BCRR in B&W

[beavercreek]

It was just too cold and wet today, so did not get the chance to do my shots of the ski train led up by the Heritage SD70 so spent a bit of time looking through some of the photos taken of the layout during the last year or so.
I have always really liked taking black and white photographs and used to do a lot of my own developing back in the day. B&W really does add atmosphere to certain model railway scenes, especially those that would have been taken in that format in real life.
So I have had a play with some of the photos and made them into black and whites. Most digital cameras now have the option to do black and white but to get that authentic feel you do have to adjust settings, levels or muck about with layers etc.

Not sure if all of them, if any, come off but here are a few..

This one has had a little bit of 'ageing' added tp it

 

[Madman]

Re:BCRR in black and white

Great photos. Black and white makes the difference.

 

[Tony]

Re:BCRR in black and white

Very Good Mike i didnt reconize any of it to start with....gives a whole new feel to your railway

Tony

 

[Hobo]

Re:BCRR in black and white

Great Stuff!
Going B&W instantly "ages" and gives a period feel to the scenes (and stops you worrying about "scale colour" )

 

[Mousey]

Re:BCRR in black and white

B&W pics look great Mike.

 

[beavercreek]

Re:BCRR in black and white

Thanks lads for the kind comments. I am glad that you also feel that the B&W actually 'adds' something to the scene.

A few more that I did not get on last night...

 

[Gizzy]

Re:BCRR in black and white

That's quite an amazing change and really gives the railway a 'period' look....

 

[beavercreek]

Re:BCRR in black and white

Added a little more 'ageing'

 

[CoggesRailway]

Re:BCRR in black and white

Brilliant. Especially the one with interesting wagon with "varieties" written on it in the foreground.

 

[maxi-model]

Re:BCRR in black and white

Great stuff, really oozes atmosphere. I recon I could be looking at the full sized stuff.
Max.

 

[beavercreek]

Re:BCRR in black and white

Brilliant. Especially the one with interesting wagon with "varieties" written on it in the foreground.

Thanks for the comment Max.

Hi Ian
The 'Varieties' jobby is a home made Heinz vat car. It is made from mainly wood and brass. The 'vats' are made from wooden splints stuck around a metal tin.

This is it before it was weathered

You can just make out that I need to redo the finish on the walkway as it has 'blistered' in a few places. This will be due to me leaving it out when I had forgotten and it got wet!

 

[Tony]

Re:BCRR in black and white

I suppose it helps that a lot of us are old enough to remember when the world was Black and white

 

[beavercreek]

Re:BCRR in black and white

I suppose it helps that a lot of us are old enough to remember when the world was Black and white

I know how it works and I have edited analogue and digital video both using hi end tape machines and then computers (when video editing cards cost over £3000!) but I am still amazed by colour TV....it is just astounding that we can beam live HD 3D images into homes...sometimes we just take things for granted.

BUT black and white photos (not only of 'old' subject matter) do give us a chance to view an image in a better way for content, texture and light ...well that's my view anyway......

 

[Richie]

Re:BCRR in black and white

cracking black & white photo's Mike

 

[beavercreek]

Re:BCRR in black and white

Hi Richie..I am glad you like them.

I have been trying different methods of 'ageing' the B&Ws

here are a few more attempts using a variety of filters and overlays etc.

 

[trammayo]

Re:BCRR in black and white

Some great pics Mike. Whilst the camera never lies (doesn't it though), B & W makes model scenes come alive in a way colour cannot - particularly foliage!

 

[Don Gilham]

Re:BCRR in black and white

Look great Mike - have you tried a sepia tint ?

 

[beavercreek]

Re:BCRR in black and white

Hi Don
Some of them are sepia but I use a more yellow brown tint and then knock it back a bit. As the shots are of my layout, I use sepia for very old 'scenes', 1890s - 1930s as more recent photos (1940's to 50s) might be damaged but would have a more true cooler black and white tone. Just the same, it is good to 'play around' with effects anyway

 

[beavercreek]

Re:BCRR in black and white

Hi Kim
Thanks for the encouraging comment. I particularly like the effect as well. I combined various settings and levels and then used one of the 'Photoframe Pro' antique overlays in Photoshop CS5. In Photoframe you can customise it to make it just how you want it..

 

[Don Gilham]

Re:BCRR in black and white

I love creases

(Actually that does look brilliant, Mike)