Chiaroscuro

I revisited these photos and turned them into monochrome to add to Paula´s blog Black and White Sunday with the subject negative space!

These photos were taken in an abandoned sanatorium in the Sierra de Guadarrama just north of Madrid.
These photos are best viewed with a black background to make the negative space (black parts) disappear and make them entrances into nowhere…
So please click the photos to see the best effect of the negative space!

Here are the original (more) color versions!

(both 1/25, F5.6, ISO400, 10mm)

Tags: Abandoned, Exploration, Interior, Light, Lines, Madrid, Negative, Photo, Photography, Ruin, Sanatorium, shadow, Snow, Space, Stairs, Texture, Urban, Urbex, wall, Window

67 thoughts on “Chiaroscuro”

Notes To Ponder on November 20, 2016 at 18:03 said:

So happy to have found your visual perspectives. Poignant, breathtaking and assertively honest.

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- Ron Hillmar on November 21, 2016 at 11:16 said:
  
  That´s very kind of you to say, very flattering, thanks a lot!
  Have a great week, warm greetings from KL, Ron.
  
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didonablog on May 15, 2016 at 18:25 said:

Stunning! Great angle

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- Ron Hillmar on May 15, 2016 at 23:21 said:
  
  Thank you, Diana! Good to hear this twisted view is to your liking 😉
  Greetings,
  Ron
  
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pammyv02 on April 12, 2016 at 00:50 said:

Beautiful composition

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- Ron Hillmar on May 6, 2016 at 14:12 said:
  
  Thanks very much, Paméla, have a great weekend!
  Ron
  
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steviegill on April 7, 2016 at 16:53 said:

Great light, texture and ambience.

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- Ron Hillmar on May 6, 2016 at 13:32 said:
  
  Thanks very much, Stevie, hope all is well!
  Cheers, Ron
  
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Spyder Webb on March 25, 2016 at 11:30 said:

Very cool!

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- Ron Hillmar on May 6, 2016 at 12:13 said:
  
  Thanks a lot, Spyder!
  All the best, Ron
  
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denisebushphoto on March 22, 2016 at 23:03 said:

VERY nice! I like the somewhat skewed look of the left image.

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- Ron Hillmar on May 6, 2016 at 12:12 said:
  
  Hi Denise, thanks, guess there both pretty skewed 😉
  Hope all is well, greetings from KL,
  Ron
  
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chrisrenney on March 21, 2016 at 00:41 said:

Oh yes, stunning.

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- Ron Hillmar on May 5, 2016 at 21:59 said:
  
  Thanks a lot, Chris!
  
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Alexandra on March 20, 2016 at 02:18 said:

intriguing compositions… splendid work!!

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- Ron Hillmar on May 5, 2016 at 21:57 said:
  
  Thanks very much, Alexandra, the hardest part was getting in the building, stepping thru bushes of snow a meter deep 😉
  All the best from Malaysia, Ron.
  
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dunelight on March 15, 2016 at 21:52 said:

I love the worn stairs.

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- Ron Hillmar on May 5, 2016 at 21:58 said:
  
  Thanks dunelight, lot of people see them as worn, actually it´s snow, probably blown thru the window up the stairs 😉
  Greetings from KL,
  Ron
  
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Graham Stephen on March 7, 2016 at 03:28 said:

Most excellent! Great work.

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- Ron Hillmar on May 4, 2016 at 23:15 said:
  
  Thank you very much, Sir Graham 😉
  All the best, greetz, Ron
  
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Truels on March 7, 2016 at 01:33 said:

I remember the color versions.
But these monochrome images are even better.
And you feel the cold now 😉

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- Ron Hillmar on May 4, 2016 at 23:14 said:
  
  Hi Truels, definitely much colder 😉
  Thanks, hope all is great!
  Greetings, Ron
  
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Tooty Nolan on March 5, 2016 at 07:01 said:

Without the snow the pictures would have been excellent. With the snow they are sensational!

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- Ron Hillmar on May 4, 2016 at 22:10 said:
  
  Thanks very much, Tooty, you must be the first that noticed it as snow and not decaying steps 😉
  Greetings from Malaysia, Ron
  
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  - Tooty Nolan on May 4, 2016 at 23:27 said:
    
    I love snow. I even see it when it isn’t there!
    
