EDITORS’ PICK
Surrendering to What Is
BLACK & WHITE
BLACK & WHITE EDITORS’ PICK
Following Léa Thouin’s selection of winning images for our recent Black & White competition, this compilation of 20 images represents some of the other talented photographers whose work struck us and left a mark. Each a stunning image worthy of exposure and attention…
When selecting for editor’s picks we’re always searching for those striking photographs that make for an unforgettable single image, whether from a broader series or not. We enjoy the accompanying text some photographers submit with their images, and while not always necessary it can be relevant when understanding the work in full context.
These are intended to be a conversation starter… so feel free to join the discussion on our social networks.
BANNER IMAGE: SOPHIE DEZHAO JIN
Fine art photography in black and white is a difficult medium to master, especially when addressing abstract concepts, such as loss, grief, and human connection. This image highlights the photographer’s technical, conceptual, and storytelling abilities. Every detail is carefully chosen and positioned to enhance the story and sustain visual harmony. The space is artfully used; the focal point is impossible to miss. Well done! – LIFE FRAMER
Photographer statement – Someone once close to my heart vanished overnight, all that remains are the marks and memories left on me. Still, in her absence, I feel her presence, running through my blood, reckoning with my heartbeat. For years, I lingered on lost connections, repressing memories, hoping the days I breathe can fade away the pain. But, still, she exists in me.
I can never escape from my body, so I can never escape from her absent presence. Eventually, I must decide to face it and allow the loss to rush through me. Like falling leaves from a tree, they decay into the earth and gradually disappear. Only vanishing to the naked eye, but still felt through our senses. It’s all there with us, if we embrace it with our open hearts.
ADRIAN BAUTISTA
The black background transforms a documentary photograph into a fine art one, making the subject stand out and creating a dramatic contrast. The photograph features an interesting subject matter and makes you want to know more about it, but, at the same time, creates an iconic view that stands the test of time, just like this indigenous group managed to preserve its tradition. An artful parallel between subject and medium. – LIFE FRAMER
Photographer statement – The Dumagat are an indigenous Negrito group inhabiting the Sierra Madre mountains in Luzon, Philippines, including areas in Aurora, Quezon, Rizal, Bulacan, and Isabela. Traditionally, they are semi-nomadic, relying on hunting, gathering, and fishing, with strong spiritual connections to their ancestral land, often referring to themselves as Agta.
CHRISTOPHE JUNIOT
Technically impeccable, this fluid shot plays with your senses. The multiple levels of contrast – between light and darkness, smooth surfaces and textured ones, right angles and curves, close and far away – fascinate the viewer and invite them to feel everything, from the passing of time to the fragility of life and the fear of the unknown. The bright leading line draws the viewer in, step by step. – LIFE FRAMER
MAGNUS STOREBØ
The beauty of black and white photography is that it provides us with a completely different experience. Instead of relying solely on color, we lean on contrast, shapes, and textures to capture the stories that surround us, to notice what’s beneath the blue of the ocean and of the sky. While this image may look surreal and not at all like a snapshot, it is testimony to how little we perceive from the immense beauty that is hidden so close to us. Luckily, we have creative photographers to guide us. – LIFE FRAMER
Photographer statement – A platform alone at sea. Weather, movement and distance shape the images. Birds, rotor blades and light drift through the frame. Black and white reduces it to contrast and space.
RICK FRANCIS
It takes a very skilled photographer to notice the beauty in the tiniest, usually unseen aspects of nature and capture it in an abstract black and white composition. By filling the frame with textures and patterns, the photographer empowers the subject and tells the story from its perspective. The image is not a description, but a monologue, and that makes it an exceptional photograph. – LIFE FRAMER
Photographer statement – This is a vernal pond surface in late afternoon. The surface tension of the water caused a meniscus around each emerging grass stem, and each water dome created a tiny reproduction of the setting sun. F/16 with a 180mm macro lens emphasized the “starry” sun rays.
