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Beautiful Black and White Photography

By Smashing Editorial, June 9th, 2008 in Inspiration | 332 Comments | Forum

If you’ve been following Smashing Magazine for a while, you know that almost all posts from the Monday Inspiration series are pretty colorful and eye-catching. This post is an exception. Compared to colorful designs where catchy colors help the design to stand out, in black-and-white designs the ability to stand out depends only on its ability to communicate rather than on its appealing visual presentation.

Indeed, beautiful black and white photography doesn’t attract with its play of colors. Here close attention to composition, lighting, perspective and the context it is shot in are important. Hence, before considering the photos presented below please prepare some patience and time. This post presents some truly excellent examples of beautiful black-and-white photography.

Notice: this post isn’t supposed to showcase the best black-and-white-photos of world’s best photographers; please see it as a modest attempt to inspire designers for experimenting with black and white instead of using a variety of vibrant colors all the time. Hopefully, everybody will find something interesting and unusual for herself or himself.

You may want to take a look at our related posts

All photos belong to the respective owners.

Beautiful Black-And-White-Photography

Toni Frissell
In her legendary photos Toni Frissell impresses with a strong trend toward surrealism or realism. The photo presented below, although in black and white, is both extremely sharp and clear. To achieve such level of clarity in black and white is extremely hard.

Alin Ciortea
Alin Ciortea presents examples of modern street photography. In black and white, of course.

Birds
Unfortunately, the photographer is unknown. The photo seems to be taken at exact the right moment from exactly the right angle with a perfect lighting. Black and white can be powerful as well.

Sally Mann
This photo, titled Candy Cigarette, not just displays something, it tells a story. It is both emotional and beautiful. This is what the originality of black-and-white-photography is all about.

Larry Towell
This shot was taken in El Salvador. Child with star mask during “Day Of The Dead”. Other child in background rolls tire for repair in garage where he works at an adult’s job. The photo is full of tiredness and stubbornness. Simple motif conveying strong emotions.

Aneta Kowalczyk
Aneta Kowalczyk specializes in portrait photography. Some of her photos are provoking, some are strange and some are extremely beautiful. The example below displays the beautiful side of black and white photography.

Nick Brandt
Nick Brandt is a renown animal photographer which has become famous with his book of photographs, “On This Earth”, which was published in October 2005.

Gary Winogrand
Taking a shot just at the right moment.

Larry Louie
Woman Of Tibet. Realism at its best. Awarded with International Photography Awards in 2007.

Gabriele Caretti
Tour Eiffel: extraordinary contrast and perspective. Strong, clean and very precise shot.

Ghost Town Charm
Excellent lighting.

Ansel Adams
One of the most famous contemporary black and white photographers. Classic!

Maurizio Polese
Polese’s works pay close attention to small, tiny details. The tones are perfects and compositions are beautiful which is why the photos are presented in this post. Notice the sharp contrast and the lighting at the first image below and the sharp pathway leading to the light in the second one.

Top 10 Wired.com Reader Black-and-White Photos
Ten extraordinary black and white photographs sent to the Wired.com editorial by its readers.

Michele Clement
Artistic yet beautiful and extremely powerful shot. Michele Clement is the winner of Black & White Spider Awards 2007 in category “Outstanding Achievement”.

Snyder Alison
This photo has been taken in South Crillon Glacier, Washburn.

Abbas
Iranian film director Abbas Kiarostami on the hills surrounding the captital, where his film “Taste of Cherry”, which was co-awarded the Golden Palm in Cannes 1997, was shot.

Patrick Figaj
Ceremony.

Jack Radcliffe
Alison’s life in black and white photos. The significance of these pictures emerges in retrospect. “When my daughter Alison was born, in the tradition of a new parent, I began to photograph her, initially in a separate and private body of work. However, in the process of documenting Alison’s growth, I developed a passionate interest in human relationships and capturing intimate moments in the lives of family and friends.”

Arndt Laude
Alignment. Sometiems all it takes is to be at the right place in the right moment and take a shot under the right angle. That’s what happened here.

Ralph Gibson
Staircase is an example of Gibson’s high-contrast, minimalist black and white compositions have influenced a generation of photographers. By isolating the essential elements of a scene, his pictures show a style that is unique and immediately recognizable. [via]

Elliott Erwitt
Erwitt, an advertising and journalistic photographer known for his black and white candid shots of ironic and absurd situations within everyday settings — the master of the “indecisive moment”.

Roy Mckeown
Snowy Sheep.

Adam Hinton

Van Shnooken Raggen
Two Warehouses.

Rodney Smith
Rodney Smith has his own understanding of professional black-and-white-photography. Unusual, abstract and surrealistic works.

Drole Deciel
Smiley.

Shazeen Samad
Simple yet excellent composition. This photo manages not just to show something, but to capture a moment of life in all its beauty and vividness.

Scott Bush
Berk-plage - France. What a sky! A really strange squadron: octopussy, teddy bear and skates.

