Black and white photography is a creative choice that photographers make for a variety of reasons. While colour photography captures the world in its bright and varied hues, black and white photography focusses on just that - black, white and the many shades of grey in-between. This means that photographers can approach their subject with laser like focus, concentrating on aspects of the composition such as contrast, composition and texture with powerful and artistic results. The history of black and white images within photography give them a certain sense of nostalgia, which provide emotional reasons for this style of photography. With the introduction of the PENTAX K-3 Mark III Monochrome, it offers the photographer a dedicated tool explore these aspects of black and white photography, whether at the start of their photographic journey or looking to refine their style within a specific genre.

When capturing images using a colour sensor, a red, green, and blue (RGB) colour filter is used to assign specific light information to each pixel – this results in light information being lost as part of this process. This information cannot be regained when the images are converted into black and white.

In contrast, the PENTAX K-3 Mark III Monochrome has an image sensor that has been specially developed to capture only black and white light information. By removing the colour filter, the maximum amount of light can reach every pixel on the image sensor. This information is then used to create the final image. By eliminating the requirement to filter light information in this way, the photographer can produce an image with rich gradation, natural bokeh with extra-fine sharpness. In addition to this, higher imaging performance can be achieved at higher ISOs due to the fact that more light information is registered.

There are many niches within the world of Photography and numerous genres. As a result, there are a wide range of specialist "tools" to assist the photographer in getting the results they require. The K-3 Mark III Monochrome proves to be a valuable asset in the photographer's "toolbox".

Black and white photography is typically associated with documentary or reportage photography, including photojournalism or street photography. Here, without the distraction of colour, it can be used convey emotions and moods. They convey the ‘raw’ reality of a scene, allowing the viewer to connect directly with the subject on a deeper level. This approach can also be used effectively in portrait photography.

Removing colour can simplify an image, allowing photographers to create minimalist and clean compositions. The viewer can be drawn in to focus on a particular area of the image or to a particular subject. This approach can be especially useful in architectural photography. The sense of clarity and focus that the photographer experiences when shooting in black and white, can also be portrayed in the final image.

Black and white photography allows you to show extreme differences in contrast. This can result in striking and dramatic images where the highlights and shadows take on added importance in defining the subject.

Where there is cloudy or overcast weather, this results in dull or soft light. Here landscape photographer can find black and white particularly useful. It can provide rich gradation in the various shades of grey brings the photographer impressive results with unique perspectives.

Interestingly, limiting yourself to pure light values opens up a world of possibilities in photography, approaching different scenes with a fresh new perspective.

When learning about a new genre of photography it's important to hear the opinion and take inspiration from others. For the launch of the PENTAX K-3 Mark III Monochrome, we gave PENTAX photographers the camera to gain experience in their area of interest. Each of them provided their initial thoughts on the camera, and you'll be able to find their individual reports by clicking the relevant links below.

So far we have written a lot about philosophical approaches to black and white photography. We can see that this genre takes on a more specialised approach to that of colour photography that is typically used.

Choosing the right lens very much depends on which subjects you choose to shoot. Some prefer the exceptional image quality provided by a prime lens, such as the PENTAX Limited series of lenses. Whilst others may choose the power of a zoom, providing the opportunity to get closer to the subject. Below you’re find some of our popular lenses, but please browse our full line up of APS-c and Full Frame lenses.

In addition to the many technical arguments, such as a very high resolution with incredible sharpness, philosophical arguments play a major role in photography when considering a pure black and white camera. The PENTAX K-3 Mark III Monochrome now offers many photographers the opportunity to experience the creative process with a digital camera to expand their knowledge of photography from a unique perspective - concentrating fully on creating a beautiful images with rich gradation, tone and contrast.

We would love to see the images you create and often share images the @pentax.photography.official Instagram account. Make sure to use the #pentaxk3mkiiimono hashtag so we can find your work easily!