small group was there to practice some night portrait procedures, but I also liked the scenery, sans people.

The Black and White Challenge:  I was nominated by Rob Napola.  I'm usually a colorful guy, so this could be a challenge 8-).  The theme is to post one black and white photograph every day for five days and nominate another photographer to play along each day.  Art Hummel, you are the next victim of the 5 Day Black and White Challenge. Let's see what you've got. 

Desert Island

We have on our coffee table a book of Ansel Adams photos and letters from the Grand Canyon and the Southwest. I glanced through it a couple of weeks ago and got inspired to revisit some of my photos from a couple of years ago, but this time in black and white. When I showed some of my attempts to my wife, she hemmed and hawed and finally told me she thought they were too sharp and contrasty. They hurt her eyes to look at them. I immediately agreed with her, because she was right, so I tried again on a couple and I thought they came out much better. Both of these are from Mount Desert Island in Maine, home of Bar Harbor.

 (Click on photos for a larger view)

Runaway Menace

The vine is kudzu (Pueraria lobata), one of the many non-native invasive plant species that were brought into this country for a purpose, but then got out of hand, especially in the southeast. The joke about how to plant kudzu is, "Take a piece of the vine to the middle of a BIG field, drop it and RUN!!!" It's not that fast, but it's not called the foot-a-night vine for no reason. It will easily cover this entire building and silo and quite probably the nearby trees by the end of the summer.