Buzz
For years, black and white has been the standard "artistic" choice for photography, making it easy to forget how powerful a color photograph can be. Here’s a detailed guide to help you achieve vibrant colors in your shots.
Understanding Color Basics
We could spend hours discussing the science of color and its mechanics, but that’s not the main focus for now. Instead, let’s quickly touch on the color wheel and how we can utilize it to enhance your photos.
Different Color Categories
Before diving into color usage, it's important to first understand the basics. Let's quickly go over the different types so we can get to the exciting part.
Primary colors are the foundation of all colors. By mixing these basic colors together, we can create others. The primary colors are red, yellow, and blue, but when working on a computer, we use red, green, and blue (RGB). However, for our purposes—creating appealing color harmonies—this distinction isn’t crucial.
Secondary colors don’t always pair well together, do they? In most cases, color combinations can look less appealing when grouped together. They usually look better when combined with colors from outside their group. So, what are secondary colors? When you mix two primary colors, you get a secondary color. For instance, yellow and blue make green—but you probably knew that already.
Tertiary colors are the third tier—the 'grandchildren' of the primary colors... though that’s not the best analogy. Tertiary colors are made by combining a primary and a secondary color—and let's just say that kind of mixing isn’t generally accepted in most circles.
Complementary colors are those that work well together. (Did you guess that already?) On the color wheel, these are the colors positioned directly across from each other. They're meant to be visually pleasing, though that doesn’t always hold true in practice.
Analogous colors are those found next to each other on the color wheel. In a simplified version like the one shown above, they’re right beside each other. On more complex color wheels, they don’t have to be immediate neighbors, just close enough. Using one or two analogous colors instead of direct complements can sometimes create a more harmonious color palette.
At least that’s my opinion. Color is a deeply personal choice, so it's important to select combinations you genuinely enjoy. Even if you think you don’t have a strong preference, you probably do. Color is one of the first ways we connect with the world around us. Remember how often you were asked, "What's your favorite color, Sammy?" If your name was Sammy, you probably heard that question a lot.
So, if color is such a personal experience, how can we create visually appealing color combinations? Well, there are only a limited number of basic colors to work with, and there are certain principles (some of which we’ve covered already) that can guide you. Let’s explore some examples and break them down.
Why do red and cyan work well together? Red is the primary color in this pair, and cyan is a tertiary color. Cyan also serves as a split complement of red. A split complement occurs when you take a color, identify its complement, and then choose one of the complement's analogous colors. For red, the complement is green, and cyan, being similar to green, is its split complement. While the exact shades of red and cyan may vary here, the concept remains the same.
Ah, blue and green—the colors of my high school. The issue, though, is that my school used some pretty harsh combinations of these two. While this pairing looks okay, it’s not necessarily the most dynamic. The problem is that blue and green are very close on the color wheel—they’re almost analogous. Although they work together well and can be quite striking in the right context, there isn’t much contrast between them. Let’s see what else we can come up with...
This is quite fascinating. Here, we have blue and green paired with orange and red. Orange and red are similarly close on the color wheel, creating a relationship like that of blue and green. While these combinations might not always be striking on their own, they come together quite nicely when all four are combined. If you look at the color wheel, you’ll see that these four colors form a rectangle. When searching for a starting point for basic color harmonies, drawing shapes on the color wheel can be a helpful technique.
Now, let’s take a look at something that’s likely familiar to many of you: the colors of Flickr. These were derived from a triadic color scheme. A triad forms an equilateral triangle on the color wheel. If you’re following along, you’ll notice that if you connect magenta and cyan, the missing color to complete the triangle is yellow-orange.
The Flickr color scheme is based on this triad, but orange was removed to create a simpler harmony. If you prefer only two dominant colors, experimenting with triads and removing one color can lead to some intriguing possibilities.
Before we move forward, let's talk about Adobe Kuler. If you're on the hunt for new color harmonies, Kuler is an excellent (and free) web-based tool that allows you to explore color in various ways.
