Could This Be the Antidote to Our Overstimulated World?

Written by Michele Mateus

Here is one photographer’s hot take on why black and white photography is an act of rebellion against our overstimulated society.

I was one of the lucky few who had a dark room for photography in my home growing up as a child. I still remember the red light, the smells, the process of dipping in the paper to see the magic of images revealed; and the best part is I still have those photos processed in that little makeshift darkroom.

My love for black and white photography all began in that tiny little hobby space at home, though I never truly understood the impact it had on me until now.

Fast forward 10 years of being a full-time professional photographer, working with both colour and black and white, which always seems to have the strongest pull on my heart.

We are inundated with so much noise, screens everywhere (even in bathroom stalls, like why?!), I often feel like this digital age is suffocating and incredibly overwhelming, which is where black and white photography comes in.

It offers us a place of rest in all the hyper-colour and noise. For me, black and white photography is not just about being artsy or nostalgic, it’s about offering a meditative moment that we all need.

The world we live in is always yelling for our attention, and I don’t know about you, but I want to put my hand up and say: I need a break from all the noise! Before I carry on about my love for black and white photography, I must first clarify that I love colour. In fact, my industry friends always give me so much love when I show my work in colour, and I will agree some photos truly do demand to be shown that way.

I went to art school and studied the psychology of colour and trust me I get it, colour makes us feel something and it’s a powerful communication tool. But with all the colour and noise all over the place, we also need a cognitive break. From the scrolling, to screens big and small to billboards and endless emails filled with gifs, the visual noise can feel like too much at times. I get overwhelmed and exhausted from it all, and that is one of the many reasons I love black and white photography.

To me, black and white images allow us to rest, feeling more like a quiet whisper than something screaming at me for my attention. I need that, in fact I crave that.  Which is why I love to create it.

While I may see the world in all its beautiful colours, when I sit at the editing table and turn the switch to black and white something happens for me, I feel it in my body. My nervous system takes a big exhale and I am drawn into the details, the emotion, the calm. I see the light, the shadow, the textures in ways I would have missed when distracted by colour.

We read photos much like we read words on a page, and there is something about black and white photography that gives my neurodivergent brain time and space to really sit with the story held in each image, the emotion, the humanity of each person, the energy and soul in each frame.

As a photographer who wants to capture the raw beauty around me, there is another reason I turn to monochrome again and again. I am not photographing someone’s outfit or the trendiness of their surroundings. I am there to capture their humanity, every line, every small detail telling a story. What pops out in a black and white photos is the texture, light, shadow, and depth of emotion.

When our brains are already moving a mile a minute, often overwhelmed with the intensity of it all, turning down sensory input can offer a sanctuary, a release, a much needed pause. This is not to reduce the world to look all the same, in fact I would say it’s quite the opposite. The turn to black and white photography allows us to reveal what is there beneath all of the noise.

The gift of black and white photography isn’t just for those feeling overwhelmed by it all. It’s an offering that can almost feel like it’s stopping time and resisting the desire to filter culture to see what is before us. Black and white demands something that is revolutionary in our perfection obsessed society: a timeless sense of honesty.  

Here's my take: choosing black and white photography isn't rejecting the modern world and people's individuality, it’s a rest point from drowning in the noise. It's an act of rebellion against overstimulation, an opportunity to have a meditative moment and to truly sit with portraits the way they were meant to be enjoyed. Viewing images slowly reflectively, in print, on a wall as art and as timeless heirlooms that make up our collective story.