Monochrome photography makes use of distinguished amounts of light rather than diverse colors in order to capture and represent images. The standard color photography, also known as polychrome, displays colors from across the spectrum. On the other hand, in monochrome photography, just a single color is taken and a range of tones of that color is used for the image. A number of industry professionals love to engage in monochrome photography, Bruce Weber Photographer being one of them. While black and white images are certainly the most widely used form of monochrome photography, many photographers also like to explore sepia or cyan.
Without the colors in an image, one would be left with photographs that are represented by their tone, form, and shape. This helps give more focus to the essential ingredients of the photography, while taking away the distraction, and assisting in keeping the attention of the viewers on what the photographer desires to communicate through the image. For instance, opting for monochrome in architectural photography can be quite advantageous, when the photographer wants to put emphasis on the lines and shapes. Broadly speaking, monochrome lends itself pretty well to photos where the photographer wants to simplify the subject. Abstracts and minimalistic images, hence, are commonly represented in monochrome.
A great way to determine whether an image is well-composed or not is to reduce it to a monochrome temporarily, even if the final intent of the photographer is to have the image in color. With lesser distractions, it shall become easier to gauge where the concepts of balance, subject placements, curve, leading lines, positive and negative space, and diverse other compositional concepts work. One may even find that a strongly composed photograph is better rendered without color so that its compositional elements are able to stand out more strongly without the distraction of colors. It becomes simpler to observe and admire properties like degree of hardness or softness, diffusion, intensity, shadows, highlights, direction, refraction and more in monochrome.
Monochrome can also be an excellent way to put emphasis on the texture of an object. This could be subjects having tough textures like weathered wood, or even objects with smoother textures. The play of tone and light in monochrome is usually a good way to communicate the texture of a subject.
As traditionally monochrome was the only way to capture images, a lot of people still equate such photos, especially the black and white ones, with nostalgia or retro. In fact, monochrome can be a part of the reason why many images captured by Bruce Weber Photographer seem to have a distinctive rustic charm. Today one can always take a photo of a historic steam train in color and create a compelling shot, making it monochrome goes a long way in adding a nostalgic vibe to it that truly connects with the viewers.