What makes black and white photography all that?

I guess you do have a point there, but that is only if you're talking of a 'what if', what if i born in that era,
I'm talking about now, now that we have both and we see them both, and to me clearly, black and white is more superior, I just wanna know if others feel the same way, and if they do, then why is it that we feel that way about it?

Sure.:P

I would say that, that answer is actually fairly technical and makes perfect sense. I think we all know why we like black and white photographs more, but its not until its pointed out that you realise you have thought that all along. I just read your post and thought "yes, thats exactly what i think!" but its not something that ever entered my mind when i first saw the topic.

I think you nailed it Erinlpx, and jaywhiting, i agree with you that it's only after you physically hear it that you realize that that's exactly what you thought but you just didn't have the words to describe it.
And it's so true, that because we see the world in color, a black and white still provides us with something different and more mysterious and we associate both of those things with beauty and art.
And you said it wasn't technical......, get outta here, stop being modest, you know your stuff, even if you don't know about the technicalities of it.

Awww, thanks you guys! I tend to get awfully rambly when posting, especially when it's something I feel pretty strongly about, and I'm quite passionate about photography. I'm by no means a photographer, but I am very interested in learning more, and practising more (once I can afford a better camera).

great answer my frend.

it was really nice of you to answer that question, and i am sure that it came from your heart.

mike,
the lil smiley devil

That's alright, erinlpx, I like rambly, I like reading long responses to my questions, shows that a person was really interested in what they were answering.
I also think that photography is a talent that although it gets better with studying the whole technical side of it, but you are either born with the talent or not, and you might just have the gift for it, judging from your answer.
It's all about the eye, how you look at things in photography.
I hope you get that camera soon and then share some of your photos with us.
Good luck.
Hey smiley devil, it's nice that you're encouraging other responses. Good to see you here.

yeah, I think they call that sepia, that yellowish or brownish look. And hey I totally agree that a photo in color can be beautiful and that there are lots of good ones out there, but if you take the same photo and make it black and white it just changes the whole look of it, and more important it changes the whole feel of it.

oh that's nice, I don't have any picture of me in black and white, and the ones that are digitally done just don't have that quality, it's the best only when shot with a black and white camera, makes all the difference.

yeah, I know those photographs you're talking about, like a picture of a woman in greyscale and only her lips are red or her eyes are blue or some other colorful detail, that looks awesome.
Or a picture of a beautiful black and white sky with a colorful rainbow across it, like in this one.

That's odd because people here who said they know nothing about photography have actually come up with really good responses on why they prefer greyscale photography.
Like you.
But I would disagree with you on one thing. Not ALL black and white photos look arty. There is still some effort and some more magic to capture that perfect monochrome moment.

Yes, it does give a moody feel to it.
I also think that black and white by the sea is amazing because there are so many different shades of light and shadows of the waves that it makes a really interesting moment.
But the best is shooting in fog, because fog really plays on the light in its own weird way and that looks great on the camera.

I don't think you actually understood what my discussion was about, I know how to shoot black and white, I was more interested in knowing why black and white photos are so much more artistic than colored ones.
But hey, I do agree with the photoshop thing, that changing a photo to black and white is just not the same as shooting it in black and white, that's a whole other level of photography.

oh, so you're a photographer, that's the first one here, and I'm glad to know your point of view.
I always dreamed of having a dark room and developing my own pictures.
But I'll have to get a camera first, he he:)

yup you got that right, no colors to distract, all the focus is on the subject,whatever that might be in the photograph, and monochrome photos have a distinct ability to draw your attention towards them, to get a 'closer' look.