B&W or color?

Richard

Or none of the above?

torags

I like the B&W, Seems more ghostlike

Nice shot Richard

Yaflyyadie

Both are very nice, Richard.
Answering your question : B/W.
JMHO.
Carlos

lensmole

I think color works very well ,Interesting image!

Dogdots

I like the BW one. My eyes are drawn to the ghostly images. In the color I tend to look at them, but get drawn to the other things in the photo too.

Cool photo thumb

Richard

Thanks for the feedback, everyone. I agree that the B&W is more ghostly, but I worry that it might be unrecognizable if you hadn't seen the color version as well. . Dunno.

Eia

i like the b/w but the color version shows me what it is! So for that reason - the color for me!

NeilL

Interesting shot R!

I don't have any trouble recognising what is in the b&w version. I do find though that the colour version gives different "values" to individual items in the image vs the b&w. Eg, the lamp post is a stronger item in b&w than in the colour, I think. As always, b&w also brings forward texture, and abstract pattern (what is happening in the very top LH corner is better accommodated in the b&w than the colour for that reason, I think). Overall, I think I prefer the b&w, but I wouldn't discard the colour: the flag-like motif (= people) in the centre-lower right has potential in the colour that the b&w doesn't have. Each version calls for a different editing response, I think. I think the colour version needs a lot more emphasis added than the b&w.

Neil

Cornflake

BW. Not even close for me.

pathfinder

I like the monochrome version best, Richard, but I think I might consider burning the soft, out of focus, yet bright, images of the flags, to help them be less up front.

Maybe you have already tried this and they need the brightness to stand out from the building. Matter of degree, kind of.

I would at least want some variation in tonality to resemble the color differences in the flags.

rainbow

For me, of course, the color (!). The ghosts are so much better rendered in it.

Richard

Thanks everyone for the feedback. Most interesting. My conclusion is that they both work about equally well, but that they are both a little confusing. Here's another one from the same set, which may change the way you see the original post:

DaddyO

BW. More mystery and appeal for my tastes.

Richard

Thanks, Michael. I like it too.