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    - Ron Hillmar on May 4, 2016 at 23:52 said:
      
      Cool, that enhances most photos and landscapes, I suppose 😉
      
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erassima on March 4, 2016 at 19:05 said:

Prachtig licht.

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- Ron Hillmar on May 4, 2016 at 22:01 said:
  
  Dank je Wilma, vond het licht in de ´kleur´ zelf mooier, maar contrasten werken hier wellicht beter 😉
  Groet, Ron
  
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TERE on March 4, 2016 at 13:28 said:

Interesante trabajo de B&N.

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- Ron Hillmar on May 4, 2016 at 22:08 said:
  
  Muchas gracias, Terry! Saludos, Ron
  
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margaret21 on March 3, 2016 at 16:51 said:

I like both sets. Both epitomise for me just why I like your photos so much. They establish a mood and a sense of place. Your warm atmospheric colours add to this, but equally the mono versions if anything add to the texture, and the timeless feel of the shots. I’ll have ’em all!

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- Ron Hillmar on May 4, 2016 at 21:59 said:
  
  Hi Margareth, thanks for your comment and like I mentioned on your blog, wish you all the strength in the world to cope with your loss!
  Ron
  
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  - margaret21 on May 4, 2016 at 22:33 said:
    
    Thank you. It’s my daughter who needs special fortitude, I think.
    
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Noeline Smith on March 2, 2016 at 18:04 said:

The warm complimentary colours of the original are very appealing and make for great photos. These mono versions have more drama and the eye is drawn more to the shapes and textures.
Which is best? Maybe in the end it comes down to what you want to present and/or personal choice – for me, it’s the mono versions 🙂

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- Ron Hillmar on May 4, 2016 at 21:49 said:
  
  Hi Noeline, almost 2 months to reply, weak excuse is I was away for 3 weeks 😉 think i agree with the mono making composition and the negative space even stronger, I´m just such a fan of golden sunlight! Thanks so much for your support always, big hug from KL,
  Ron
  
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Lisa Gordon on March 2, 2016 at 02:03 said:

Both are wonderful.
I love the rich tones.

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- Ron Hillmar on March 25, 2016 at 11:15 said:
  
  Thank you very much, Lisa, think they are so different in feel, they have to both exist 😉
  Enjoy your weekend, greetings,
  Ron
  
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Patti Küche on March 2, 2016 at 01:14 said:

Two totally different sets of equally beautiful shots Ron, I don’t see either /or !

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- Ron Hillmar on March 25, 2016 at 00:50 said:
  
  Hi Patti, thanks for taking a look at em, agree that they have a different feel to them, I do think these monochomes make the snow on the step a little more obvious, although I guess no one expects it to be snow and therefor don´t recognize 😉
  Have a great weekend,
  Ron
  
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daveply on March 1, 2016 at 11:28 said:

I think I like the B/W version better on this, but the color is nice too. Which to use is a quandary I’ve been having lately – see Cape Crusaders (Part 2). BTW, thanks for stopping by my site, otherwise I’d have missed your work. Looking forward to more.

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- Ron Hillmar on March 25, 2016 at 00:42 said:
  
  Thank you Dave for taking time out to have a look at both,! Hope all is great and welcome to my place then 😉
  Greetings, Ron
  
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YellowCable on March 1, 2016 at 09:10 said:

I would say I like both B&W and the color versions. Both have different feel to it.

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- Ron Hillmar on March 24, 2016 at 21:07 said:
  
  Thanks for helping, YellowCable,not sure myself, I do think the snow is a little more obvious in the monochrome, but both have their pros and cons 😉
  Hope all is great, greetings,
  Ron
  
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Dalo 2013 on March 1, 2016 at 08:16 said:

Beautiful, rich deep textures that show up and invite the eye with the B&W shot ~ making the photo brilliant. The second shot works extremely well in terms of negative space. Wonderful. I like taking a look at the color photos too, as the color version creates such a different feel; great contrast of the warm & coldness within the shot moves the eye/focus to such a different place.

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- Ron Hillmar on March 9, 2016 at 10:37 said:
  
  Wow, very nice of you to have such a thorough look at them, thanks for great explanation of where you thought these photos work for you!
  I agree the negative space of the second is stronger and I think in the older color version I darkened the black parts to strengthen that.
  Hope you’re doing great and interested to see your next adventures
  Greetings, Ron
  
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Mark Simms on March 1, 2016 at 03:25 said:

I like these….fantastic light

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- Ron Hillmar on March 1, 2016 at 19:06 said:
  
  Thanks, Mark!
  I do like the originals still, but was fun to make em into monochromes as well.
  Hope all is great, greetings
  Ron
  
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Louis on March 1, 2016 at 01:59 said:

I went back to the coloured versions. The ‘feel’ between the colour and the B&W is quite different but the strength of composition and use of light in the originals contributes to a very effective monochrome reinterpretation. I like both sets.

