Black and White

Planting Fields Arboretum B and W

Sherry Felix3 Comments

It was such a hot day on Saturday at the Planting Fields Arboretum in Long Island, NY that it subdued my mood. I came with a group of photgraphers and everyone split up, so I spent most of the day alone. I processed these to show how I felt.

For those who like to know. I took the image from Lightroom to Photoshop, applied a black and white filter or converted it to black and white using onOne Effects, then added a brown gradient map with blue in the mid tones in Photoshop. For the lavender and roses I masked out the flowers on an additional violet or pink gradient map.

  • Old wall, Planting Fields Arboretum, LI, NY 6/29/2019
  • Planting Fields Arboretum, LI, NY 6/29/2019
  • Planting Fields Arboretum, LI, NY 6/29/2019
  • Planting Fields Arboretum, LI, NY 6/29/2019
  • Lavender, Planting Fields Arboretum, LI, NY 6/29/2019
  • Rose trellis, Planting Fields Arboretum, LI, NY 6/29/2019

Governors Island B&W

Sherry Felix2 Comments

Some of the photographs I took during the #OPTC2019 trip to Governors Island worked best in black and white to show off the details I focussed on.

  • Upper New York BNay 6/4/2019
  • Governors Island 6/4/2019
  • Governors Island 6/4/2019
  • Governors Island 6/4/2019

Barrett Fountain

Sherry Felix4 Comments

This fountain honors children’s book author Frances Eliza Hodgson Burnett (1849-1924). The Conservatory Garden, which reopened to the public in 1937, was chosen as the perfect site for this memorial erected by Friends of Burnett. The reclining boy playing the flute and a young girl holding the bowl may represent Mary and Dickon, the main characters in The Secret Garden. The bowl is a functioning birdbath where small birds drink.

Barrett Fountain, Central Park Conservatory Garden 5/20/2019
From Wikipedia

Black & White Birds – CB and W

Sherry Felix14 Comments

There are only a few of my bird photographs that translate well into black and white with some work in Photoshop. This group will be included in the Linnaean Society of New York‘s 2018-2019 Program which I am putting together now for September. I create their website and printed program in B&W — layout not content.

Great Egret (Ardea alba), Central Park 3/31/2018
Great Egret (Ardea alba), Central Park 3/31/2018

American Bittern (Botaurus lentiginosus), Central Park 3/31/2018
American Bittern (Botaurus lentiginosus), Central Park 3/31/2018

Red-winged Blackbird, Central Park 4/12/2018
Red-winged Blackbird, Central Park 4/12/2018

Hermit Thrush (Catharus guttatus), Central Park 4/14/2018
Hermit Thrush (Catharus guttatus), Central Park 4/14/2018

Blue-headed Vireo (Vireo solitarius), Central Park 5/3/2018
Blue-headed Vireo (Vireo solitarius), Central Park 5/3/2018

Ovenbird (Seiurus aurocapilla), Central Park 5/8/2018
Ovenbird (Seiurus aurocapilla), Central Park 5/8/2018

Cedar Waxwing (Bombycilla cedrorum), Central Park 5/15/2018
Cedar Waxwing (Bombycilla cedrorum), Central Park 5/15/2018

Cee's B&W Photo Challenge

Also for Cee’s Black and White Photo Challange

Daffodil – B&W

Sherry Felix8 Comments

I converted this yellow daffodil in a recent post to black and white for Monochrome Madness March 31, 2016. I wanted it to have a slight sepia tone and look like an old etching, so I chose a flower with a plain background, intricate shapes, detail and texture.

Daffodil sp. Central Park 3/23/2016
Daffodil sp. as B&W sketch Central Park 3/23/2016

Chinatown Frog Pot

Sherry Felix1 Comment

I originally made this photo in color on September 2011 at Mulberry Street, Chinatown, New York City and converted it to B&W for Leanne Cole’s Monochrome Madness on March 30, 2016.

Chinatown Frog Pot 9/25/2011
Chinatown Frog Pot 9/25/2011

Chinatown Frog Pot 9/25/2011
Original color version – Chinatown Frog Pot 9/25/2011

 

Birds in Autumn

Sherry Felix6 Comments

I photographed these in my favorite place, Central Park, this September and October, 2015. I have been trying out the new Sigma 150-600 mm lens on my Nikon D750 — not bad at all. Then I processed them in Lightroom, Photoshop. And in some, using onOne, I added textures, shading and other tricks to create the mood I wanted. This is my creative outlet.

Doing these things to my photos means I will never be able to sell them as stock images. I hope someone will like one of my photographs well enough to want to buy one or two.

Ruby-throated Humminbird, Central Park 9/5/15
American Redstart Warbler, Central Park 9/11/15
Gray Catbird, Central Park 9/12/15
Blue-grey Gnatcatcher, Central Park 9/11/15
Northern Cardinal, Central Park 9/12/15
House Sparrow, Central Park 9/12/15
Red-eyed Vireo, Central Park 9/12/15
Carolina Wren, Central Park 10/10/15

Bashakill WMA by the Shawngunk Mountains

Sherry Felix11 Comments

I went for a trip with 3 of my birding friends to Bashakill Wildlife Management Area, Sullivan County, New York on the weekend of June 6th. The first day we spent by the lake. The following morning I took some lovely photographs of dawn at the lake. Later that morning we drove up Gumaer Road, alongside a stream of the same name; stopping here and there to listen, and occasionally spot, an Acadian Flycatcher, singing Dark-eyed Juncos, Veerys and a Wood Thrush. I didn’t have my Nikon 80-400 mm lens, which is being repaired, so I am sorry to say I couldn’t photograph two young ravens being fed some red meat. Lastly, we walked along the D&H Canal Linear Park. The area is lovely and bright green this time of year with many birds, turtles and other wildlife. I had a marvelous time. We saw 55 species of birds and other flora and fauna.

I experimented with black and white with added sepia tints. Each one required its own methods to get the best result in Lightroom’s “darkroom” for translating to B&W. I aimed to create a mood and accentuate certain details. Here are both color and black and white versions for comparison.

Landscapes:

Close-ups: