Why is colour important in photography?
There are two main reasons to consider colour in your next photograph, one negative and one positive.
1. Negative - avoid distractions
Any colour that contrasts too much with the subject or the colour palette will spoil an otherwise strong photograph. That splash of a red jacket in the background of your image will always draw the viewer’s eye away from your subject; a hiker in red will become the subject whether or not that’s what the landscape photographer intended.
2. Positive - storytelling and emotion
Careful use of colour can provide a shortcut to a connection with your viewer. Whether we like it or not different colours evoke different emotions and an awareness of what these are will help you make more meaningful images.
For example, at a very basic level blue images will feel colder than orange ones. Blue can also indicate certain characteristics like “reliable” or “calm”. (Think about companies that have blue logos like Facebook, American Express, the NHS, Skype, Ford; what do they have in common?) Orange implies things like “harmony” and “balance”.
Do an online search for “colour psychology” and you will find plenty of lists that suggest emotions attached to every colour in the rainbow.
Using different colour combinations (or “palettes”) allows you to refine your message even further. If you keep your palette fairly monotone you are signalling order, calmness, tranquility, thoughtfulness. Clashing colours suggests disorder and disharmony.
A studio photographer can control every aspect of the finished image including the entire colour palette. If you are a landscape or street photographer you will need to train your eye to notice when colours align in a way you want, and to always have a third eye on the lookout for distracting splashes of colour in the background.
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