CÉDRIC BERVILLÉ
The close-up photo of a vulture will always have something majestic and impressive about it, and the photographer who takes it should be appreciated. But just look at how much the black and white aesthetic does for this shot. The textures are intensified to a 3D level, the eye becomes fierce, the contours are crisp, and the subject seems to stand out of the frame. Excellent technical and artistic skills, and clearly, a very strong personal style! – LIFE FRAMER
Photographer statement – Griffon Vulture.
HARRY LYNDON-SKEGGS
This glimpse into the life of a lion couple wouldn’t have been so dramatic if it weren’t for the black and white. The photographer chose well not only the moment and the camera angle, but also the aesthetic, contrast, and depth of field. It takes a lot of knowledge, patience, and connection to create such an artistic composition when photographing wildlife, all of which cannot be achieved when you hunt for the next great shot, but only when you engage in dialog with your subject. – LIFE FRAMER
Photographer statement – The Storm Between Us, Serengeti National Park, Tanzania.
There’s a split second after mating where everything shifts – intimacy vanishes, instantly replaced by rage. Lion reproduction is urgent and relentless, mating up to 50+ times a day and it is rarely gentle.
But this isnt just spectacle, it is a biological reflex hones over millennia. The pain from the male’s barbs triggers ovulation in the female so what looks like conflict is in fact part of the species’ survival.
In this clash – claws lifted, jaws open, storms brooding above them – lies the beginning of the next generation.
We spent some time with this couple before this dramatic leap, none of the previous attempts eliciting much of a reaction from either animal. But patience is everything in these moments. Lions telegraph intention of you know what you’re looking for. A brief yawn – not tiredness but oxygen flooding the muscles. A shift in weight, a flick of the ears, a tightening in the shoulders – all signs that the pair will get up imminently. Fieldcraft is everything in these moments and you learn to anticipate when the moment is upon you
The brooding storm clouds rolling in above mirror the tension, the rains bringing renewal. The short grass will turn green, the waterholes will fill and, if the mating is successful, new cubs will be born into a world sustained by those rains.
MUHAMMAD AMDAD HOSSAIN
This environmental portrait conveys a heavy story, documenting a reality that may be unfamiliar to many of us. While raising awareness on the issues happening in the world, the photograph also triggers empathy, compassion, and kindness. Stripped of colors, it addresses the raw essence of humanity and takes us closer to a distant problem. – LIFE FRAMER
BILL POWRIE
Not many photographers venture to take black and white photos of nature, but when they do, they discover an entirely new universe. When deeply engaging with nature, like this photographer clearly did, you notice relationships, connections, and feelings. The photograph is impressive and artful, showcasing an outstanding level of detail and quality of composition. – LIFE FRAMER
Photographer statement – Mourning a Fallen Comrade.
ROBERT BOLTON
When subject, scenery, and photographer connect on a deeper level, the viewer gets to see the resemblance between a horse’s hair and the waves of the sea, the similarities between sky and earth, and all the threads that link the different parts of the universe. In its simplicity and imperfect symmetry, this photograph reminds us we are all parts of the same world, and what a beautiful one it is. – LIFE FRAMER
Photographer statement – Into the Gale. An Icelandic horse facing into the gale on a black sand beach.
MARIA NOWROT
Surreal and metaphoric, this fine art portrait creates a fantasy one can interpret as one wants. It gives complete freedom, luring the viewer into a magical world where everything is possible. The frame lacks contrast and is filled to the brim with texture, but still manages to produce a strong leading line and an impactful focal point. Subtle, appealing, and intriguing is a powerful combination. – LIFE FRAMER
Photographer statement – A quiet study of solitude — where the human form becomes just another texture in the landscape.
