Decatur Depot in B&W

By Jim Denham | Published January 10, 2013

f/10, 1/10 sec, at 21mm, 100 ISO, on a Canon EOS 60D

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Let’s go back to early 2012 in Decatur, AL. The old depot there was one of my favorite photographic subjects and a great site for gritty HDR brackets. Just for fun, I took this middle bracket of the depot and converted it to black and white with some of the new-found conversion tools  that have been gathered over the last couple of months. To be honest, I don’t think a tone mapped image could have been any more dramatic than this one.

Only one thing was done in Perfect B&W – selective color darkening in the sky. All other processing was done in Aperture with selective curve adjustments on each component – sky, depot, chimney and asphalt. Just for fun, I’ve included the original frame before any editing below.

  • Aperture: ƒ/10
  • Camera: Canon EOS 60D
  • Focal length: 21mm
  • ISO: 100
  • Shutter speed: 1/10s
  • http://www.edithlevyphotography.com Edith Levy

    Great job on the B&W conversion Jimmy. I love the detail that you’ve brought out in the clouds.

    • http://www.jimdenhamphotography.com Jim

      Thanks Edith – it’s a lot of fun doing that!

  • http://JimiJonesVisuals.com Jimi Jones

    Wonderful shot, Jim. I love that B&W version. Really well done, man.

    • http://www.jimdenhamphotography.com Jim

      Thanks Jimi – I appreciate that!

  • http://hdr4real.com Mark Neal

    Very nice monochrome conversion, Jim. Agree with Edith, sky/clouds are stunning!

    • http://www.jimdenhamphotography.com Jim

      Thanks Mark!

  • http://www.lensaltiel.com/ Len Saltiel

    It always amazes that certain images are perfect for B&W (I am a color guy). I never know when to do it. This was one of those shots that screams B&W. Awesome.

    • http://www.jimdenhamphotography.com Jim

      Thanks Len. Sometimes it is hard to tell, but anytime there’s decent color range and contrast, even though it would make a good color shot, it’s great for a B&W conversion!

  • http://msummerfieldimages.com Mark Summerfield

    The darkening of the sky made this shot, Jim. This shot would not have been much without the great detail you have pulled out of the clouds.

    • http://www.jimdenhamphotography.com Jim

      Totally agree Mark, that’s why it was the first item of business in processing. Once it came around, the rest was easy! Thanks bud!

  • http://chrisdmrf.wordpress.com Chris Maskell

    The monochrome really works well, the sky detail makes the shot.

    • http://www.jimdenhamphotography.com Jim

      Thanks Chris, I totally agree!