That said, how does all of this relate to photography?
Understanding Color Theory in Photography
Now that we’re diving deeper into color, let me ask: Have you ever taken a photo of a body of water at sunset? I have. You're probably looking at it right now, as it's just above this sentence. It’s not exactly going to win an award for Best Sunset Photo or make it onto the cover of a tabloid novel, but it does illustrate something important about color: Harmonies can appear naturally in the most ordinary places. The orange of the setting sun and the blue of the sky complement each other. And if you don’t have a lake and a sky at your disposal, just dress one of your Caucasian (or mostly Caucasian) friends in blue jeans and a white shirt. This popular combination works because white people tend to be more orange than white—especially if they're jaundiced. If you have a jaundiced friend, or at least one with a spray tan, just buy a pair of jeans and you're all set.
Do you really think this spray tanning salon has blue walls by chance? I don’t think so either.
Spray tanning isn’t the only industry making use of color harmonies. In fact, the entire U.S. is built around a concept we’ve already discussed:
Before Flickr, there was the United States of America. This is the same concept of dropping a color from a triad, just with less intensity. Flickr’s color scheme is, secretly, quite patriotic. Who knew?
So what does all of this really mean? It means that color harmonies are everywhere around you, and it’s your job to spot them. Capturing a great shot with impressive color can sometimes be as simple as pointing your camera in the right direction, framing the shot, and pressing the shutter. But since we live in the digital age, let’s explore how we can tweak reality to get even better photos when the world around us doesn’t quite deliver.
Before You Press the Shutter
Don’t get too carried away. Most of the work you can do to influence the color in your photo before you press the shutter involves thinking ahead and planning. Sorry, there’s no magic happening here.
Subjects and Backgrounds
This is simpler than it sounds. Just like the spray-tanner standing against the blue wall, it can be as easy as positioning your subject in front of the color you want. In the photo above, I had my friend Christine stand in front of a white wall that took on a greenish hue thanks to some glass out of the frame. Christine's skin has a yellow-orange tone and her lips are pink. In essence, Christine creates a split-complementary color scheme with green.
Remember the rectangle concept we discussed earlier? Now, here it is in action. We’ve got analogous warm tones on the ground (orange and red) and analogous cool tones behind the trees (green and blue).
Here’s another great example of split-complementary colors in action. Notice the tiny splash of yellow on that foam football? The purple and cyan are its split complements.
However, obvious complements aren’t your only option. You can create stunning color harmonies simply by sticking to analogous colors and playing with tonal shifts. In this case, the pairing of green and blue—two very similar colors—works subtly together to produce a pleasing effect.
The key takeaway here is straightforward: Place your subject in front of a background that creates a harmonious color scheme, or adjust your subject to suit the colors of the background you have. Whether your subject is a person or a foam football, the principles remain the same.
Light
Color doesn’t always appear the same, and that’s due to light. Light can be a major nuisance, whether you have too much or not enough of it. We’re not diving into lighting here, but we do need to touch on how it impacts color. As you can see in the example above, the color of the subjects is enhanced by some added red light, especially noticeable on their skin. This snapshot may be casual, but the color stands out thanks to the lighting. Even though the sunlight was the same as in photos taken earlier in the day, the sun had started to set, making the light more direct instead of coming from overhead. The best outdoor light—and therefore the best natural outdoor color—happens around sunrise and sunset, commonly known as the golden hours. If you can, take advantage of these moments. Use a calculator if you need to.
Chances are, you're not planning your family vacation photos around the golden hours, so how can you work with the light you’ve got? When it comes to color, be mindful of the temperature. You might’ve seen the chart to the left, which shows you the expected light temperature (and corresponding color cast) at different times of the day. It’s quite useful. Indoors, artificial light also changes things up. Tungsten lighting gives you that warm yellow-orange glow, like the sun. Fluorescent lights—everyone’s favorite—produce a dull white light with a slight greenish hue. Whatever your lighting setup is, be aware of it, because it will impact the colors in your photo.
