Monochrome Monday; The Engineer

For a bit of information about this image, see the end of this post. (click to enlarge)
Pentax 6X7; 90mm f/2.8 lens; Tri-X film

Something new.

My first several years learning serious photography was entirely using black and white film.  Through buying books, subscribing to newsletters and magazines, borrowing books from their limited collection in my local library as well as looking at as many photographs I could find, I taught myself black and white photography using the Zone System.  I also taught myself archival processing and printing of my negatives and prints.  I drank in everything about photography I could find.  I couldn't get enough.  I still feel like that 52 years later.

My thoughts about monochrome have been to use it for images where subject, form, shape and contrast are more important that color.  In other words, color only gets in the way and is distracting or adds nothing to the meaning of what the photographer is trying to show.  This is in direct opposition to my work that I call, "Just for the Color," which is only about photographing a particular subject just for the colors present in an otherwise potentially mundane composition.

The upshot is I have thousands of black and white (monochrome to some) negatives and prints, unfortunately, most never to see the light of day until I have the wherewithal and energy to dig out the negatives and convert them to digital.  Maybe next winter.  Fingers crossed.

Sadly, there isn't much call for black and white photographs today but they still are near and dear to who I am as a photographer.  I've even entertained the idea of shooting and posting nothing but black and white images on this blog and on my website, but I'm afraid I would find that readership would dwindle quickly and the blog would no longer serve its purpose of sharing my photographic knowledge.  But still I would like to get some black and white images out there for those who appreciate the aesthetic of them.  

One thought was to substitute a black and white image for a color image in one of my two weekly posts.  I quickly decided I didn't want to do that.  So...I thought, instead of substituting a black and white image in one of my two weekly blog posts, I would add a third post with only monochrome imagery.  Hence, the catchy name, "Monochrome Monday!"  I thought it was kind of clever.  Well, maybe a bit kitschy.

The exceptions to Monochrome Mondays will be when a United States national holiday falls on a Monday and I normally post something commemorative acknowledging that holiday.

I will feature a monochrome image from either my archives or that I have presently made and write just a few lines about it.  The posts won't be long.  I'm thinking a single paragraph about the image.

My goal is not only to get some of my black and white work out there, but maybe get some of you to find a new appreciation for monochrome work.  

I hope you will enjoy this.  I hope I will get some good feedback in the way of questions and comments.

About the image at the top of this post. 

In the late 1980s, a couple of photographer friends (and fellow railroad enthusiasts) and I made the journey to southcentral Pennsylvania to the East Broad Top Narrow Gauge Railroad.  We arrived Friday evening, photographed all day Saturday, then headed home on Sunday.  Saturday was a very hot summer day.  Sweltering, if my memory serves me well.  We spent the day photographing steam locomotives, the roundhouse, the turntable, the buildings, the railroad paraphernalia scattered about, the various men working on the locomotives as well as locomotive pulling a train of tourists.  At the end of the day, I spotted the engineer looking totally exhausted, resting.  I walked over to him, raised my camera and made a single exposure of him.  I didn't want to intrude.  He didn't move, only looked at me.  You can imagine how hot it was standing all day in front of a boiler fired by coal.  He is exhausted.  Color doesn't do anything for this image.  A monochrome rendering allows you to concentrate on the subject without the distraction of color. 

Back then I was using two camera systems.  For black and white, I was using a Pentax 6X7 (still have it) with several lenses.  For color, I was using a Nikon 35mm manual focus camera and several lenses.  I don't recall the specific model.  Tri-X was the black and white film I normally used and Kodachrome 64 was the color film stock.

NOTE: East Broad Top closed a decade or so ago.  However, a new consortium of ownership has reopened it, improved the operation and is restoring to safe working order several of the almost century old locomotives.  They offer rides on the weekends and have a 'steam spectaculars' in the fall as well as a couple of other special events.  East Broad Top is one of the most original, authentic steam operations in the U.S. today.  Pay them a visit if you enjoy railroading, especially a quality steam operation.

Join me over at my website, https://www.dennismook.com.  

Thanks for looking. Enjoy!  

Dennis A. Mook  

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