Monochrome subjects in colour

I'm fond of black-and-white, especially for portraits and action shots, but I also find it satisfying to photograph in colour subjects that have very little.

In black-and-white it's all about the range of tones - black to white - light as a quantity. In colour it has a quality too.

This is one of my favourites; I took it some years ago on the Pacific coast of North America, near Seattle.

Some people feel this picture is improved if you cover up the surfer with your thumb; I prefer it with. But consider what the surfer with his yellow board would look like if this were a black-and-white picture. Try imagining-out the yellow, and see what happens.