Tracked in

I am a slow learner. People can tell me things but until I try them for myself, it's all "in-one-ear-out-t'other". One of our photo group members was telling me a new idea he's trying, wherein he turns off all colour in his camera. His viewfinder delivers views in black and white, the captured files are black and white etc

Now I, being a fully qualified smartarse, listened at first with a tolerant simulation of interest, all the while doubting that the notion had any real merit.

I argued with myself that the sensible thing is to capture in colour and then maybe experiment with monochrome in post. You can get a better result that way (e.g. Silver Efex) AND retain the choice of mono or colour thereafter. Besides, if captured in monochrome from the get go, one would always need to shoot RAW and fool around with conversion every time, else the 8 bit 256 tone JPEG picture would break up into banding during post. AS usual I had successfully manoeuvred myself around the real point. (sigh)

Question: What do I normally complain about morning noon and night? Answer: Going stale and failing to SEE pictures. 

I actually tried John's idea today, using my Lumix Leica. I found the means of doing so in one of the on board "filters". Immediately I saw the point which I had been too stupid to grasp before. I had been obsessed with correct image quality technique. What I OUGHT to have been obsessed with is the ability to SEE. As I wandered around I could see pictures everywhere, where before I'd glimpsed none at all. It was a revelation. What's more the pictures didn't get a chance to fall over in post processing. They didn't NEED to be post processed. I'd been able to see (what would normally have been) the post processed image BEFORE I PRESSED THE SHUTTER. Duh!!  

Anyway it is rainy, cold, overcast, foggy, miserable and quite wonderful in Blackheath today. I have no choice but to forget the Ken Duncan sunrise challenge for the present anyway so I shall be attempting to SEE in black and white for the next few days. More to come.