Pedro Meyer
Pedro Meyer shows the life of people across the globe. This photo was taken in Rio De Janeiro.

Mitch Dobrowner
Mitch Dobrowner is famous due to his Earth photos.

Robertino Nikolic
lighting plays with geometry. Or geometry plays with lighting? The winner of the Black & White Spider Awards 2007.

Matthias Just
747.

Unknown
Capturing the right moment at the right point of time.

Bert (Quasebart)
Perfect timing, perfect lighting. A dreamy shot.

Hughes Leglise-Bataille
That’s a quite unusual perspective for a photograph.

Santosh Korthiwada
“No peeping please!” Very powerful, emotional and somehow sad photo.

Rui Palha
Rui Palha photographs simple people in simple situations. Result: extraordinary photos of simple things surrounding our life.

Watanabe
Straws.

Lauren
Two Tree Hill. The composition looks very surreal, yet powerful and beautiful.

G. Diaz Deleon
Ventana XIV. Geometric minimalism at its best.

Maurizio Polese
Escape. Unusual angle, unusual perspective.

Jana Stolzer
Nameless.

Vega Omer
Struggling to survive.

Ezra Caldwell
Dog snout. Sometimes the moments from our life are the most valuable moments we should enjoy and keep in mind.

Last Click

Crossing Lines

Classics in Lego
An illustrative summary of iconic pictures with their pairs of Balakov’s Lego figure pictures which are reconstucting famous moments in the history of mankind.

Mark Daniel Owen
I heart you. Do you see what we see?

Sources and Resources

Published in Inspiration, June 9th, 2008
Tags: inspiration, photography

1.

Unplugged (June 9th, 2008, 1:47 am)

Amazing!

Im First ^^
2.

Abdel Faiz (June 9th, 2008, 1:57 am)

splendid and i’m the second one to comment ^^
3.

Liam (June 9th, 2008, 1:58 am)

Sally Mann is my favorite photographer.

I was lucky enough to be able to see some of her prints in person at the Guggenheim, and I can honestly say that was the first time a photograph affected me so much!
4.

SV (June 9th, 2008, 2:04 am)

Simply amazing
5.

imaginepaolo (June 9th, 2008, 2:10 am)

Great article!
6.

Unplugged (June 9th, 2008, 2:11 am)

Amazing!
7.

V1 (June 9th, 2008, 2:11 am)

good photos, tobad i dont say any from deviantart. They have great bw photo’s aswell
8.

Kasper (June 9th, 2008, 2:43 am)

Beautiful. i saved em all in my inspiration folder! thanks for such a great post Smashingmagazine
9.

Massimo Marolda (June 9th, 2008, 2:55 am)

Do you like also this Link [www.ipernity.com] or this Link [www.ipernity.com]
10.

Thomas Baron (June 9th, 2008, 2:57 am)

Berk-plage, France, is spelled Berck. Great article, nice moment to read it.
11.

Natalia (June 9th, 2008, 3:06 am)

Wonderful images.

The ninth photo: the author is Garry Winogrand
12.

Armand (June 9th, 2008, 3:10 am)

This: Link [flickr.com] unknown picture is taken by Garry Winogrand
13.

Andy (June 9th, 2008, 3:19 am)

AWESOME. But the word is LIGHTING not LIGHTNING!!!
14.

Niobe (June 9th, 2008, 3:29 am)

In black and white, I always loved the work of David Doubilet.
Link [www.daviddoubilet.com]
15.

Thibaut Allender (June 9th, 2008, 4:00 am)

Nice examples.

The second photo really makes me think about Link [photo.capsule.org]. More Link [photo.capsule.org] if you like them ;-)
16.

id.JackBook.Com (June 9th, 2008, 4:05 am)

WOW!!!! THAT FIRST PHOTO, THE LADY IN THE WATER!!
WOWWW!!!!!

*stunned*
17.

LuLu (June 9th, 2008, 4:06 am)

Magnifique :-)
18.

Mirthe (June 9th, 2008, 4:09 am)

I love the ‘Crossing Line’ picture!
19.

eod (June 9th, 2008, 4:20 am)

Candy Cigarette, beautiful shot. It is a boy disguised in girl?
20.

Erik Teichmann (June 9th, 2008, 4:22 am)

Some of my favorite Link [englishrussia.com] are from English Russia. My particular favorite on this page is this one of a Link [www.englishrussia.com].
21.

speedcu (June 9th, 2008, 4:32 am)

great shots!! I love “Birds” and the pictures of Jack Radcliffe most.
beautiful. To me it seems that most of the pictures have a sad, melancholic touch. I like this, however :)
22.

Jonatan (June 9th, 2008, 4:51 am)

Amazing… see my pictures: [link]http://www.clipcroma.com[/link]
23.

Stewart (June 9th, 2008, 4:56 am)

You swine!. I’ve been quite happy with my photography of late and now I’m depressed
24.

