How Do I Turn an Image Black & White With Photoshop?

Convert color images to black and white for an artistic effect.

Film cameras forced photographers to choose between shooting in color or black and white, but digital photography and computer editing eliminates this dilemma. Adobe Photoshop provides several methods for converting your color digital photographs to black and white. The method you choose will depend on the amount of control you want over the conversion process. Make sure to edit a copy of the original image, because most conversion methods completely discard the color information.

Difficulty:

Easy

Instructions

Preparing the Image

1. Launch Photoshop and click on "File" and "Open."

2. Select the file and click "Open."

3. Go to "File" and click "Save As." Check the box to save the file "As a Copy."

4. Type a new name for the file and click "Save."

Converting the Image to Grayscale

1. Go to "Image" and select "Mode" and "Grayscale."

2. Click "Discard" in the pop-up window to confirm that you want to discard the file's color information.

3. Hold the "Ctrl" key and press "L" to open image Levels.

4. Adjust the sliders to improve the image's contrast and then save the file.

Desaturating the Image

1. Go to "Image" and "Adjustments," then select "Hue/Saturation" or hold the "Ctrl" key and press "U."

2. Drag the Saturation slider all the way to the left side to remove the color. The value should read "-100."

3. Adjust the Lightness slider to darken or lighten the image, and click "OK." Alternatively, hold down the "Ctrl" key and press "L" to fine-tune the image further using Levels.

4. Save the image.

Image Adjustments

1. Go to "Image" and "Adjustments," then choose "Black & White," or hold down the "Alt," "Shift" and "Ctrl" keys and press "B."

2. Move the individual color sliders to modify their darkness, or select a preset from the drop-down menu.

3. Click "OK" to convert the image to black and white.

4. Go to "File" and click "Save."

Channels

1. Click on the "Channels" panel.

2. Click on "red channel," "green channel" and "blue channel" consecutively to view each channel individually.

3. Choose the best channel to use for the black and white image.

4. Go to "Image" and "Adjustments," then select "Levels." Alternatively, press the "Ctrl" key and "L" to open the channel's levels and regulate the image's brightness.

5. Go to "File" and "Save."

References

• Using Photoshop CS5: Convert a Color Image to Black and White
• Northlight Images; Black and White, the Digital Way; Keith Cooper
• Photoshop Essentials; Converting Color Photos to Black and White In Photoshop; Steve Patterson