This is a lovely environmental portrait in color because of how the warmth of the brickwork complements the body language of the little kid and the colors of the clothing. In black and white, it looks more like a portrait made by Diane Arbus in New York of the 1960s -- the couple looks happy, but the environment around them is grim. The scars on the door, which are almost irrelevant in color, become a symbol of deterioration in black and white that incongruously conflicts with the genuine warmth of these nice people. So once again, it becomes a question of what you are trying to express, Mo. If you are trying to say these people are proud, happy, and secure, the color image says it. If you trying to say that while this family may think they are secure, they must deal with issues they may not even yet begin to comprehend, then the more symbolic social commentary of the black and image would become your choice. The very facade that warms their life in color becomes a symbolic potential threat to overwhelm them in black and white.