Anthem Creative (June 9th, 2008, 5:00 am)

Excellent post and stunning photography. I must say though, the most compelling element of black and white photography, in addition to the reasons listed, is the capturing and displaying of the brutally honest emotional value in its subjects. B&W photography can inspire laughter, tears, or any variety of emotional response in a way that no other medium seems to be able to accomplish.
25.

Diego Valobra (June 9th, 2008, 5:02 am)

Really beautiful,

Diego
26.

mayur (June 9th, 2008, 5:07 am)

simply amazing ……
tired of seeing graphical pic’s nowdayz
gr8 collection :D
27.

FavBrowser.com (June 9th, 2008, 5:23 am)

I’d prefer colored version, some amazing shots there.
28.

Veronica (June 9th, 2008, 5:39 am)

Absolutely amazing shots. The photographers ought to be proud of themselves.
29.

theemptywhiteroom (June 9th, 2008, 5:45 am)

the piece entitled “birds” is a photomanipulation submitted on deviantart.com approximately 1 year ago. It is not an original photo.
30.

Andris (June 9th, 2008, 6:19 am)

I love black and white photographs much more than the colored ones.
They always transport the feelings much purer than with colors.
Great selection by the way.
31.

bobby n. (June 9th, 2008, 6:33 am)

the image titled “Good Winter” seems stolen from fastboy’s flickr: Link [www.flickr.com], and not given appropriate credit.
32.

Zaphod Beeblebrox (June 9th, 2008, 6:46 am)

Lovely collection, but please credit ever photo carefully. The photo titled “Good Winter” was taken by Ezra Caldwell:
Link [www.flickr.com]
and the story that goes with it is completely bogus. Please correct this asap.
33.

Christian (June 9th, 2008, 7:16 am)

You should check out Nuri Bilge Ceylan’s photos. An award winner, awesome director.
34.

Alin Ciortea (June 9th, 2008, 7:18 am)

It’s an honor to be featured here, next to Elliott Erwitt, one of my all-time favorites!
35.

Lau @ Digital Photography Tutorials (June 9th, 2008, 7:22 am)

Also check my Link [www.photoaxe.com]
36.

Pelardo (June 9th, 2008, 7:23 am)

Damn this would be a great exposition allright!

nice work !!!
37.

Mona (June 9th, 2008, 7:25 am)

Very inspiring! Thank you!

I noticed that two amazing photographers didn’t make it into the post and thought I would send out links to their work for those who enjoyed this… these two photographers are magical!

Robert ParkeHarrison Link [www.geh.org]

ENJOY!
38.

Osvaldo Osorio (June 9th, 2008, 7:34 am)

La sexta foto que publicaron me impactó tanto. Soy de El Salvador, y me impresionó mucho como se capturó esta realidad de mi país.
39.

MytyMyky (June 9th, 2008, 8:24 am)

Nice article. The 9th image (marked as unkown) is by Gary Winogrand. Intersting that I had seen that pic on the web just a couple of days ago.hehe.
40.

Aaron (June 9th, 2008, 8:34 am)

Amazing photos. I’ve seen a few of them before but never assembled into one collection it was great.
41.

Mike (June 9th, 2008, 10:15 am)

VERY nice collection of photographs. I will be sharing this one…

I invite anyone interested in black and white photography to check out my father’s work here:
Link [www.ducktrapphoto.com]

He takes some pretty stunning black and white photos.
42.

Aakash Goel (June 9th, 2008, 10:37 am)

Truly Amazing!!! Keep it up!
43.

Mehran (June 9th, 2008, 10:44 am)

WOW!
44.

Andreas (June 9th, 2008, 10:58 am)

Great work but i think you forgot Alex Majoli of Magnum Photos and James Nachtwey of VII.
45.

Pedro Assumpção (June 9th, 2008, 11:09 am)

Very good collection. But in Black & White Cariter-Bresson was the best for me.
You should put some Bresson pics in this post.
Pedro
46.

Tom Mayers (June 9th, 2008, 2:39 pm)

I’m not sure who you’re impressing with these? Is this a photoblog now? Whist an improvement on the woeful recent HDR post, your forays into photography are lacklustre and derivative. You less than insightful commentary (”Taking a shot just at the right moment”) adds very little. you are great at tech and coding posts, why don’t you just stick to them?
47.

JuiceMag (June 9th, 2008, 6:28 pm)

Well i’m not an expert but in my opinion, a black-and-white picture looks gorgeous with the contrast of black and white and also the way the pic silently tells its meaning :D
48.

sudham (June 9th, 2008, 7:29 pm)

Black and white photos has its own beauty and are gorgious
49.

Angelina (June 9th, 2008, 9:36 pm)

These look fantastic.
50.

Cody Redmon (June 9th, 2008, 9:53 pm)

fantastic look at the field, but as ‘theemptywhiteroom’ commented, the “Birds” entry is without question a work of photoshop. it took less than ten seconds for me to recognize three ‘bird’ shapes that are scaled and repeated at different angles. the shot is just too perfect, i’m surprised you guys didn’t figure that out on your own…

here’s my Link [www.codyredmon.com]
51.

