Black and White Photography: A Basic Manual

by Henry Horenstein

A photography instructor guides individuals in the mechanics of taking, developing, and printing black-and-white pictures

Genres: Photography, Art, Nonfiction, Reference, Art and Photography, How To, Art Design

229 pages, Hardcover

Published April 16, 1983

About the author

Henry Horenstein (b. 1947, Boston) is an American artist photographer. Henry Horenstein has worked as a photographer, teacher and author since the early 1970s. He is the author of over 30 books, including a series of photographic textbooks that have been used by hundreds of thousands of students over the past 30 years. In 2003, Chronicle Books published Honky Tonk, Horenstein's documentary survey of country music during the late 1970s and early 1980s. Honk Tonk was also presented as an exhibition by the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History in 2006. His work has been collected by many institutions including the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of American History, Washington, D.C.; the George Eastman House, Rochester, New York; the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston; Library of Congress; the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston; and the High Museum of Art in Atlanta, Georgia. Henry Horenstein current lives in Boston and teaches at the Rhode Island School of Design.

Reviews

[Heather]

I read this when it was first published. Henry Horenstein was my Photograpy professor at UMass. He instilled in me a love of taking photos and helped me to see in a different way.

[Beata · Rating 3 out of 5]

My textbook way back when started formally studying photography. All the good basics were in here.

[Vicster · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book has been on my to-read list for quite some time now and now I realize why my photography instructors recommended it. Black and White Photography: A Basic Manual is a very rich, well-organized photography manual. Horenstein gives just enough instruction and detail without being overwhelming or leaving the reader feeling as though lighting or processing one's own film is too complicated.

This book is geared toward photographers who shoot film, though folks who shoot digital can learn a great deal from this book, too. And who knows? It may inspire some people to put down their DSLR and pick up a used Pentax K-1000 or Mamiya RZ67!

[Scott Drake · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's probably a much better resource than I give it credit for because I've been shooting for 35 years before looking at this. still, it was a nice compact reminder of tools, knowledge and techniques.

[Joshua Engler · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty basic, but that’s the intent. I found the darkroom sections to be the most interesting. The book assumes you’re coming in with zero knowledge, and I think it does a pretty good job considering the target audience.

[Samantha · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you are curious you should read it in class for some Black & White Photography from a long time ago of how we used to teach the class three years ago.

[Gijs Limonard · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very basic manual indeed, but thorough and easy-to-digest for the starting photographer; plenty of helpful illustrations and diagrams; perhaps not the absolute go-to guide, but a very decent one showing you the a-b-c of photography.

[Nicole · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was a fantastic manual for any photographer. I got it because I just got my first SLR camera, and wanted a book that would help me make sense of all the things the new camera lets me control manually, like the aperture and shutter speed. This book was perfect for that, explaining well how f-stops and shutter speeds effect photographs. It even finally cleared up something I'd never understood, which is why larger f-stop numbers denote smaller openings. That still sort of bugs me and seems counter-intuitive, but I think I at least understand now.

This book is all about taking black and white photos, but has lots of info that is relevant to photographers who shoot in color, which is what I normally do. The book got me thinking about contrast, composition, lighting, and range of focus, which is important no matter what kind of photography you're into. So don't be put off by the black-and-white focus if your interest in photography is general.

One thing that was a small drawback for me is that this book is all about film photography. Digital cameras are mentioned in passing, but the author is assuming that you'll be shooting on film and developing and printing your photos yourself. There is more information that is useful to a digital photographer than you might expect, but still, there are large chunks of the book you can skip if you've moved past film. I'm glad I read the chapter on black and white film, for example, because it had good information on ISO, which is actually still something you can set on a digital camera. Chapters on lighting, exposure, shutter speeds, and how the lens works were extremely informative. The chapter on developing film in the darkroom, however, didn't really teach me much that I still need to know.

The one thing that could make this book better is if there were a digital-camera edition. Most digital cameras allow you to take black and white photos, and most photo-managment software programs allow you to make a color image black and white. More about how to take good b&w shots with a digital camera that don't look silly or Instagrammed would be greatly appreciated.

[Ulee ☄︎ · Rating 4 out of 5]

The title of the book is misleading. This may be because this book was published in the 1980's. Back then, black and white photography was more popular than color photography. This is a complete film photography book. It starts from the camera and takes you fully through the process and ends with mounting your print on a wall. There isn't anything specific about b&w photography, like different techniques on how to get particularly styles of b&w photos. It is strictly about photography as a whole, which is still a good thing. There were a bunch of concepts I thought I understood, but the way they were explained in this book made me understand even better.

[Falcon · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had been taking photos with a 35mm for 6 years prior to reading this book, with two years of classes and darkroom experience under my belt.

It taught me so much that I had never learned in school or by my father who has done photography since he was 19.

Highly recommended for a beginner photographer interested in learning fundamental skills for black and white manual photography. A great reference guide that will always have a place on my bookshelf.

[CD · Rating 3 out of 5]

I purchased a new copy of this as one of my first real acquisitions of photography books that had not been handed down to me or had to be purchased for school.

That original dog eared copy has been 'retired' to a safe corner shelf now held together with acid free ribbon.

An interesting book to look back on before the digital age, but still in a modern era of photography.

[Cassidy · Rating 5 out of 5]

My wonderful photography teacher, Tom Young (at Greenfield Community College formerly at RISD), taught us from this book by RISD prof, Henry Horenstein. Fantastic manual, very straightforward. An absolute must for anyone who is learning B&W photography.

[John Cowan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found this book to be quite informative. For myself, having already been familiar with the shooting side of photography this manual was invaluable as a guide to begging darkroom techniques and procedures.

Highly recommended for photographers of all levels.

[Caroline Philippone · Rating 5 out of 5]

Using this in conjunction with a class I'm teaching on darkroom black and white photography. I think it's really an invaluable tool to use, and allows my students to really understand all aspects of the darkroom much more clearly.

[Roniq · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fabulous resource for those wanting to learn all they can about black and white photography.

[Anna Nelson · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very good reference book for those looking to take better photographs.

[Joe · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thoroughly covers basic darkroom study. Good classroom manual. There are others, but this is a good one to start with.

[Jakenv · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bit dated but still one of those classics from which every photographer can learn.

[Liz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Re-reading this great book that walks you through everything you need to know about photography.

[Ken · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very relevant read that is fully applicable to both traditional and digital photography. Any time I'm asked for a book that explains the basics of photography, I recommend this.

[Jennifer Entwistle · Rating 4 out of 5]

This really is the best book to read if you want to know everything about the basics of B&W photography and darkroom! It should be required reading in all photography courses.

[Andrea · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nicely written book. Good at showing how you process chemical film, as well as tips on photography. A little outdated now, I imagine. Bummer!

[Sharada Prasad · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good book if BW film developing and printing is what interests you. Since I am into digital photography, only first 8 chapters of the book were useful for me.

[Tenio Latev · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful book for B&W lovers, a must have in every book collection about photography!

[Sofia · Rating 5 out of 5]

taking this with me everywhere i go

[Valerie]

Classic.