Fotoeins Fotografie

location bifurcation, place & home
Downtown Vancouver, West Georgia St, Hornby St, Vancouver, BC, Canada, fotoeins.com, black and white, monochrome

The mono in the chrome

By on

Above/featured: “Interchange (after Harry Callahan).” Downtown Vancouver – 28 Jul 2016 (6D1).

“Color is descriptive. Black and white is interpretive.”

– Eliott Erwitt

“I work in color sometimes, but I guess the images I most connect to, historically speaking, are in black and white. I see more in black and white – I like the abstraction of it.”

– Mary Ellen Mark

For me, the pull towards photography has always been about images in colour and landscape format to highlight a location, illuminate a historical event, or to feature a person who touched many lives. Thinking about and making images either square, in monochrome, or both have provided useful challenges to push the working dynamics of creativity. I hope the following images will get the viewer to ask if there’s more than what’s presented and to get possible answers on their own.

Berlin, Germany

Der Rufer, Gerhard Marcks, Strasse des 17. Juni, Tiergarten, Hauptstadt, Berlin, Deutschland, Germany, fotoeins, black and white, monochrome

“Der Rufer (The Caller)”, by Gerhard Marcks. The sculpture’s position in West Berlin’s Tiergarten faces east towards East Berlin – 13 Nov 2016 (6D1).

Alte Nationalgalerie, Museumsinsel, Museum Island, Hauptstadt, Berlin, Deutschland, Germany, fotoeins, black and white, monochrome

Alte Nationalgalerie, Berlin – 12 Oct 2017 (6D1).

Cape Town, South Africa

District Six, Table Mountain, tablecloth effect, Cape Town, South Africa, fotoeins, black and white, monochrome

Going past District Six on bus or by foot, it’s difficult not to be haunted by the ghosts and victims of apartheid. Cape Town – 14 Oct 2012 (450D).

Cologne, Germany

kurznachzehn, Oebel, Ehrenfeld, Köln, Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia, Nordrhein-Westfalen, Germany, Deutschland, fotoeins.com, black and white, monochrome

Stencil by kurznachzehn, on Venloer Strasse in Köln-Ehrenfeld – 24 May 2016.

Dessau, Germany

Bauhaus Dessau, Bauhaus, Dessau, Germany, Deutschland, fotoeins, black and white, monochrome

Bauhaus Dessau (1925-1932), a modern blend of steel and glass – 28 Oct 2016 (6D1).

Frankfurt, Germany

Flughafen Frankfurt am Main, Frankfurt am Main Airport, FRA, FRAport, Frankfurt am Main, Frankfurt, Germany, Deutschland, fotoeins, black and white, monochrome

“Humans as living data receptacles” – Flughafen FRA/Frankfurt Airport, 4 Jun 2018 (X70).

Hamburg, Germany

Kontorhausviertel at night, Chilehaus, Sprinkenhof, UNESCO, World Heritage, Weltkulturerbe, Hamburg, Germany, fotoeins.com, black and white, monochrome

Hamburg’s Kontorhausviertel, UNESCO World Heritage Site: labelled are two key buildings in the city’s quarter – 3 Dec 2015 (6D1).

Leipzig, Germany

Prague, Czech Republic

Staroměstská, stanice metra A, metro A, metro station, DPP, Prague metro, Prague, Praha, Prag, Czech Republic, fotoeins.com, black and white, monochrome

“Downstream at StaromÄ›stská”. Prague Metro A – 8 Nov 2016 (6D1).

Salzburg, Austria

Sky-space, James Turrell, Museum der Moderne Salzburg, Salzburg Walk of Modern Art, Salzburg, Austria, Oesterreich, fotoeins.com, black and white, monochrome

“Sky-space” by James Turrell – next to Museum der Moderne Salzburg, 23 May 2018 (X70).

Seattle, USA

seagull, WSDOT Ferries, MV Kaleetan, ferry, Puget Sound, Salish Sea, Bremerton, Seattle, Washington, USA, fotoeins.com, black and white, monochrome

“Sail and fly”. Puget Sound (Salish Sea) from Bremerton to Seattle – 6 Jan 2015 (6D1).

Meta, selfie slouch, Seattle Center, Seattle, Washington, USA, fotoeins.com black and white, monochrome

“How meta: the selfie slouch”. Near Seattle Center – 10 Oct 2016 (6D1).

West Thomas St. Overpass, Queen Anne, fog, Seattle, Washington, USA, fotoeins.com, black and white, monochrome

“Saturday morning”. West Thomas Street Overpass in Seattle’s Lower Queen Anne – 9 Dec 2017 (6D1).

Sydney, Australia

ANZAC Day, Kenneth Roy Curran, Ken Curran, Blue, Bluey, Commando Memorial, Martin Place, Sydney CBD, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, fotoeins.com, black and white, monochrome

Ken “Bluey” Curran, OAM JP. Martin Place in Sydney’s CBD – ANZAC Day 2013 (450D).

Vancouver, Canada

Tea House, Nitobe Memorial Garden, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada, fotoeins.com, black and white, monochrome

“No entry”. UBC Nitobe Memorial Garden – 22 Aug 2019 (X70).

The three wise, Howe Street, Vancouver, BC, Canada, fotoeins.com, black and white, monochrome

“The three wise”. Downtown Vancouver – 29 Dec 2018 (X70).

Vienna, Austria

Laimgrubengasse, Mariahilf, 6th District, 6. Bezirk, Wien, Vienna, Austria, Oesterreich, fotoeins.com, black and white, monochrome

Afternoon in the 6 (Mariahilf). Wien, 16 May 2018 (X70).

I made all pictures above with various detectors: Canon EOS450D/XSi (450D), Canon 6D mark 1 (6D1), and Fujifilm X70 (X70); alle Fotoaufnahmen sind mit Wasserzeichen versehen worden. This post appears on Fotoeins Fotografie at fotoeins DOT com as https://wp.me/p1BIdT-fXk. Acknowledgements go to Patti for LAPC no.70 (2 to 8 Nov 2019).

12 Responses to “The mono in the chrome”

    • fotoeins

      Hi, Tina. I’m glad the images elicited a wonderfully “ridiculous” reaction 😊 Thank you very much for your kind comment. As much as I like the “selfie slouch” because of the random circumstances under which I made that image, my favorites for now are Berlin’s “Alte Nationalgalerie” (look closely!) and Vancouver’s “No entry”.

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply
  2. pattimoed

    Hi, Henry. I was hoping you were going to join us this week! I am astounded at the beauty and range of your monochromes. They are spectacular. I’m so moved by the shot in the library and the selfie slouch made me smile. Your architectural shots are so crisp and clear. This is a wonderful visual feast, Henry. Thank you for posting!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
    • fotoeins

      Hi, Patti. Until you mentioned it, I hadn’t realized there was a wide range of “greys” about which you rightly observed, because I had only considered what was in the images themselves and asked myself if they’d look all right in monochrome. Thank you very much for your kind comment. 😊 I’d also like to clarify that the “Nameless Library” is the name of a sculpture that is a public Holocaust memorial at the centre of Judenplatz square in Vienna. But the young man wearing a kippah in relaxed stance truly makes that image. Thanks again!

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply
  4. Leya

    A marvelous gallery, Henry – a feast for the eye! I must agree with Tina – the selfie slouch is just superb!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

Please leave your comments below

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.