Colour or black and white?

The pros and cons of pictures in colour versus black and white is a popular theme for discussions among amateur photographers. Some seem to think that if you just remove the colours you get a picture with more "feeling" or that removing colours from an ordinary drab photo "will save it". In my humble opinion you need to have that option in mind when you take the picture. Black and white enhances the structures in the photo, so you have to have some structure there from the beginning. Here are three examples of the same subject in both colour and black and white. The subject is a bench beneath a balustrade in the Botanical Garden at the University of Bergen. The pictures were taken last Sunday and were shot from different angles and distances. To me they work in both modes since there are lot of structures an colours, but they might convey different atmospheres. Comments are very welcome - that's the way I learn.