Color temperature chart from ePhotoZine
Tricks in Post
You can’t fix everything with post-processing, not easily anyway, but there are plenty of cool tricks you can do. Now that you know how to use color, let’s look at how you can bend it to your will.
There are plenty of clever Photoshop tutorials available that cover color adjustments and nearly every other aspect of editing your photos. Typically, they focus on using the tools exactly as they were designed, often requiring significant effort. However, this section isn't about following best practices—it's all about achieving great results quickly and efficiently. These tips will help you create fun color effects, from subtle to bold, without too much effort or complexity. While Donnie is much more entertaining, here's some insight into the adjustments we’ll be exploring so you can understand what you're getting into.
Not bad, right?
Unbalanced Color with the Curves Midpoint Gray Eyedropper
Normally, you would white balance your photos, but sometimes an unbalanced color can work to your advantage. A touch of warmth or a bit of desaturation might produce the exact effect you’re looking for, so let’s examine how to use the midpoint gray eyedropper in Curves to create some unbalanced color effects.
The midpoint gray eyedropper works by selecting a color in your photo and adjusting the overall color balance to neutralize it, turning it into a neutral gray from the tonal scale. For example, if you pick a blue spot, the tool neutralizes it using the complementary color of blue—usually an orange hue—warming up the image. If you select a warmer color, your photo will cool down. This method is a quick way to change the mood of your photo using complementary colors.
You can easily warm up, cool off, or add color to your photos with a quick faux-Photo Filter adjustment. But why bother with Curves? The beauty of Curves lies in its level of control, allowing you to tweak settings even after you've discovered them using the sampler. Plus, it enables you to adjust contrast after fine-tuning the color, which means you can handle everything in one place. If you're unsure how to work with individual color channels in Curves, the next section will show you a trick for achieving extreme color effects using—you guessed it—those very color channels.
Split Color Dominance for Extreme Color with Curves
Curves is a powerhouse of a tool, and while it’s easy to overdo it, that’s exactly what we’re going to do! By manipulating which channels dominate in your photos, you can create some truly striking color effects.
This might sound intimidating if you haven’t tried it before, but it’s actually quite simple. To begin, hit Command/Control + M to open Curves, or navigate to the Layer menu, select New Adjustment Layer, and then pick Curves. You’ll see an interface like the one shown to the left. In that example, I have the blue channel selected. You’ll probably see the RGB layer selected by default (note: if you're not using RGB, your channel names may vary). From the channel menu, pick Red. Let’s start there and move through the rest.
Adjusting Light and Color with Gradient Overlays
Those techniques we discussed earlier are not exactly known for their subtlety. If you're aiming for something a bit more restrained yet still want to infuse some color adjustment, gradient overlays could be just what you're looking for.
The concept is fairly straightforward:
Create a new layer above your photo.
Use the Gradient tool (which swaps with the Paint Can on the toolbar) to create a gradient to fill that layer.
Set the blending mode of the gradient layer to Overlay.
Adjust the opacity of the layer to achieve your desired effect (generally, less is more in this case).
In the video example above, you can see how applying a radial gradient creates a subtle, cooling spotlight effect, which highlights the subject of the photo with just the right amount of color.
Adjusting Light and Color with Color Channel Overlays
This is one of the simplest yet most effective tricks. All you need to do is extract one color channel from your image, place it in a new layer above your original full-color photo, and then set the layer's blending mode to Overlay. This creates a striking, washed-out, and high-contrast color effect. Here's a step-by-step guide to show you how it's done:
Open your photo and go to the Channels panel in Photoshop. You should see RGB selected by default, but choose the Green channel.
Select All (Command/Control + A) and then copy it (Command/Control + C).
Return to the RGB channel and paste (Command/Control + V) the green layer on top of the image. This should make your image appear in black and white.
Change the blending mode of the green layer you just pasted to Overlay, and adjust the opacity to your preference (usually, 20-30% works best).
Have any cool color tricks of your own? Share them with us in the comments!