Roger (June 9th, 2008, 10:11 pm)

Need some Lee Friedlander in here. Glad to see Winogrand made it.
52.

Chromogenic (June 9th, 2008, 10:43 pm)

Wow, incredible selection! Having Ansel Adams there just made my day.

My own black and white gallery: Link [www.apochromat.net]
53.

Kalo (June 9th, 2008, 10:45 pm)

Amazing photos. Also check
Link [www.purelook.com]
54.

sandie sørensen (June 9th, 2008, 11:09 pm)

Funny.
I recognized the Photo that Sally Mann made on smashings frontpage at once!
Because here where I work, we have her exhibition right now!
So If you love her photos, go to Royal Library of Denmark!

Thanks for inspiration, Smashing. Once again.
55.

Haris (June 10th, 2008, 12:11 am)

Absolutely amazing collection!
You may also check impressive photo gallery of life and death in Sarajevo ‘92. - ‘96.
Link [www.sa92.ba]
Various photographers telling the same (sad) story.
56.

Sagar (June 10th, 2008, 12:19 am)

great ,now i think i should try out something like this
57.

Hughes Léglise-Bataille (June 10th, 2008, 1:23 am)

I’m somehow glad yet puzzled to have one of my photos included in this selection, which I must say is quite a mixed bag that unfortunately, falls very very short of presenting a top quality selection. Famous photographers mixed with completely unknown amateurs, great shots mixed with very poor ones, and all this missing a massive number of fantastic works by world renowned photographers (in no particular order, where are Nachtwey, HCB, Pellegrin, Doisneau, Koudelka, Kertesz, Capa, Trent Parke, etc, etc.).

By the way, the author of “Straws” is Japanese photographer Link [www.hiroshiwatanabe.com].
58.

unknow (June 10th, 2008, 2:38 am)

wow! These photos are insane
59.

Io, burattino (June 10th, 2008, 2:55 am)

Sono foto assolutamente magnifiche!
60.

m64 (June 10th, 2008, 3:18 am)

nice photo collection. Great.
61.

liam (June 10th, 2008, 3:23 am)

Amazing.
62.

misu (June 10th, 2008, 3:37 am)

The author of the 4th phoro - “Birds” is Madsky
The name of the photo “The End”
63.

milo (June 10th, 2008, 3:40 am)

You should definitely add tony duran: tonyduran[dot]net to your list, amazing photography.
64.

Barend (June 10th, 2008, 4:21 am)

fantastic selection!
65.

krekc (June 10th, 2008, 6:09 am)

Phenomenal set of pictures. Excellent work!
66.

Rex (June 10th, 2008, 9:08 am)

They’re all great and beautiful in their own way, but that Toni Frissell photo and who she is as a photographer and her body of work is the best one here… oh yeah, that guy Ansel Adams is pretty good too. I’m new to all of this and just recently discovered this website. What a great place to be in. So much to do. So much to see. So much to learn. I love it here. It has now become my default home page, sorry Google and Yahoo!
67.

Jessica Griffin (June 10th, 2008, 9:13 am)

Awesome images!
68.

reta (June 10th, 2008, 8:58 pm)

Cool photography
69.

Subra (June 11th, 2008, 2:01 am)

What a contrast! Really inspiring.
70.

bisbis (June 11th, 2008, 2:14 am)

Great compilation!
Check my black and white works
71.

med (June 11th, 2008, 4:58 am)

Amazing collection
72.

Louis Klibansky (June 11th, 2008, 5:47 am)

Absolutely beautiful! Great selection; work that conveys a message. I especially love Candy Cigarette and Jack Radcliffe.
73.

Roptor (June 11th, 2008, 6:27 am)

nice .. I Love Black and White photo … i dont like color….see my gallry in
Link [mobile.photomillenium.com]
thanks
74.

AndrewE (June 11th, 2008, 8:54 am)

Most of these are ‘pretty’ but stimulate little other than aesthetic pleasure. This is a pleasingly safe list. Hardly surprising when your audience consists of mostly tech geeks who think culture was something that MTV invented. Stick to producing sugar-coated geekery. Leave art alone.
75.

diverse (June 11th, 2008, 11:09 am)

The last one, is in colour too for sure.
76.

JSHAW (June 11th, 2008, 11:51 am)

THIS IS JUST LOVELY!
77.

Bendik Teigene (June 11th, 2008, 2:32 pm)

Candy cigarettes is truly the most beautifull picture I have ever seen
78.

Liam (June 11th, 2008, 8:23 pm)

Hey AndrewE,

Maybe since you’re so enlightened and educated in regards to truly “cultural” art, you could provide us with some examples, instead of insulting the entire readership of this website.

Show us all of your conversation-stimulating and deeply conceptual, culturally relevant artwork, because you must be quite the artist if you feel like you can come here and take a jab at all of the above photographers.

