Black and White in the Digital Age

I began to seriously get into photography via black-and-white film in the 1990s.  I got to know the look and feel of various types of film and photo paper, such as Pan-X vs. Tri-X and Gloss vs. Matte.

Adobe Lightroom B&W Sliders

Now that I'm working in the digital realm, I shoot color RAW and convert to black and white in post-processing. I very much enjoy the control that Adobe Lightroom provides over the color-to-B&W conversion.  In addition to being able to control the contributions of various color regions, I appreciate the brightness curves and sliders that let me separately control the various shades of grey.

Despite (or maybe because of) this level of control, I've had trouble achieving on displays the look that I was used to with film and paper. I attribute this primarily to the variability of display brightness and the contrast ratios of LED displays - as the brightness is changed, the white level obviously changes.  How such changes affect other display properties can be calibrated using an external feedback device such as a ColorMunki.  I guess the old-school analogy is looking at a black-and-white print in a variety of lighting conditions, from a dimly-lit room to full sunshine.

Regardless of the cause, I've found that the variability in black-and-white tonality across multiple displays makes it difficult to find the "right" look.  This makes me wonder whether the prevalence of digital displays has affected what makes a "good" black and white image.  I see a lot of low-key images and wonder if the exaggerated blacks and in-your-face contrast works best with today's screens.

So, do digital displays favor higher-contrast images or are they just easier to work with in a display medium that doesn't do subtlety?  My tastes certainly seem to run toward more extreme contrast; I find that I'm happiest with my B&W when I set it the way I think it should be, then push the contrast even further.

Griffith Observatory, Los Angeles, CA

Early Satellite models at Smithsonian Udvar-Hazy Center

Iwo Jima Memorial