How to Take Good Black-and-White Pictures With Your Compact Digital Camera

Most of us seldom discuss about the colors of the pictures since most compact digital cameras are able to produce good quality pictures as many point-and-click cameras have more than 7 megapixels - much better than older version of digital cameras which had less than 7 megapixels. While people are more particular with the clearness and sharpness of the image - does anyone still interested in taking black and white pictures?

Retrospectively, taking black and white photos were once popular back to the old days of photography - when photographers were using traditional black and white monochrome films. The main purpose of creating black and white picture is to create a dramatic result by eliminating distracting colors and focuses on your subject.

Here are few ways that you can take good black and white pictures with your point-and-shoot camera:

1. Use the black and white or sepia mode

In this case, you can either use black and white or sepia mode to produce black and white pictures with satisfying range of tones. After taking a photo shoot, remember to check the results on the camera's LCD screen - practice that in every time you make a photo shooting so that you can capture clear picture effectively.

2. Play around with the contrast

Since you cannot use color to differentiate one component of your image from another, therefore you have to adjust the contrast in order to make the subject come into play. It is better that you think about how the contrast will make the subject more appealing when composing your shot.

3. Use low ISO setting

Your image can be enhanced with low ISO setting - as a result, you'll be able to produce noisier black and white picture. It involves "trial and error" method - start setting the lowest ISO setting at the beginning of the photo shoot, and gradually increase the ISO setting until you've discovered the right "noise" image.

4. Use the right lighting

Illumination is part of the main component photography - if you creatively use the right lighting source in your photo shoot, you'll be able to create interesting black and white images. For instance, you'll be able to have shades on the subject's face (for portrait photo shoot) or shadows on the subject (for creating emotions in the picture). In addition, you can use artificial lighting for indoor photo-taking sessions.

In order to take good black and white pictures, you have to experiment your photo shoot with all the tips as elaborated earlier.

Source : Ezinearticles