Grayscale Photography – Eric's Photography Blog

Finding a Theme—Accidentally

Eric Ahrendt August 15, 2026 No Comments

On a recent visit to the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA), I took my camera, not really expecting to shoot much. Once inside, I took a few photos of the artwork, then of people and artwork, and then realized that, without looking for one, I’d found a theme. Standing at the far end of a room with minimalist art on the wall, I’d wait for the right person or persons to enter the frame. Sometimes I stood there quite a while. Many of the shots didn’t work out, because the people were in the wrong position, or I timed it wrong and they merged with the art. But others did. What I like most about these photos is

Photographing on the Monterey Peninsula

Eric Ahrendt July 14, 2026 No Comments

I’m spending a lot of time in Monterey and Pacific Grove. There are lots of good subjects there, and I’ve been capturing them on film, in black and white, and making prints in the darkroom. What I haven’t been doing is scanning the negatives, so I finally got around to that today and scanned several rolls. I don’t print from the scans, but I do need them in order to post photos here. Pacific Grove (PG) is a small community, and it had a small-town Fourth of July celebration. Here’s George Washington with the Bill of Rights, which he read aloud to the crowd. This is the Cathedral of San Carlos Borromeo in Monterey, also known as the Presidio Chapel.

Going Analog

Eric Ahrendt May 15, 2026 No Comments

I’m shooting black and white film almost exclusively nowadays, and processing and printing it in the darkroom. I find the hands-on craft of it more rewarding than digital. Here are several recent portraits shot on film. I do have to scan my negatives to be able to post photos on this site, so these images represent a hybrid workflow. Shoot and develop film, then scan it for posting. But, unlike many people shooting film today, I do make darkroom prints. In fact, if I couldn’t do that, I doubt I’d shoot film. This is my older granddaughter at the playground. For me, her expression makes the photo. Here’s the other granddaughter in her white Hermione shirt at the computer. A

Clouds Again—But Different

Eric Ahrendt March 29, 2026 No Comments

Whenever I see lots of clouds in the sky above the reservoir near my home, I grab my camera loaded with black and white film and my orange and red filters, and go looking for compositions. This past week, the type of clouds were not the usual post-storm cumulus, but cirrus, high and wispy. Here are some compositions I found. The trail into the hills near my house forks soon after you reach it. Heading to left up the hill, you come across this tree, backlit in the late afternoon. Heading up the hill to the right, you come across this bench overlooking the hills and the reservoir, front-lit in the afternoon. That day, there was a child’s toy that

Clouds as a Subject

Eric Ahrendt February 27, 2026 No Comments

After a storm passes and the rain stops, I almost always head out to photograph clouds. Shooting black and white film with an orange or red filter on the camera produces dark skies and white clouds—an effect I like. In composing, I make the sky two-thirds or more of the picture because, to me, the clouds are the subject. These photos were all taken with my medium-format camera on Ilford FP4+ black-and-white film. This was taken in the late afternoon on the nearby campus of St. Mary’s College. The clouds aren’t the subject here—the statue of De La Salle is—but they add interest to the background. Clouds over Mt. Diablo. Taken from the Rim Trail above the Lafayette Reservoir. Many

Being Partly in Control

Eric Ahrendt February 15, 2026 No Comments

Professional portrait photographers control every aspect of a formal session, including location, background, light, pose, expression, clothes and more. I like the results they get, but I can’t do that when I photograph my granddaughters. It’s never an actual “portrait session” anyway; more of a half-minute opportunity to grab a shot before they move on. Still, I’ve learned to control at least a couple of important elements, which I think of as being partly in control. Even that helps get a better result. When I know I want to grab a photo of one or both of them, I quickly look for possible backgrounds and the best available light. I take an exposure reading and set aperture and shutter speed

Always Something on the Embarcadero

Eric Ahrendt December 1, 2025 No Comments

There are many areas in San Francisco that are always good for photography—the Mission, the Castro, Union Square, etc.—but for a combination of scenery and a range of activities, the Embarcadero is the best. I go there often and proceed to simply walk up and down, starting at the Ferry Building, and always find good subjects and compositions. When I went about a week ago, it was just after a rainstorm. The huge cumulus clouds that trailed the storm were over the Bay Bridge, making for a dramatic black-and-white subject. I stayed in the same spot for a while, watching as time and the breeze changed the cloud formations. Walking north from the Ferry Building, I came across this new

Film Likes Light

Eric Ahrendt October 23, 2025 No Comments

I read that piece of advice several times when I recently went back to shooting film. It’s true—when a subject is strongly lit, it’s easier to produce a black-and-white print with good contrast and details. So I’m attracted to subjects that are bright, especially if they’re surrounded by a darker background. Leaving Livermore last week, I passed by this Queen Anne Victorian , the Gordon House, that I liked to photograph when I lived in Livermore a decade ago. It’s a photogenic architectural subject because, unlike a lot of architecture, it stands alone, without other buildings around it to clutter the frame. Plus, that day, the sun was shining brightly and the house, which is a tan color, was almost