Black & White or Colour?

The image above was an easy choice. In true colour it was quite unattractive but somewhat interesting as, more by luck than judgement, the crest of the wave was perfectly in focus. Actually I was trying to focus on the fish running through the wave like surfers in a 'tunnel' but my camera isn't quite up to the job. Perhaps there isn't a camera that can catch all of that by design? The water lifting and rolling is one thing but to also capture fish running laterally to the wave direction is real a problem.

The photo below is a weird one. I felt I had to get a seagull in the shot with the whitebait that they eat in the bottom. (The mackerel drive these little fish onto the shore while they are eating them).

Due to the light at that moment I had thought that this photo might be best black & white but with the contrast of seemingly back & white top section of the frame and the vivid contrast between blue sea and a wave full of fish turned to gold by the sun rising at the bottom of the frame, I just had to leave it in colour. Not a prize winning photo but a great one to explain the difficulties a photographer sometimes faces, and the question; should it be black & white or colour?

The photo above was saved, indeed transformed, by switching to black and white and I was surprised, flattered and excited yesterday when an Instagram follower insisted I frame a group of similar and put on an exhibition after this 'fishy' natural history event is over.

Funny how things go round in circles isn't it? This website, my walks & talks, tweets, twitters and blogs all started after I discovered and filmed those other fish. Mullet man is now Mackerel man haha!