What does 'monochrome' mean?

[ax2010@eircom.net]

In a recent Photo Challenge competition the subject was 'Monochrome Still Life'. To me monochrome means shades of the one colour. This picture, to me, is composed of different shades of brown and would qualify as a monochrome.


However, before entering that competition, I took the trouble to do a bit of research and discovered that most photographers took monochrome to mean black and white and I followed their lead. In the old days black and white was called just that or B&W.

Am I alone in thinking that monochrome should mean one colour, whether B&W or any other colour?

[gary1968]

Re: What does 'monochrome' mean?

Never thought of it like that, I always assumed it meant B&W.

However, I googled 'monochrome and came up with this, a quote from Wikipedia........ Monochrome[1] describes paintings, drawings, design, or photographs in one color or shades of one color.[2] A monochromatic object or image has colors in shades of limited colors or hues. Monochrome images in neutral colors are called grayscale or black-and-white. "Monochromatic light" refers to light of a narrow frequency.

There is an intersting write up on the subject there......

Gary

[gary1968]

Re: What does 'monochrome' mean?

a link to the full article..... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monochrome

Gary

[Mark]

Re: What does 'monochrome' mean?

Garrett you 100% correct, monochrome is shades of one colour, that's shades of COLOUR, it come from the Greek monokhrōmatos ‘of a single color.’

[MX5]

Re: What does 'monochrome' mean?

With my pedantic hat on (and the fact I studied colour at University):

What's interesting is that Black, White and Grey are NOT colours they are tones.

So monochrome has an alternative meaning (taken from early TV) meaning 'Having the image reproduced in tones of grey' as well as 'shades of one colour'.

Again being a pedant a black & white picture is different from a monochrome (tones of grey) picture

[ax2010@eircom.net]

Re: What does 'monochrome' mean?

Your comments are very interesting, guys. So, this is the crunch question - if you were asked to submit a monochrome photo, would you risk sending in a coloured monochrome?

[MX5]

Re: What does 'monochrome' mean?

Your comments are very interesting, guys. So, this is the crunch question - if you were asked to submit a monochrome photo, would you risk sending in a coloured monochrome?

Depends upon how pedantic the Judges are But I would allow it.

[codachrome]

Re: What does 'monochrome' mean?

We get this up our club a lot...Under the Pagb & L&CPU rules a monochrome can be a toned black and white,but if you only tone a small part of the image it becomes colour.

Coda

[ax2010@eircom.net]

Re: What does 'monochrome' mean?

Coda, now I'm more confused than ever. I was just beginning to think that, yes, monochrome meant one could use a single colour, many toned image and call it a monochrome. Do you mean that it can mean B&W but really refers to any single colour picture?

[MX5]

Re: What does 'monochrome' mean?

In my world colouring part of a Grey Scale picture with one colour is called Tinting ... so "Tinted Monochrome".

But you'll need to explore the rules and ask what they mean if ambigious.

[collywobbles]

Re: What does 'monochrome' mean?

MONO = ONE, CHROME = COLOUR Therefore, a sepia print is still MONOCHROME: as they all were many years ago.

[MX5]

Re: What does 'monochrome' mean?

The Chrome also means Pigment or Coloured (as well as Colour) ... since Sepia is a Pigment and Not a Colour Per Se, but it's still monochrome as you say. But in genral converation it is a colour ... confusing.

A tint might be a Sepia print with for example Santa's coat tinted Red.

[codachrome]

Re: What does 'monochrome' mean?

What im trying to say Garrett...you can tint the whole image...thats mono
to tint just a section like keep the background B & W and tint say a car then that would be colour

[MX5]

Re: What does 'monochrome' mean?

What im trying to say Garrett...you can tint the whole image...thats mono
to tint just a section like keep the background B & W and tint say a car then that would be colour

Well put ... even being Mr Pedant I'll not argue with that

[ax2010@eircom.net]

Re: What does 'monochrome' mean?

Thanks, Coda. I get your drift. We all seem to be agreed that a single colour in various tones is a monochrome, irrespective of what that colour is. It will be interesting to see if anyone in future submits monochromes that are not B&W.