Monochromous
25/06/2004
How monochrome can monochrome be?
I used to think black and white was just black and white. Then a couple weeks ago, I saw a really nice cover on a Practical Photography magazine – it was a close up of an eye, in black and white. Inspired, I bought it hoping I could get some ideas on how these people do it. I got more – tips!
So here’s what I tried.
This is the original photo
We took that at Chinatown 2 weeks ago, and I’ve been itching to convert that to monochrome.
Atttempt 1 – Channel Mixer
To find the Channel Mixer, go to Image > Adjustments > Channel mixer. Check the monochrome box. You can mix and match the colours until you’re satisfied. I forgot exactly what I had, but it was something like 80 red, 30 green, and 5 blue.
Atttempt 2 – Desaturate
This was the quick and dirty option. Go to Image > Adjustments > Desaturate.
Atttempt 3 – Lab Colour
According to the mag, this is similar to the Grayscale method of conversion, and produces crisp results. Ok. If they say so. For this, go to Image > Mode > Lab colour. Click on the channels palette and select Lightness. The other 3 channels will go invisible. Then go to Image > Mode > Grayscale.
So anyway. If you want, have a go. Personally, I like using the Channel Mixer, the results were a bit more dramatic, and it was more fun to play around with. The results of the other 2 options was a little flat. Well, let me know what you think.
