THEORY & DEFINITION
Colour is created when light strikes an object and reflects back into the eye. There are three properties of light.
- Hue, this is simply the name we give to a colour.
- Intensity, the strength of the colour e.g. we may describe the colour blue as 'royal' or 'dull'.
- Value, this is reference to its shade or tint changes in colours.
(Definition from ThoughtCo.com)
As you can see in the picture there are different intensities and shades of one colour within a single image, which all create a different feel.
•There has been a tremendous
amount of research on how colour affects human beings and some of this research
suggests that men and women may respond to colours differently.
•Colour affects us emotionally,
with different colours evoking different emotions.
•In short, colour has the capacity
to affect the human nervous system.
COLOUR THEORY
Colour is based off three primary colours that when mixed together can make all other colours. The three primary colours of light are Red, Green and Blue (RGB). Using a combination of these colours can produce all the colours in the spectrum and an equal amount of each will produce white light, this makes them additive primaries. Equal combinations of two primary colours are used to make secondary colours. Secondary colours are as follows: Yellow, Magenta and Cyan. The colours next too each other in the wheel are known as harmonious, analogous colours. The colours opposite each other are known as complementary colours as they create maximum contrast. 
The RGB primaries do not apply to printing so instead there are a different set of primaries: Cyan, Magenta and Yellow (CMY). These create black if added together in equal amounts and are known as subtractive colours (CMYK). The 'K' represents the black as to not confuse it with blue.
Colour Psychology
There are four psychological primary colours; Red, Blue, Yellow and Green.
RED: This colour has positive connotations of strength, warmth, stimulation, love/compassion and excitement. It has negative connotations of defiance, aggression, impact and strain. It is regarded as a physical colour.
Red is the longest wave length of light and has the property of appearing the closest to us, hence why it stands out. This has made it useful for sending across messages in posters and effective in traffic lights across the globe. It can stimulate the 'fight or flight' response and in its simplest form it is not subtle, therefore, coming across as aggressive.
BLUE: This colour has positive connotations of intelligence, duty, trust, logic and calm. It has negative connotations of being emotionless, cold and unfriendly.
Blue has more of a psychological effect rather than the physical 'fight or flight' that the red creates. A intensity of blue will invoke a different response, with softer blues soothing the mind and strong blues stimulating clear thought. Yet it is also perceived as a cold, unfriendly colour.
YELLOW: This colour has positive connotations of optimism, confidence, self-esteem, friendliness and creativity. This also has negative connotations of fear, emotional fragility, anxiety and depression. 
Yellow is an emotional stimulant which makes yellow the strongest colour. A particular shade of yellow will lift our spirits and self confidence. On the fill side too much yellow can have the opposite effect, creating anxiety and fear.
GREEN: The colour green has positive connotations of harmony, refreshment, universal love, equilibrium and peace. It also has the negative connotations of boredom, blandness and fatigue.
Green is a colour that often requires no adjustment, making it restful. Green is at the centre of the spectrum and creates a sense of balance. Not only this but green can be found everywhere in the world around us and a source of water is usually near by, reassuring us on a primitive level, as there is little danger and famine. However, in large quantities green is bland and can promote stagnation.
Source: (http://www.colour-affects.co.uk/psychological-properties-of-colours)
–Image Bank Robert Cartwright
Robert Cartwright is a London based photographer who specialises in events and portraiture.
Not much can be found on Robert Cartwright, although from looking at his images they often seem
to show aspects of nightlife, where he plays on the ideas of colour and mood. For example the image
uses luminous blue and purple colours. These are analogous colours and blue usually has the
connotations of logic and calm but the shade of blue and the purple give off this night club vibe of
which logic and calm are not associated.
He seems to manipulate how colour reflects off materials and objects and how what emotions this
creates. This will be something that I try to replicate in my own work.
The following images were used to aid my visual research:
The images above represent what sort of images I believe I could capture with some experimentation.
I could take these within a studio at college, or in a similar isolated location like in my local village.
With regards to my research I will be using colour to convey emotion within my images.
–Contact Sheet
The shoot was on the whole good as I feel like I have developed my skills and showed a good depth of experimentation with lighting and gels.
–My Best Images
–Images That Need Improvement
I chose these images as the ones that needed improvement as some of the ideas I tried to shoot didn't work and others were out of focus. The first image suffered from an exposure problem, where the shutter speed was not right it led to the image being over exposed. There was also an issue with composition as the light meter can be seen in the top right corner which takes away from the image.
The second image similarly was over exposed. Here I tried experimenting with two different gels and have the lighting coming from behind the mask but because I was shooting was a slow shutter speed and the camera was not completely steady you can see some of the movement from the light. If I was to reshoot this image I was change the shutter speed to 1/125 to increase the sharpness and secure the camera on the tripod properly to get rid of the movement.
The third image is over exposed and hasn't captured the movement I wanted properly. This was down to the shutter speed being to fast. This created the over exposure of the image and the speed of the shutter speed also meant the movement was not captured properly. If I was to reshoot this image I was reduce the shutter speed to 5 seconds which would allow for all the movement to be captured.
The fourth image again was a failed piece of experimentation. I tried to create a light stream behind the model and I did have the camera inside a coloured wallet but the colour did not come through in the shot. The image was also not successful because the start points of the light trail stood out too much against the image, so in the end you could not see the figure. If I were to reshoot this image I would have a light focused on the model from a different location so that they can still be seen and I would also decrease the amount of light trails used.
With reference to my best images, the first image was shot with a green gel over the snood and the snood was angled so that shadows fell on one side of the mask. This image was inspired by Robert Cartwright by the way he uses the reflection of lights off different objects.
The first image of the model holding the mask was influenced by Cartwright's image of the band, the way the red light burns down on the model like a spotlight and the colour of the light creates a sinister atmosphere within the image.
The image of the mask being held down by the models side is inspired by Cartwright's portrait of the old man the way the shadow falls on the mask and the way the white is on the mask this will allow me to add colour during the editing.
Some of the images did not come out as I liked, but when experimenting it can be difficult to get all the images right. I did struggle at times to get the right shutter speed to adjust the exposure and the right aperture to get the right depth of field.
For this shoot I used a Canon 5D and the shots where taken at F11 and between ISO 200 and 400. The shutter speed varied between 10 seconds all the way down to 1/125, this was to either capture movement or maximize sharpness. A tripod was used for this shoot, but because it was a more heavy duty tripod I found it difficult at times to move and extend the arms to the angles I wanted them and also it could be difficult tightening it. If I were to reshoot I would used a tripod that is easier to handle.
I then took the images into Photoshop to improve them further. I mostly played around the brightness and contrast to get the atmosphere that the colour connoted.
with no images which you have taken linked to this project being posted to the blogger your mark is set to a U, there is an urgent need for you to show your progression through the completion of posts.
ReplyDelete