Sorry
for the long break in posting. No excuses, I was simply too busy
with other things to sit down and write out anything that would be
worth reading, and I don't believe in doing something if you are not
going to give it a full try. I will be sharing some of the work I
have done over this period of silence, as well as a story that can
help newer photographers based on my own simple mistakes.
Today
we will be discussing color theory. I understand that this has been
mentioned many times previously; but today I will be breaking down
what exactly it means and how to use this knowledge. All of this is
in an effort to help you with your color choices for clothing or
accessories before a photography session and when thinking about how
to edit an image in your post-work.
This
is the color wheel. I know it appears to be just a bunch of colored
wedges, but this diagram is actually one of the best tools ever
invented for artists, designers, and fashionable dressers the world
over. It is also one of the few “non-photographs” I have hanging
in my studio. A clear teaching/working print hangs over my desk
along with post-it notes stuck all over the place giving insight on
using the colors in some dyes, editing programs, and how to white
balance to best take advantage of a color if it will appear often in
a session. Actually, the one I use is a bit more complex, but just
as effective:
If
you think back to primary school, we learn there are three primary
colors. We remember that red, blue, and yellow are the basics and
from those all other shades and combinations are born. Now, look at
the wheel. Do you see only thee colors? Do you see just six colors?
No. Even in school we learn that there are at least three more
colors we can make by using the primary three; from red and blue we
get purple, blue and yellow give us green, and yellow with red brings
us orange. Those are joined by white - the sum of all colors, black
– the absence of color, and brown – the muddled combination of
three primary shades in unequal parts.
Here
is what we don't learn in kindergarten... some colors make others
appear brighter or stronger just by being near them. Now that I've
dropped that bombshell on you, I would like to refer you back to the
color wheel image above. Notice what colors are opposing on the
wheel. If you draw a direct line across the wheel you will find the
polar-opposite is based on that theory.
Fantastic,
there are opposite colors... now why do you need to know this? Well,
I am getting to that part. But first I'll give you a task: Draw a
line from GREEN, across the wheel to the color it most “sets off”.
What do you find there? You should be looking at RED. Yes, red and
green are opposites here too. Actually, that is exactly why they are
used on traffic lights in that way. Now run you finger or eye around
the wheel counter-clockwise and find the “mid-point”. Now does
it make sense why we use YELLOW as the “slow down” signal?
By
now you are sick of me talking about traffic lights and want to know
what, if anything, this has to do with your photography. Well, think
about hair and eye color. Blue eyes look wonderful when the skin
around them as a slightly bronzed look. Make-up companies have been
using this fact to sell “color kits” for years, so why not make
the same connection in your work?
One
benefit of photography as a medium is that color theory can actually
be applied very simply. We can coordinate with a model, make-up
artist, wardrobe director, or any other person who will have input in
the shoot based on a simple formula. Think of it as color algebra.
You take the two colors from the wheel and select the actual unique
tone that will make the highest impact to create exactly the image
you seek.
(
RED + GREEN ) =
BEAUTY
TONE
TONE
For
now I will leave you this real-life example, flaws an all. The model
in this photo from over my recent break has a lovely tan and it is
set off even better when posed against the rolling waves on the
beach. We both felt that the chilly water and my soaked jeans were
well worth the beauty of this natural and emotive atmosphere, and the
colors agree perfectly with a little tweaking. In fact, I am still
in the process of choosing my final modifications.
