Why so much black & white?

I am sure some people may think that I am in a bit of a black & white rut at the moment but there are reasons behind my new obsession with B&W. It really isn't as simple as converting images to B&W after the fact, especially if you don't have Photoshop or Lightroom yet (like me). 

Firstly, Richard bought me a B&W photography book/manual for Christmas which I have been reading on and off over the past month (thoughtful gift this year)!! Secondly, I have learnt how to shoot in B&W mode on my camera. Not just straight B&W but also while adjusting contrast, sharpness, colour saturation & other features directly in-camera.  

The picture style chosen for these images was custom made (by me) featuring high contrast. I am loving all these new things I am discovering about my camera. When professionals have told me before that the best thing you can do to improve your photography is 'read your camera manual' they weren't kidding. The more you can do to get your photos great in-camera, the better they will be post editing.