Black and white photography has always appealed to me because it strips an image down to what actually matters. Without colour to lean on, the photograph has to stand on light, shadow, gesture, and intent. There is nowhere to hide. Recently, as part of the ongoing evolution of my personal style, I’ve begun deliberately using on-camera flash in my black and white street photography—not as a gimmick, not as an effect, but as a tool to shape contrast and clarify intention.
This shift didn’t come from chasing trends or trying to shock for the sake of it. It came from the same place many of my creative decisions come from: long walks, repetition, and an increasing awareness of how I want my work to feel rather than how I want it to look. Walking the city has always been essential to my practice, not just physically but visually—training my eye to see relationships between people, light, and space over time (Why Walking the City Is Essential to My Urban Photography Practice).
Why Black and White Invites Flash
Black and white photography thrives on contrast. Harsh light, deep shadows, and bold tonal separation often translate better without colour distractions. This is one reason midday light—so often avoided by photographers—can actually work beautifully in monochrome. High contrast scenes that feel chaotic in colour suddenly become graphic and intentional when stripped down (Digital Photography School – Midday Black and White).
Adding flash into that equation gives you another layer of control. Instead of waiting for contrast to appear, you can introduce it. Not overpower the scene—but underline it.
Eric Kim has written extensively about how black and white street photography relies on simplifying scenes to their emotional core, removing elements that don’t contribute to the story (Eric Kim – Black and White Street Photography). Flash, when used with restraint, becomes a way of doing exactly that—pulling the subject forward, separating them from the noise, and forcing the viewer’s eye to engage.
On-Camera Flash as a Stylistic Choice
There’s a misconception that on-camera flash is inherently ugly or amateurish. In reality, what most people dislike isn’t flash—it’s uncontrolled flash. Used intentionally, on-camera flash can feel natural, even subtle, especially in black and white.
Neil van Niekerk has long demonstrated how on-camera flash, when balanced properly, can look completely natural and unobtrusive (Natural Looking Flash – Neil van Niekerk). The goal isn’t to announce the flash—it’s to gently lift the subject out of the ambient light without flattening them.
In street portraiture, this becomes especially powerful. A slight burst of fill flash can bring life back into faces that would otherwise fall into shadow, particularly in harsh or backlit conditions. Digital Photography School breaks this down well in their discussion of on-camera speedlight fill flash (On-Camera Fill Flash).
What matters most is restraint. Flash should support the moment, not dominate it.
Flash, Presence, and the 28mm Field of View
Working with a 28mm lens has fundamentally shaped how I photograph people. It requires proximity. It demands presence. You don’t observe from across the street—you step into the scene. That philosophy has guided projects like Faces of Toronto, where intimacy and honesty matter more than perfection (Faces of Toronto – An Intimate Street Portrait Project).
Using on-camera flash within this context reinforces that presence. You’re not stealing a photograph—you’re participating in it. The flash becomes part of the exchange, a visual punctuation mark that says: this moment matters.
This aligns closely with my broader thinking on portraiture versus performance. I’ve written before about the difference between selfies and self-portraits, and how intention transforms an image from surface-level to meaningful (Selfies vs Self-Portraits). Flash, when used consciously, carries intention. It’s a decision, not a crutch.
Learning Through Experimentation
Like most evolutions in my work, this shift didn’t come from a single tutorial—it came from experimentation. That said, there’s value in learning from others who’ve walked similar paths. Resources like Carmarthen Cameras’ overview of flash photography offer a solid technical foundation (Mastering Flash Photography), while YouTube creators provide real-world demonstrations that demystify the process:
- Use this EASY technique to create STUNNING off camera flash portraits
- Mastering Flash Photography: 5 Lighting Principles for Beginners
- This Trick Will Make Your Black and White Film Photographs Look AMAZING
- How to Light and Photograph Dramatic Black and White Portraits With just ONE SPEEDLIGHT
- A Step by Step Guide to Creating Beautiful Dramatic Black and White Portraits Using One Light
What’s important is filtering these lessons through your own voice. Technique alone doesn’t create style—repetition does. I’ve written about committing to a niche and allowing style to emerge through constraint rather than endless options (Chapter Two – Committing to Voice, Style, and Niche).
Flash as Part of a Larger Visual Language
This isn’t about becoming a “flash photographer.” It’s about expanding the visual language I already use. Black and white, close proximity, walking, presence—flash simply becomes another tool in service of those ideas.
Much like my early inspiration from Garry Winogrand and his unapologetic use of wide lenses to embrace chaos (Garry Winogrand and the 28mm Lens), on-camera flash allows me to lean into contrast rather than avoid it. It sharpens moments. It clarifies intention.
At its best, flash doesn’t make the photograph louder—it makes it clearer.
And clarity, in black and white street photography, is often the difference between an image that’s merely seen and one that’s actually felt.
The featured image used on this post of me with my GFX100RF camera and Godox IT32 flash was captured by Sean Smith.