Formal Element: Colour

Spectrum of Colour

Colour. It is everywhere you look, everywhere you go, everywhere you are. It is undoubtedly one of the most important elements in photography (and art/painting of course) and it is quite vital to know about the different types of colours as well as various combinations.


In fact, as you will see below, I have included a (quite complex) diagram/chart of a colour wheel that briefly explains all the different types of colours (with different combinations) and also their meanings:

Complex Colour Wheel

The very first thing one must know about colours in general is that there are two main categories that exist:

1. PRIMARY COLOURS - RED, YELLOW, BLUE.
2. SECONDARY COLOURS - GREEN, ORANGE PURPLE.

It  is important to mention complimentary colours. These are colours that when placed next to each other, reinforce themselves nicely whilst also creating a strong contrast.


Complimentary Colours: Magenta and Green, Red and Cyan, Blue and Yellow


It is not enough to just have mentioned colour in general, it is imperative that one knows about the certain attributes which in fact characterize colour. Hue and Saturation, Value and Tone, Warm versus Cool colours...these are all vital traits that exist and that must be understood as well.

Let us begin with Hue and Saturation. Hue refers to a colour or shade, whereas saturation is defined as the intensity or vividness of a colour. Thus one might add that the two go hand in hand.

Value and Tone are also important. Value refers to how light or dark a colour is, and can be said that a colour's value depends on the amount of black or white that is added to it. Tone, however refers to whether or not a colour is vibrant or dull.

Last but not least we come to warm colours as opposed to cool colours. It is quite simple to understand that warm colours are ones that give off feelings of passion, love, warmth and are often associated with: THE SUN and FIRE. On the other hand, cool colours tend to depict more of a sad and dull feeling. More often than not, one would associate cool colours with: SNOW, WATER and SHADOWS.

WARM COLOURS -Yellow, Red and Orange.
COOL COLOURS - Violet, Blue and Green.


References:


 Berdan, R, 2004, "Composition and the Elements of Visual Design" [online] Available at: http://photoinf.com/General/Robert_Berdan/Composition_and_the_Elements_of_Visual_Design.htm
[Accessed - 3rd January, 2014]

Eftaiha, D, 2010, "6 Elements of Design for Striking Photographs" [online] Available at: http://photography.tutsplus.com/tutorials/6-elements-of-design-for-striking-photographs--photo-2574
[Accessed - 3rd January, 2014]

James, T, (n.d), "7 Basic Elements of Photography" [online] Available at: http://www.ehow.com/info_10026945_7-basic-elements-photography.html
[Accessed - 3rd January, 2014]