This website is not an art website, it is a resource for general inspiration. Nowhere in the post did they mention that they were trying to bring together a definitive collection of art photography, they were merely displaying a few pieces to stimulate the creativity of their community.

You believe they should leave art alone, and I believe you should leave this website alone.

Thanks.
79.

Sowmya (June 12th, 2008, 9:44 am)

Awesome pics.. loved all of them
80.

Oliver Ruehl (Shotstories.net) (June 12th, 2008, 11:56 am)

Hi guys,

your website is a true inspiration.
Thank you for the constant flow of amazing material.
I really appreciate the photography topics to find images that create a spark in my creative mind.
All these photos made me grab my camera, leave the room and become better at photography :)

I follow each single post on this site and it has become of my main sources for inspiration.
My colleagues at work love it too and always thank me that I forwarded them the link to smashingmagazine.

Keep up the smashingly good work! ;)
Oliver Ruehl
81.

andy h (June 12th, 2008, 1:19 pm)

this one is missing in the list: Link [www.shorpy.com]
82.

Alex (June 12th, 2008, 11:39 pm)

Ух! Сильное впечатление производит! Ещё никогда такого великолепия не видел, самое удивительное - это то, что все эмоции удалось выразить с помощью чёрно-белой фотосъёмки!
83.

Kane (June 13th, 2008, 12:09 am)

I have been following this website for a few months now, and in my opinion this is the best article yet. Most inspirational also (made me want to just go out and take photos)

Superb.
84.

rc dmn (June 13th, 2008, 6:21 am)

if us see all in black and white, would be the world different ?
85.

Bluedreams (June 13th, 2008, 10:41 am)

cool work =)
Some of them are simply amazing !!!
86.

Phil Jones CEO SWPP & BPPA (June 14th, 2008, 7:02 am)

Nice selection of images
87.

Fred (June 14th, 2008, 10:38 am)

The picture’s photographer about kites in Berk-plage is not “Scott Bush” but me.
88.

miqsh (June 14th, 2008, 1:26 pm)

so beautiful!! everything is so different from the other…love this!
89.

billie (June 15th, 2008, 5:56 pm)

the candy cigarette photo is beautiful. i hope that when i am older and taking photos a hope that i could take one as beutiful as that. the rest are amazing!!
90.

marie ancolie (June 16th, 2008, 10:57 am)

The photo “birds” is an exceptional one.
As is the photo from michele Clement.

Wonderful to discover you magazine today…….
91.

saber yousefi (June 16th, 2008, 2:42 pm)

wow! very nice! I saw them all pixel by pixel,continue plz…
92.

ananda rizki ramdani (June 16th, 2008, 11:12 pm)

amazing inpiration, i love ‘bird’ one
93.

John Brown (June 17th, 2008, 2:33 pm)

Awesome images!
94.

Rajesh (June 18th, 2008, 9:35 am)

phenomenal
95.

Mohammad360 (June 19th, 2008, 1:21 am)

very very nice. So nice!
96.

Amin (June 19th, 2008, 11:46 pm)

well i know the one ” Unknown
Capturing the right moment at the right point of time.”
photographer.
and the one is jumping off is my cousin arash.
the photo is in north of iran “khane Darya”.
if you want more detail send me an email .
97.

medea (June 20th, 2008, 10:13 pm)

the ghost town charm is realy beaytiful!love them all.
98.

Falkor (June 25th, 2008, 3:28 am)

Great collection!

Snail pic is cute! :-*
99.

Xcalyver (June 27th, 2008, 7:18 am)

You guys think these photos are silver gelatin or digital??
100.

santhu (June 29th, 2008, 8:58 pm)

wow!!!!!!!!!
101.

jamie (July 1st, 2008, 12:37 am)

Great collections and you guys rock, I would prefer the upside down guy by Shazeen Samad and the first one by Toni Frissell… Oh my goodness.. these pictures are worth millions…
102.

Jim Green (July 1st, 2008, 4:15 am)

太漂亮了！
103.

A.Alaalas (July 1st, 2008, 3:25 pm)

Ciortea’s photo suggests the lad will break his neck on that back dive; not what I would call an emotive scene. Also, in El Salvador the culture does not distinguish “adult jobs” — it tends to focus on survival. And, no, that is not the “real meaning” of the photo, it is just the opposite, a crass disrespect of reality and a leap into the fantastic, a far step from photo-realistic art interpretation.
104.

theRealsaryB (July 2nd, 2008, 6:58 am)

Just beautiful…. could stare at them for hours, very inspirational
105.

ALEX (July 3rd, 2008, 4:35 pm)

this is incomprehensible for me. i’ve never seen photos like these, even in color! i absolutely adored the ones of the parts of earth and the ones taken far away from the cities.
106.

Claire (July 4th, 2008, 5:22 am)

Fantastic collection! Thank you for sharing this with the world.

I would love to know what the person in “Birds” was doing and if they, ummm, survived jumping off the side of a tall building. Made my toes tingle….
107.