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- Ron Hillmar on March 1, 2016 at 19:04 said:
  
  Hi Louis, thanks for taking a thorough look at all of em! Cannot figure out which I like better, I do love the golden sunlight in the colored ofcourse, but the mono’s do have something as well. Hope you’re doing well, greetings, Ron
  
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Melinda Green Harvey on February 29, 2016 at 23:35 said:

Ron – both of these photos are lovely, and I especially like how the snow softens the steps, giving them the feel of ancient, worn steps made from soft stone.

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- Ron Hillmar on March 1, 2016 at 18:50 said:
  
  Hi Melinda, never thought about the fact the snow wasn’t obvious, as for me I had to wade thru almost a meter of snow to get in.
  It does add to the ‘oldness’ I agree, cuz the building itself is not that old!
  How are you by the way? Haven’t been around much, but your stream of beautiful b&w’s keep me inspired always!
  Cheers, Ron
  
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  - Melinda Green Harvey on March 3, 2016 at 05:07 said:
    
    It’s easy to forget that viewers only know as much about the scene as we let them see!
    
    I’m good – thanks for asking. Still keeping up with the blog (which you already knew) and working on some other photography projects, too. Thanks for the kind words re. my work!
    
    Melinda
    
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    - Ron Hillmar on March 9, 2016 at 11:37 said:
      
      Oh, that’s sounds very intriguing re. future projects!
      And yeah, you’re absolutely right about forgetting the viewers versus your own perception, which is always a difficult thing, cuz its so hard to forget the experience or memory that comes with the photo for yourself!
      Keep up your great work, Melinda
      
      Ron
      
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noellevignola on February 29, 2016 at 22:49 said:

Not sure if that is sand or snow, but love how it softens the whole feel of the scene. Abandoned and black and white, but oh look at these soft edges….

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- Ron Hillmar on February 29, 2016 at 22:53 said:
  
  It is actually snow that came thru that open window, it does make a nice counterpart to the harsh angles elsewhere, didnt realize, very well seen, thanks, Noelle!
  
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lensandpensbysally on February 29, 2016 at 22:18 said:

I prefer the second shot, and it works well in monochrome. The effect adds drama and mystery.

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- Ron Hillmar on March 1, 2016 at 18:46 said:
  
  Hi Sally, I agree with you; second photo has the better composition and use of negative space. I do like em together as sort of yin and yang too 😉
  Greetings and thanks for stopping by,
  Ron
  
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  - lensandpensbysally on March 1, 2016 at 20:00 said:
    
    My pleasure…I appreciate your comment and visit.
    
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    - Ron Hillmar on March 9, 2016 at 11:32 said:
      
      Always a pleasure to stroll around your blog too 😉
      
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      - lensandpensbysally on March 9, 2016 at 12:11 said:
        
        That’s lovely. Thanks.
        
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sriramjanak on February 29, 2016 at 21:06 said:

beautiful…:-)

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- Ron Hillmar on March 1, 2016 at 18:43 said:
  
  Hi Sriram, thanks!
  Warm greetings from KL,
  Ron
  
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Pingback: Black & White Sunday: Negative Space (Response to Guest Challenge) | Lost in Translation
Paula on February 29, 2016 at 20:36 said:

Wonderful. I really appreciate your timely effort, Ron. This is a wonderful example of negative space and evocative photographs.

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- Ron Hillmar on February 29, 2016 at 21:47 said:
  
  Thanks, Paula, it was a piece of cake to turn them into mono; to be honest I think I like the old ones a little better, I did crop the left one little bigger, which is an improvement in my opinion, so thanks for enthusing me to do so!
  Cheers, Ron
  
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Laura Bloomsbury on February 29, 2016 at 19:31 said:

true – the drama is magnificent in these monos against the black background

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- Ron Hillmar on February 29, 2016 at 21:45 said:
  
  Thank you, Laura, I´m not totally convinced which one works better, the mono or my older sunny glow variant 😉
  Greetings, Ron
  
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