Why do photographers wear black?

Question

well not all of them. but most of them.
my professor wears black.. almost every meeting. if not black then white.

what's with the colour anyway?

Answer 1

To go to the last question first, black is the absence of a colour, as much as white is the presence of every colour.

There are several reasons for wearing black.

Black clothing flatters older men by disguising some more obvious degradation of their once wonderful physique! Why younger men follow this trend rather than wear wonderful coloured clothing is beyond me, but they do.

Black disguises dirt and grime better than other colours. So if you are working in dirty conditions, it is easier to still look cool in black than it would be if you were wearing dirty white clothing. Roadies, photographers etc find this a useful characteristic.

Black is a better colour for blending in than other colours or white. It is low contrast in many urban situations, and allows the photographer to blend into the background. This is particularly useful where the photographer wants to faithfully record other's actions, and not be engaged as a protagonist in the events.

For the same reason, wearing black can reduce the intrusion of the photographer into the recorded image, such as those where highly reflective surfaces might reveal the photographer's presence. A photographer wearing black on a black background can hide in the image. Black gloves, balaclava and full length sleeves and trouser legs complete the ensemble.

At this stage, one might want to be careful about being mistaken for someone with more sinister intent than mere photography!

Answer 2

I just read a hint in Popular Photography that said to wear a WHITE shirt if you are invited to a party. As photographers, even amateurs, we are usually "expected" to have at least a point and shoot camera with us. A white shirt on the photographer can help reflect the flash as a more diffused light. So they say... I have not tried this yet, but it was published in PopPhoto, so I will try it sometime. At least I'll stop wearing red shirts to parties if I take a camera with me.

Answer 3

they where black or dark clothing because it absorbs all light. say you are wearing red and taking a portrait of someone. actually let me set back a minute. the shirt is red due to the science of the eye. we perceive the shirt to be red because the color red is bouncing off the shirt and reflecting back at us. now if we are taking a portrait, the color red is then reflect back on to our subject. thus we get a red tint in the image. with todays photoshop advancements, it doesnt really matter what a photographer wears because it can all be fixed. however, on film the tint is going to record. black or dark clothing is best if you dont want to be separate from your subject.

Answer 4

So, Dr Sam, we wear white shirts, bounce off our clothing and shoot from the hip? haha

Actually, I have bounced off a person wearing white, and it worked OK. I'd still rather have a light wall or diffuser.

I wear black when working as the hired hand. I always thought it made me less conspicuous, hopefully that is the case!

Answer 5

I wear black (and blues) because I look good in them, and I like the aesthetic qualities of these colors. I have never given any consideration to how the clothes I wear affect my photo... but now maybe I will.

Answer 6

greater often than not to be hip and funky. that's makes for an exceptionally remarkable look if the digital camera is a chrome M4 or 500 C/M. There are theories that it facilitates decrease stray mild reflections whilst working in a studio.

Answer 7

They scared of the lenses will reflections by the lightings, sometime they want to duplicate the pictures and the photos maybe in glossy papers,so that they will given reflecting by the lights.

Answer 8

I wear black when I am working so I don't stand out or reflect lots of light and be too conspicuous. Therefore I have a lot of black clothes that I wear other places and I am sort of used to it.

All my cameras are black too, so when I am holding them they have a tendency to disappear.

Answer 9

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Answer 10

I'm assuming it has to do with controlling the lighting. Black doesn't add extra reflection and lights into the scene.