What Makes A Photograph A Good Photograph? (II)

Last week we talked about how the knowledge about rules of composition, like the rule of the thirds, can enhance your works. This week I want to talk about color composition. From first grade we should all still know what primary colors (colors of the first order) are. Red, yellow and blue. But out of the mixture of two colors out of these 3 colors we can get a whole new palette of colors. The secondary colors: orange, violette and green. When secondary colors are placed in the color circle against tertiary colors (primary color mixed with secondary color), we talk about Complementary Colors. So in photography the complementary color of red is cyan, of blue is yellow, and of green is magenta. When placed next to each other, complementary colors make each other appear brighter and more intense.

Vibrant contrasts, particularly among bright primary colors (reds, yellows, and blues), are especially effective in creating dynamic designs. Such contrasts excite the eye, making it jump from one color to the next. So you can imagine that in advertising photography the use of contrasting colors or complementary colors is very important.

But how does this knowledge help us in creating better pictures? It is proven that different shades of colors arouse different kind of emotions in us. So if we know the different effects of colors we can use this as a tool in telling a story with our images.

Colors, more than any other design element, determine the emotional content of a photograph. You can establish the entire mood of a shot by emphasizing a particular color scheme: Reds and oranges are hot, exciting and alarming. Blues and greens are cool and refreshing and mostly stand for wide spaces like skies and seas. Yellows warm us, like sunlight and symbolizes joy and happiness.

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