Highlighted Beauty

Some complain about high contrast work, especially in monochrome photography. They say it’s overdone but it NEVER gets old to me. I love high contrast, especially in black and white; slight grays and the whitest white details standing out amidst vast seas of the richest, inky blackness.

Most people don’t want drama in their lives but when it comes to photography, the drama that is created through contrast really helps to tell the story of what’s going on in an image. Emotion is even conveyed best through contrast. In some of my B-W work, I’ll even go for a black-on-black look. There’s nothing like it.

I very much enjoy setting up high contrast lighting in studio but I like it even more when all the elements needed come together naturally in the street. I look for this all the time, and it is so rewarding to me when I can find a situation or person I can capture in this light.

I made this urban portrait of a natural beauty at pretty much the same time as when I shot ”One Look” and ”Furrowed Brow.” They are all visually simple but carry the impressive and mysterious impact of the film noir aesthetics and mood that I fell in love with as a young illustrator.
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