Is Washington a Color or Black and White (Photography) Town?

dc in winter two rob paine

I have lived and worked in the D.C. area for most of my life and taken countless thousands of photos here. (please see more text and photos below)

Want to see another ISBAA post with a Black and White D.C. Photo, please check out  Early Morning on the National Mall

dc winter seven rob paine

The central area of The Nation’s Capital is not the most colorful place in the world. Most of the federal buildings appear to be either a different shade of grey or a gradient of marble white. On many days you really need dawn’s early light or a clear sunset to add color to many of these buildings, yet most of the downtown buildings have compelling designs.

The two photos above were taken late one winter’s afternoon in an archway next to a subway station in what is referred to as The Federal Triangle area of D.C. Which do you prefer, the color or black and white version?

rob paine dc winter

rob paine dc in winter one

This photo ( in color above, black and white below) was take-in the same location but looking towards the Old Post Office Pavillion.  The color in the top photo is nice, but do you get a better look at the building in the version below  as you are not distracted by the color?

The holiday season is all but wrapped up, but you can  still take one more look at your national  Christmas Tree outside the  U.S. Capitol building here. 

black and white rob paine dc in winter one

rob paine dc winter five

These final three photos were taken outside the Hirshhorn Museum next to the National Mall in Washington.  These photos were more black and white from the start so I kept them that way.I also throw these in to point out how fun it can be to see how many different ways you can frame the key landmarks in Washington from different vantage point. rob paine dc winter eight

rob paine dc in winter two

Related articles/  Black and White Photography

Comments

12 responses to “Is Washington a Color or Black and White (Photography) Town?”

  1. Winter Birds on the Potomac | I see beauty all around by rob paine Avatar

    […] Is Washington a black and white town? If you like black and white photography please check out this post on our Nation’s Capital. […]

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  2. acuriousgal Avatar

    I so love them in bnw but chose the color. I Like the beige tone on tone of the first pic and the blue sky is so dramatic in the other. The first pic is fantastic, but I love all your pics!!

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  3. Heather Avatar

    I did choose b & w, but I do think there is room for both having said that b & w is often dramatic, stripping away distractions leaving the detail…

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  4. nancy merrill Avatar

    Some are better in B&W and some are better in color. It depends on what you are going for and how you compose the picture. 🙂 My vote is both.

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    1. iseebeautyallaroundbyrobpaine Avatar

      thanks so much for adding to the conversation nancy, I appreciate your comment,Rob

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  5. spnphoto Avatar

    I prefer your BW pics, they are very good!

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  6. Mike Powell Avatar

    I love the shots from the sculpture garden of the Hirshhorn museum. There is something really special about sculpture, especially in an outdoor setting, because of the way that you can look at it from different angles and in different light and the sculptures seem to be completely different. Your poll made it tough, because you were asking for a global response based on a limited sample. If you show photos of the cherry blossoms in bloom at the tidal basin, you might get a different response.

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    1. iseebeautyallaroundbyrobpaine Avatar

      That is a great point Mike! Thanks for the comment, Rob

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  7. kerlund74 Avatar

    I think every town suits in b&w and these photos shows that. Of course the colored ones are great to, but I prefer the b&w.

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  8. anotherday2paradise Avatar

    Love the B&W, Rob. 🙂

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  9. likeitiz Avatar

    Colors are great but black and white always has it’s very own unique drama.

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