Learning: Black & White Photography

For the longest time, I undervalued most B&W Photography. Don't get me wrong, I completely saw the artistry at work in the pieces of professionals like Ansel Adams, Henry Cartier-Bresson, and Dorothea Lange. However, growing up in the age of technology and social media, it is overly saturated with individuals who want to just slap a black and white filter on top of a photo and then call it "art". I found it lazy and disingenuous and thus, for lack of a better word, it colored my perspective. (Pun intended) However, as I've been delving into the realm of professional fine art photography myself, I sought to understand the difference between filters, and true art. What I have learned so far, is that what sets unique apart from the common is the ability to compose in tonality and light. I realized that if a composition you are capturing has the appropriate qualities of highlight and contrast while telling a story, it's rendered towards a black and white piece more than color. While I still have much to learn, I have begun attempting in my own small way, to pursue this complex and illusive form of art photography in black and white. So far, I have tried to ask myself, does this piece absolutely work better in monochrome vs color, does it elevate is some way the story being told in the composition? If I can honestly answer myself yes, then I select it as one of my attempts to gain experience in Black and White photography by spending time fine tuning and touching up the image to best convey what I see with dodge and burn tools, cropping into the subject, adjusting highlights or clarity, and shifting midtones or black levels for added atmosphere. I truly and still an amateur in this particular area, but I'm happy to say I'm learning, and have much more to explore still.