Renewal

I'm laid up with a case of bronchitis. We had a week of summer like weather and now we're back in much chillier weather. Everything is brown except for the shoots of spring bulbs. The world around here is not particularly photogenic. Spring is a time of renewal and I've been looking through old photos, deciding which to enter in a competition and I asked for input from some friends. The photo above is one I was considering and one friend commented that it might be stronger in B&W so I decided to try it.

I played with the tonal relationships and applied a warm tone using Photoshop's duotone settings. My friend likes the monochrome version better, my wife likes the color version better. To me they are different images and about different things. The monochrome version is narrower in my opinion, it's about the flowing water and the rest is subsidiary. The color version is richer, both literally because of the color but also in terms of what it is about. The warmth of the rock brings it forward and the green of the foliage is appealing as is the tinge of yellow/orange on the tops of the trees from the lowering sun. The green may be particularly appealing at this time of year when the actual world outside is anything but. The color version is more a presentation of an overall experience and the monochrome more a metaphor.

I like them both but I am more partial to the color version right now. In a different mood, at a different time, I might be more partial to the B&W version more focused as it is on the flow of the water. Right now I'm looking forward to more of the world around me being green and warm. Meantime neither version will go into the competition.