KINGA ZGIRSKA
The best thing about black and white portraiture is that it captures the soul rather than cultural and ethnic details, but it takes an open-minded and fully present photographer to do so, as is the case with this photograph. The image is dynamic, the trust and connection between the model and the photographer are unbeatable, and the focal point fills our hearts with joy. The viewer is invited to connect to a deeper, more personal level, rather than just look at someone else’s photo. – LIFE FRAMER
RAMANI BARTON
By playing with light and shadows, the photographer transforms the portrait into a cinematic scene with multiple levels of meaning. The shadows hide the conventions, the preconceptions, the cultural norms, whilst the light highlights the inner beauty and the freedom of expression. The result is a complex concept encapsulated in a simple composition, a powerful duo that stays with the viewer for a long time. – LIFE FRAMER
Photographer statement – Unbound. An attempt to make a dear friend see herself in beauty… as art. She is unbound by the societal norms pushed upon her that make her feel anything less of herself.
SUSANNE WEGEN
It’s a very touching and emotional image that exposes the photographer’s humanity and makes them as vulnerable as their subject. The stories are there, unseen, untold, a lifetime of moments and happenings and love. By choosing the black and white aesthetics, the photographer uniformizes and normalizes the characters, making the photograph fundamental and atemporal. – LIFE FRAMER
Photographer statement – Holding On, Letting Go. The last hours with my father. Through quiet, intimate moments, my work explores identity, reflection and becoming; what is seen, and what is felt beneath the surface.
ANNA RIABTSEVA
A good photographer can observe the world around them and decompose it into basic visual elements. At the same time, they are curious to see, know, and understand more about themselves and everything else. By turning the lens on themselves, giving up colors, and getting very close, the photographer offers a unique introspective vantage point, inviting us to use photography as a way of meditation and self-knowledge. – LIFE FRAMER
Photographer statement – The Eye. The image shows my eye, captured in macro in the sunlight. I was wondering how it would look up close, and it is fascinating.
There is something about the way eyes are made – they feel like gates between our soul and this world. Why is it that when you look into someone else’s eyes, you can tell exactly how they feel? Isn’t it fascinating that such a small part of our body can reveal so much about us?
MARTIN KOCJAN
The photographer feeds our senses and triggers our emotions with this atmospheric shot. The viewer can feel the cold, see the brightness of the snow, sense the texture of the branches, hear the silence, and perceive the passing of the time. At the same time, memories, nostalgia, hopes, and calmness come through, filling the hearts with warmth and peace. All it took was one good photograph. – LIFE FRAMER
Photographer statement – Winter Threshold. A solitary figure passes through a stone archway, framed by snow and open space beyond. Reduced to silhouette, the scene becomes a quiet study of transition, where the threshold marks the moment between shelter and winter.
BASTIEN PAGLIANO
It takes a lot of courage to photograph the beauty of nature in black and white and tell its raw stories, unembellished by colors. But look at the force of the waterfall in its white veil, at the steadiness of the rocks that hold it, at the serenity of the lake it becomes. Look at how everything falls into place seamlessly and acknowledge the storytelling power of black and white photography. – LIFE FRAMER
Photographer statement – Skogafoss Falls, Iceland.
MANOLI HARALAMBAKIS
Three silhouettes and their reflection tell a beautiful story about childhood and friendship. The photographer’s technical and storytelling skills shine through in this minimalist composition, where the frame was cleaned of any distractions, the surfaces were carefully polished, and each element was artfully positioned. But the viewer can also sense the love and tenderness that fill the air. – LIFE FRAMER
Photographer statement – One of my favourite images of my kids and our dog captured spontaneously one evening in Scotland.
TREVOR MESSERSMITH
It’s amazing to find a photographer who wanders in awe and sees beauty and elegance in the most common things. A cloud and a tree on a clear sky, a minimalist and nonsensical black and white composition with a subtle message that may slip through your fingers if you don’t stop for a moment. Ironically, this is exactly the message: stop for a moment and be present and grateful. – LIFE FRAMER
Photographer statement – Cloud.
STEPH ZAKAS
Small and weak compared to nature, but strong in their relationship, the couple makes a powerful focal point, completely changing the dynamic of the photograph. The composition is harmoniously unbalanced, artful, and surprising, denoting a fully committed photographer with a unique artistic voice and style. It makes you curious to see what they photograph next. – LIFE FRAMER
Photographer statement – From a series of little snippets of my life and work in Iceland.
