Kirk

Sailing with Schooners

Photography, Black And White Photography, Kirk

schooners-1

In Gloucester, MA every year we have a schooner festival. It’s a unique experience and I am lucky enough to be able to climb on board one of them whenever I want. This year I chose to shoot only in B&W mode on my Leica with my father’s old Leica/Schneider 21mm Super Angulon from 1963. In color this lens has a heavy magenta vignette so I tend to use it only in B&W.  A couple of years ago I had a CLA done on it and the optics are stunning.

Grand Army Of The Republic

Black And White Photography, Kirk, Photography

I love this old GAR building in downtown Rockport. The paint is peeling off the bricks and there is always a flag hanging, just not in this photo. Leica M-P 240 w/ Leica 28 mm Elmarit V1.

Tree And Building

Black And White Photography, Kirk, Photography

This tree has always drawn me to it early in the morning spring and fall. The light is low and the shadows are wonderful. The building across the street is a wonderful in it’s design. The out of focus clouds and building really give an interesting feel to this image. Leica M-P 240 w/Leica 35mm Summicron.

Fence and Shadows

Black And White Photography, Kirk, Photography

I’ve been trying to catch this fence just right for a while. A couple of weeks ago I managed to do it justice. Leica M-P 240 with 50mm Summilux.

Snow & Fire Escape

Black And White Photography, Kirk, Photography
boston snow (1 of 1)

Last year around this time I was at a Kelby seminar in Boston. It snowed lightly all day and interesting images were all around. I had my Sony Nex 7 with me and a couple of Leica lenses with me. This image was made with the Leica 90mm Tele Elmar.

Rudder & Flowers

Black And White Photography, Kirk, Photography
rudder-1

Old Rudder & Flower  Rockport, MA  Leica M-P 240  Leica 21mm Super Angulon (circa 1963)

White Bark

Black And White Photography, Kirk, Photography

tree trunk-1

This image was made awhile ago and I just came across it. I was out shooting with an intern on assignment for the group of newspapers I worked for at the time as a Photo Editor.  I was teaching this intern about light and how B&W can be such a powerful tool. This tree had white bark that could not be ignored. I had the Leica M-P 240 and the 50mm Summilux with me and worked on this composition knowing that I would convert to B&W since the only real color was the sky. The texture on the tree just popped once it was converted.

 

 

Surf & Pebbles

Black And White Photography, Kirk, Photography
pebble surf-1

Pebble Beach  Rockport, MA  Sony Nex7  Sony 10-18mm 

Mooringstone

Black And White Photography, Kirk, Photography

Mooringstone  Rockport, MA  Leica M-P 240  Leica 21mm Super Angulon (circa 1963)

Guest Post – Kirk Williamson – Early Morning Light

Black And White Photography, Kirk, Photography

I would like to introduce you to our newest Guest Contributor on Monochromia
Kirk Williamson.  I hope you enjoy his work.

My name is Kirk and this is my first post on Monochromia. I was born in Connecticut but was brought up in Gloucester, Massachusetts here in the USA. I now live in the a very small seaside town next to Gloucester, Rockport, Massachusetts. Where I grew up was a small scenic seaside village north of Boston and it is where I grew to love photography. My father was a real photo buff and Leica collector so my brother and I grew up shooting Leicas. We also had a very good, if not commercial darkroom that was built into our new house at the time. Yes, very lucky, I know.  So B&W imagery has been part of my life for a very long time. In school I studied the Zone system as part of a school project which brought me closer to Ansel Adams and Minor White’s work. I still love looking at some of Adam’s work for inspiration. That being said, my life’s work has been as a photojournalist, not so much landscapes or abstracts. Since my semi-retirement started in August of last year after almost 40 years I have concentrated less on people and more on things. Specifically light and texture. Since discovering Silver Efex Pro and the enormous control it gives you I have been converting much of my work to B&W.
My latest one man show was all black and white. I have been very disappointed in the way color photography has progressed to oversaturated HDR imagery. The word overdone comes to mind so I decided to go the other way with B&W and have found it very calming.
Kirk
You can view more of my work here and also here