Sometimes I like to convert my photographs into black and white, simply to see what they look like and what moments are focused on without the distraction of color.
Sometimes I see a photo in black and white in my head and sometimes in color. To me, photos are meant to tell a story and there are times that that story is better told if there aren’t a variety of colors, which can be a distraction, to pull the eye away from the story.
I don’t agree that just any photo can be converted to black and white, however. I’ve seen photographs of flowers converted to black and white and don’t get it. I think flowers should be in color. However, that’s only my personal opinion.

Native American dancers?
Color. (My photo of this was taken on film and I didn’t take the time to scan it in for this post.)
Photos from autumn? Color.

Flowers at a greenhouse? Usually in color but sometimes black and white tells the story better and the colorful flowers aren’t needed.

I thought I would share some of the “story telling” photos I took in the last few months that I thought told the story better in black and white. Even though lately I like most of my photos in color simply so the world doesn’t seem so dark.
I’ve rambled about black and white photography before.
And I’ve rambled about photography in general a number of times:
Capturing the Real, Raw Moments of Photography
What happened to my photography when I stopped taking photos for money
Photography Tuesday: The No Good Rotten Truth about Selling Stock Photography
Photography for parents: Five tips to photographing your children inside your home