Ted Blake (July 4th, 2008, 5:29 am)

I have always preferred black and white photography over color. So many more details can be seen without being distracted by color.
One great photographer I didn’t see mentioned here is Clyde Butcher. He has done some fantastic shoots in Florida, Cuba and the western U.S.
108.

photoshop_cop (July 4th, 2008, 5:14 pm)

PHOTOSHOPPED!
109.

d (July 5th, 2008, 3:49 am)

photoshop is cool, people can claim things and they have proof too.
110.

Fern (July 5th, 2008, 12:31 pm)

I am amazingly annoyed! I’ve seen that ‘birds’ photograph many times before and always wanted to know where it’s from, especially since I’ve seen one that appears to have been taken from behind the man as he jumps. I saw this on clipmarks and thought I might finally find out where it’s from…no such luck.
111.

SEBA (July 6th, 2008, 6:57 am)

saludos excelente presente
112.

hakan (July 6th, 2008, 3:28 pm)

süper fotolar…
113.

Yare (July 6th, 2008, 7:00 pm)

Very nice collection!
114.

Jurgen (July 7th, 2008, 10:41 pm)

breathtaking! How amazing that anyone nowadays can shoot beautiful photos!
115.

Shankar Vashist (July 8th, 2008, 2:18 am)

Hi !

Great pics… learning experience for budding photo enthusiasts.

Cheers, Shankar
116.

Siddharth (July 10th, 2008, 5:56 pm)

I do not have words to describe what the above content is…..
Only one thing can be said…. just out of the box thinking
117.

jcroldan (July 11th, 2008, 2:18 am)

Fantastic collection!!!! Love it.
118.

alatryste (July 11th, 2008, 2:21 am)

Awesome collection!, I can assure you I have more ideas now thant 30 min. ago!, I added your feed to my reader, big thanks and keep it up!
119.

M. A. Curtis (July 13th, 2008, 2:38 pm)

Nice pictures…Lame descriptions… The writer evidently thinks they’re qualified to discuss art because they use words like, “powerful”, “perspective”, and “composition”.
120.

Dawud (July 15th, 2008, 2:55 am)

SUPER:-))

Selam from Bosnia:-))
121.

MrXon (July 15th, 2008, 5:38 am)

Amazing. My fav pages!
122.

liliana (July 22nd, 2008, 8:19 pm)

Some of these are definitely silver gelatin. They’re phenomenal.
123.

sam (July 24th, 2008, 8:54 pm)

amazing shots somewhat inspiring:)
124.

Niky (July 27th, 2008, 10:47 pm)

amazing! great!
125.

Highton-Ridley (August 1st, 2008, 2:33 pm)

Thanks for bringing together such a fine collection of black and white images. There’s a lot to learn just by spending time looking at these - so thanks again :)

Maybe one day one of mine will feature in an article like this!
126.

hatem (August 4th, 2008, 2:46 am)

waaaaaaaaaaaw
127.

megan (August 4th, 2008, 2:50 am)

WHOA!! they are all fantastic!! i really do LOVE black & white photography the best. i think it really brings out the raw emotions within a moment. very good captures!
128.

Shikhar (August 9th, 2008, 10:40 am)

Simply Great !!!

Giving U A Fealing Of Being Touched By Heart
129.

Andrea Brand (August 18th, 2008, 5:28 am)

Wow! These are amazing! Beautiful.. great inspiration!
130.

Pics (August 29th, 2008, 8:05 am)

Wonderful collection here! There’s also some nice B&W photography at Link [www.whispersontheside.com].
131.

Clau (August 30th, 2008, 2:40 pm)

im amazed…. all black and white photos tells a story.. they rock.. wonderfull collection
132.

locked up abroad (August 31st, 2008, 1:28 pm)

the world needs to see this …..so I’m posting this on facebook for my friend to see
133.

brain melton (September 4th, 2008, 7:44 am)

i think it is amazingly good i think rehlaerhgerahlareh
134.

Sathy (September 4th, 2008, 10:54 pm)

Simply supurb
135.

pete (September 7th, 2008, 6:18 pm)

wondering if anyone could help me find a certain picture( was told it was well known just didnt know the title)…. its a black and white photo of a lady putting on lipstick sitting on then edge of what looks like a hotel bed and her legs up on the dresser…. guy in backround with shirt off.
136.

Jimmy (September 15th, 2008, 6:07 am)

These are amazin’
Add this one to the list Link [www.reflexstock.com]
137.

Kazelghb (September 18th, 2008, 9:18 am)

Hi webmaster!
138.

Paddy Ryan (September 21st, 2008, 1:23 pm)

Brilliant photos! Cheers!
139.

djlt (September 21st, 2008, 4:24 pm)

there was a picture somewhere on this site, little girl/ with a hoody on or hood over their head anyone know where to fine this pic
140.

