Continuing on here from last week about some projects I had in my photography class last semester. This week is about color contrast. Contrasting color are those colors opposite each other on the color wheel. Red is the opposite of green, blue the opposite of yellow. But what about contrast in black and white photographs? I prefer black and white and I really enjoy a high contrast photography. A high contrast refers to the difference between shadows and light, but when you look at things in color there are so many different values of color, and deciding what colors you want to use in a photograph is difficult.

Finding the right contrast is challenging too. Using bright colors next to each other can really stand out in a photograph, and will lead your eye to the color. When composing contrasting color, I like for the contrasting colors to be separated from each other so they do not dominate the composition. If you look at my featured image I like to have the contrasting colors not so close, this picture is different that the two colors are joined by the telephone wires and set on a bright white background. I also like to find subtle contrast. Dulled down colors or more earthly colors that are contrasting can be put next to each other without dominating the photograph. If you look at the photograph with the guy in the blue jacket, Bam!, your eyes go right to his jacket, and that draws your eyes to him.

The next two photographs are just different color contrasts.

Now that I have learned so much about seeing things in color, I look at the world now as if it was a photograph or how it would look like in a photograph. So go ahead, snap away and see what your world looks like in a photograph.