Posted January 3. Recently, I had an epiphany about the difference between B&W and digital photography, bolstered by an article I read by Sara Brenneis. In summary, B&W—the photographs and the process—is magical. I can still remember the feeling I had when I first saw MY photos appearing in the developer tray. That anticipation and excitement sold me on the career that I still enjoy.

Let me confess, I have a high-end digital camera in my arsenal. But let me be clear: I think digital is useful to a professional photographer only when shooting certain subjects. I have used my digital camera for live band photography, weddings, and vacation photos. I have used my scanner and photo printer to reproduce some original Polaroid transfers.

Digital is not good for black and white photography. Digital manufacturers will never reproduce the deep quality of a well-printed B&W photograph. I have yet to see a digital B&W photograph that wasn't identifiable as such. Black and white fiber photos also have a proven longevity. Many of you probably have a B&W family photo that is at least 75 years old. Digital manufacturers say that they have tested their inkjet inks and papers and they will last. Well, who knows? My opinion is they are just trying to push analog processes out the door.

B&W photography is alive. I predict that interest in B&W will increase. I have noticed a trend toward more medium format and large format film processing at the lab. These processes create beautiful photographs, and shooting in those mediums is much more expensive in digital than in analog. That isn't going to change. Analog B&W is for artists. Let the point-and-shoot digital people take their photos to digital kiosks and the grocery store, Austin Prints Photo Lab will be here for us.

Let me know what you think. E-mail: brian@austinprintsphoto.com