Josh 906 (September 22nd, 2008, 11:25 am)

What a great collection. I do have a question for anyone out there who might be able to help: My digital camera has a BW filter setting. Is it better to shoot photos in BW or shoot them in color and remove the color in Photoshop? Feel free to e-mail me: design [at] 906graphics.com.
Thanks!
141.

shifa manhal (September 23rd, 2008, 3:37 am)

hunt for bnw pics for my wall got me to this site !
and i am impressed … got no words … my fave is no peeping please .
142.

areej (September 25th, 2008, 5:57 am)

wow
143.

tony (September 25th, 2008, 3:42 pm)

verdaderamente magníficas fotos de la gran sensibilidad humana
144.

digyourlove (September 29th, 2008, 6:17 am)

seldom see pictures like these! really great!
145.

ewwdinnatalk (October 2nd, 2008, 6:10 am)

love the pictures keep them going but have more animals and insects

xx
146.

KoufaxR (October 3rd, 2008, 2:28 pm)

This post is amazing. What great insight and great pictures I’ve never been exposed to.
147.

samantha (October 4th, 2008, 12:06 pm)

omg their butuful ive never seen pictures so butuful who ever took thees pictures should be a amazing personne
148.

Victor Augusteo (October 6th, 2008, 3:37 pm)

Also check this out, Black and white cityscape photographyLink [martialphoto.net]
149.

yedi (October 8th, 2008, 12:04 pm)

halaluyahhhh!!!
150.

Birumanand (October 17th, 2008, 9:11 am)

The best of Black and white collection i have seen.
Great Job.
151.

Sortins Technologies (October 20th, 2008, 12:28 am)

really really beautiful photography and i like black also very much. thnq
152.

hutchic (October 21st, 2008, 4:32 am)

Great shots and you have a typo “Sometiems “
153.

Aubrey (November 5th, 2008, 9:21 am)

These pictures are beautiful! I love them ♥ :)
154.

jes (November 6th, 2008, 6:48 pm)

Hey Smashing magazine, I really love your website. There are too many things here that are really useful and inspiring.
155.

Angel (November 9th, 2008, 12:23 pm)

OMG!!!!!! i absolutly LOOOOOVE these photos!!! i like the one called candy ciggerette……..it reallly had an affect on me
156.

trebinje (November 24th, 2008, 3:59 am)

Very inspiring! Thank you for advice!
157.

bob (November 24th, 2008, 1:47 pm)

hey guys. cool pics.i like to see other peoples pics.they are nice.my grandma takes pics like those all the time.i think that pics are awsome.black and white are my favorite colors.well have a nace day now i will blog later on byebye
158.

maaaaazer (November 24th, 2008, 1:49 pm)

hey guys. nice pics. you guys are awsome go beans go. i like dogs more then cats. blue is my favorite color but i also like cream. i like pizza…but only on fridays, thats when family night is. well my mom is going to catch me on the computer so i have to go. later home doggggggggggggggggggggs
159.

Rubén Osuna Guerrero (November 29th, 2008, 3:37 am)

I strongly recommend Bud Green’s photographs:

Link [www.flickr.com]

.
160.

dave (November 30th, 2008, 8:06 am)

great site. have just orderd a new SLR and its good to have some ware with lots of different angles on B&W photos. great ideas.
161.

azita (December 2nd, 2008, 10:25 pm)

it was really beautiful
thank`s alot,photographer
162.

Anu (December 4th, 2008, 12:52 am)

beautiful!!
163.

Kau (December 4th, 2008, 12:59 am)

Amazing !!
164.

pauline (December 7th, 2008, 12:44 pm)

Nice pictures,
They really inspire me. (:
They are Beautiful !
165.

nafan (December 8th, 2008, 2:35 pm)

nice fotos but i like qwertyuiop
166.

Sunil (December 10th, 2008, 4:17 am)

Simply Marvelous!!!!!!!
167.

Kathe (December 10th, 2008, 5:46 pm)

Super cool!! i love them
168.

girl (December 11th, 2008, 6:57 am)

WOW! i am in love with photography!
black and white is my favorite :D i am learning and just looking at certain pictures give me the chills they are so amazing! Man i cant wait untill i get my own camera. i am gonna go crazy!
169.

angelina (December 13th, 2008, 10:45 am)

i adored all the pictures……………………………..crazy photos!!!!!!!!!!!
170.

Ari (December 22nd, 2008, 2:22 pm)

Truly inspiring, I want to cry!
171.

haylee12 (January 7th, 2009, 7:37 am)

i love it,
i was amazing,
i love the girl with the cigarett,
:)
amazing, keep going
172.

jessicaa (January 7th, 2009, 7:43 am)

you mean candy cigarett??
duh,
itt is goodd,
all off it is,
173.

shane (January 7th, 2009, 8:18 pm)

betiful amazing artistic in every way love it my fave is the geco
174.

noonu (January 12th, 2009, 7:55 am)

sUpErb cOllEcTiOn Of pHoToS…!!!
175.

jake (January 14th, 2009, 7:03 am)

These pictures are exquisit!
I love your photography..
176.

emma (January 17th, 2009, 7:16 am)

amaizing ther are beutiful.
177.

carrie (January 26th, 2009, 12:40 pm)

wow i love this web sit this photos are so amazing and breathing taking and how some of them can show a whole story in one picture
178.

oratile (January 27th, 2009, 7:19 am)

WOW!!! i am so blown away with these pictures they are amazing ! i have never seen such wonderful photographs, in my life, especially when they are black and white.
179.

