Color is important in establishing the mood and emotion of a photograph. Read the tips below to help you to capture the “wow factor” in your photographs through the use of color.

Contrasting Colors

When you look at a photograph, your eyes are drawn to contrasting elements. You can use these elements to create dramatic effects and to add interest to your picture. In the example, you can see how the red bow attracts your attention and draws you into the photograph because of its contrast to the white fence.

Similar and Subdued Colors

You can use similar colors to create a peaceful mood in your photographs. An example of using similar colors would be a green meadow with hills of green trees in the background. Foggy mornings are great for capturing the right mood using subdued colors.

Complimentary Colors

Certain colors compliment each other. You can use the following rules to create a harmonious, pleasing effect in your photographs:
Red / Green; example: a red barn in a field of green
Orange / Blue; example: the blue and orange sky at sunset
Yellow / Violet; example: yellow flowers on a background of blue sky

Color Moods

Certain colors evoke certain moods. Here are some examples:

Red = passion, anger, excitement
Yellow = cheerful, fun
Blue = calm, peaceful
Black = unknown, doom, ominous
White = purity, innocence
Light Colors = sense of open space; examples: light blue sky and yellow fields of grain
Dark Colors = sense of limited, condensed space; examples: trunks of trees, dark shadows
Pastel Colors = quiet, moody
Bright colors = strong, active

Here is the assignment:

Look at pictures in magazine ads and try interpreting how they evoke certain moods through the use of color.

Visit a museum, art gallery or gallery of photographs and see how color applies to both art and photography and observe how the artist/photographer uses color to create different moods.

Apply the rules of color and use what you have learned through observation to create the right mood in your photographs in both indoor and outdoor scenes. Try some landscapes and close-ups. An example for indoors would be to take some macro shots of an ordinary household object using the different rules of color. Place the object near a window, turn off the flash and use sun for your light source. Then go outside and try to capture a dramatic sunset and observe how the rules of color apply. If there is snow on the ground, try to photograph an object with contrasting colors.

Print out some of your pictures and do a self-critique using the rules of color. Show the photographs to some of your friends and family and ask them to tell you what feeling or mood the photographs evoke in them.