Black and White Art - How Some Artists Learned To Capture Their Work

Before color photography, there was black and white. And although many people enjoy their colored paintings and photographed art, black and white is still loved by many and continues to be popular for not only the art buyer, but the artists that so creatively capture these shots. Although there is a wide range of photographers and artists that hold a passion for this art, it's nice to get into some of their heads and know where they got started creating the beauty of black and white.

Steven Myers, is a native of Washington state and claims that black and white has been a part of his daily life since 1971. He uniquely crafts his black and white art through radiograph images. He has experimented with this type of art form for 25 years; as a radiology technologist. His many years of involvement with traditional landscape photography, made it quite the challenge with radiograph images. Yet, he tries to keep his work as unique as he can. Myers works full time as a radiology tech, and has his own radiology unit for personal use so he can make his own black and white art and creates more than 700 exposures per year.

Jamie Cook is from Atlanta, Georgia. He attended Georgia State University majoring in Fine Art and Photography, which is where he began his formal training. He began his career as a professional advertising photographer. Cook created a digitally enhances photography approach. After traveling and capturing shots of his subjects he works closely with digital imaging programs on his computer to enhance his work. He uses a 35 millimeter camera to capture his subjects. He became well known for his photographs in the Southeast region and even got deals with clients who include The Ritz Carlton Hotels and Wrangler Jeans. He is also known for 4 awards he has received from Adweek. Cook continues to use various techniques to show art lovers his on-going passion for photography in black and white.

Monte Nagler was born and raised in Ann Arbor, Michigan. He received a degree in engineering as well as his MBA from The University of Michigan. After working for Ford Motor Company for a short while, he developed an interest in photography. It wasn't until his 30's that he became a renowned black and white photographer. Impressively, Monte only took a few photography classes and even worked with Ansel Adams who became a big inspiration to him and his work. Nagler quickly developed his own creative fine art photography. He believes that photographers should speak through their art "This is what I saw and felt and I'd like to share that!" Monte's has won several awards that can be found in many public as well as private collections. Some of these include Detroit Institute of Arts; The Dayton Art Institute and The Brooklyn Museum. Asisde from his art, he has conducted many of his own classes and seminars and has written 6 photography books. Nagler spends his time traveling to various places looking for his next opportunity to take more beautiful black and white shots.

It's nice to explore the minds of photographers and artists that can take a picture and turn it into a work of art that many of us love to obtain and have in our homes.

How to Define Your Audience So That You Can Create Digital Art Photography That Sells

Once you have given yourself the title of a photographer, you must decide who your audience is going to be. Your audience could even be simply you. There is nothing wrong with creating art for your own enjoyment.

You may be looking at selling your photos. If this is the case, there are countless markets for photography. You can sell your art in the name of advertising for restaurants or businesses or you can sell your art to an audience who appreciates the beauty of what you photograph.

The possibilities are actually endless and it may even take creativity on your part to think of how to apply your art. Once you decide what kind of photographer you are, you must determine what kind of people would be interested in your photography. For example, a room full of scientists will not buy many photos of yours if you take pictures of boxing matches. This process of deciding who to sell your work to is what defining your audience essentially is.

You may still ask, how do I define my audience? If this is you, consider the following things:

- Does your audience like action? Busy city landscapes? Natural beauty?

- Does your audience collect anything in particular? (This can be very helpful)

- What kind of political or religious traits does your audience possess?

- Where is a likely location that your audience will buy your art?

- What is the price range that your audience will be willing to spend on your art?

Once you have a clear picture of your likely audience, consider what interests them. Maybe if your audience is upper class and they collect pricey antiques, you should offer a way to add to their collection through your artwork in an affordable way.

Choosing Subject Matter

The only thing that should decide what and how you photograph should be taken is your audience. What is it that you need to photograph? Do you need to get a plane ticket to take pictures of things that you cannot find locally? Do you need to drive a few miles from your house to take pictures of a nearby park? Whatever it is, it should be in line with what your audience treasures.

You may even want to start where you are sitting or even look out your front yard to find art that maybe you have not noticed in the past.