Remya.P.Viswan (January 28th, 2009, 1:56 am)

Really amazzing!!!!!!!! I can’t take my eyes back…..
180.

adel (February 2nd, 2009, 3:36 am)

i love the photos its amazzing , realy great
181.

Tooba BAloch (February 6th, 2009, 11:21 am)

simply amazing!!
182.

bb (February 15th, 2009, 5:57 pm)

Truly inspiring!!!
Thanks for sharing.
183.

Rino (February 16th, 2009, 5:19 pm)

thak you for showing these pic.
truly inspiring and beatiful
184.

kiely bernhardt (February 17th, 2009, 9:38 am)

i love all of them they are great!
185.

nazakath (February 21st, 2009, 9:31 pm)

Super cool!! i love them
186.

amanda (February 27th, 2009, 8:32 am)

i love the snails! i love all of them! :]

<33
187.

Aditya (March 4th, 2009, 8:06 am)

These images are just wonderful……I would love to learn photography after seeing these..all mesmerising……….!!
188.

Renee (March 12th, 2009, 7:55 am)

all of these photos are framed and on my wall!
189.

E,Ravi (March 13th, 2009, 12:50 am)

good photos Michele Clement
190.

EliXiR (March 16th, 2009, 6:27 am)

Great collection
191.

senthil (March 30th, 2009, 12:23 am)

fabulous!!!!
192.

Noeleen Shaw (March 31st, 2009, 1:30 pm)

Where is Peter Peryer from New Zealand!
193.

brianna (April 6th, 2009, 11:42 am)

hi i like this and i like food just kidding ya i am ok thx for asking
194.

noelle (April 6th, 2009, 11:45 am)

wow that was some of the best pie ever
195.

brianna (April 6th, 2009, 11:46 am)

hi noelle
196.

noelle (April 6th, 2009, 11:46 am)

hi brianna tee hee he
197.

Luis (April 7th, 2009, 8:17 am)

Muy buenas las fotos
me gusto mucho la de la lagartija
198.

Paul Cooklin (April 8th, 2009, 3:46 pm)

‘Smashing’.
199.

Gleison junior (April 8th, 2009, 7:37 pm)

são muitos loucas i que impressina as pessoas ,se eu desse conta de fazer eu fazia uma pasta na net so para isso .Parabens para quem criou.
200.

katelynn hoover (April 21st, 2009, 5:31 am)

…….
201.

katelynn hoover (April 21st, 2009, 5:40 am)

….
202.

bob (April 21st, 2009, 5:41 am)

……..
203.

S. Blair Fox (May 23rd, 2009, 8:38 pm)

A poem for the cigarette girl and you…

Not a Candy Cigarette
by , S. Blair Fox

Not a candy cigarette she smokes,
young girl holding between tokes,
at shaded playground park defending
the right to tobacco puff, not intending
to be caught , underage against the rage
of smoke filled adults, education sage,
that preaches bad habits, but teaches
by bad example, gives her lessons, reaches
for the soul to keep her in position,
and out of integrity, implying omission
from hot fire inhalation, thinking others degrade,
why can’t she?

She’s been smoking for months,
under bushes and trees, with flies and moths,
away from hated adult supervision,
to test her skills against their old superstition
and beliefs about “innocent” kids behavior,
she’s not waiting for some kind of savior.
Scary adult manipulation threatened
her foundation, creating a world weakened
by lies and truths gone awry,
hiding from trouble lurking, dark help exemplify.
204.

Ed (May 28th, 2009, 1:33 pm)

Great collection, welldone Smashing Team..I stumbled across this set of black and whites in my research which are very nice for my project inspiration Link [kontain.com]
205.

Ker (May 30th, 2009, 5:26 pm)

birds–very nice
Shazeen- This reminds me of growing up on the MI lakeshore. This photo is structural and playful. It makes me smile and feel the “at home” feeling.
206.

Edd (June 21st, 2009, 4:29 pm)

I like art.
THEY SO COOL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I like the shape
207.

Naeem Gujjar (June 24th, 2009, 4:09 am)

Amazing!

Sooooo Beautiful…………………..!!!!!
208.

nel (June 29th, 2009, 7:32 pm)

woooww! reaallly.. superb!!!
209.

nel (June 29th, 2009, 7:38 pm)

really inspiring photos ands touch my life…. superb!
210.

fatima (June 30th, 2009, 7:13 am)

maza agayi by god!!
211.

eva geiger (July 1st, 2009, 9:06 am)

Such a perfect collection of BW photos !! i am impressed. EG