Selective Coloring
Dec 18, 2017 08:54:31 #
Practicing at Lightroom and thought I would try my hand at selective coloring - found out it is frowned upon by a lot of photographers - overdone? This was not the best pic nor the prettiest leaf but it sure looks a lot better than the original laying on a bunch of brown leaves ;) All I know is that a young lady, who showed at our shop, sold several black and white canvases with selective coloring - people loved them!
Dec 18, 2017 09:02:01 #
Every time I show photos with selective color to people not involved with photography, they love the effect! The only places where I see anyone complaining about it being overdone, or almost blasphemy, are photography forums. I like the effect!
Dec 18, 2017 09:06:15 #
Frank2013
Loc: San Antonio, TX. & Milwaukee, WI.
If your asking if your image is overdone I don't think so...your subject though, is falling out of the focus plain....a smaller aperture could help.
Dec 18, 2017 09:21:31 #
StevenG
Loc: Long Island, NY
deer2ker wrote:
Practicing at Lightroom and thought I would try my hand at selective coloring - found out it is frowned upon by a lot of photographers - overdone? This was not the best pic nor the prettiest leaf but it sure looks a lot better than the original laying on a bunch of brown leaves ;) All I know is that a young lady, who showed at our shop, sold several black and white canvases with selective coloring - people loved them!
I think selective coloring has its place. When done correctly, I think it looks great. I think it is very effective, for example, in making individual people stand out from the crowd.
Steve
Dec 18, 2017 10:19:25 #
Yes it is interesting - maybe because it is a fairly simple way to manipulate a photo or a lot of pics are done poorly? No different than the easy 1 step HDR etc.. Just like anything, it can be done in poor taste or used to benefit the photo.
Spider223 wrote:
Every time I show photos with selective color to people not involved with photography, they love the effect! The only places where I see anyone complaining about it being overdone, or almost blasphemy, are photography forums. I like the effect!
Dec 18, 2017 10:20:14 #
Yes you are right! Interesting how it seems to be floating in air lol. Got a lot more practicing to do ;)
Frank2013 wrote:
If your asking if your image is overdone I don't think so...your subject though, is falling out of the focus plain....a smaller aperture could help.
Dec 18, 2017 10:23:04 #
You are so right Steven. Just like any pp effect, it can be used to benefit and enhance. (or go horribly wrong lol) This would not be a photo I would print for any reason but it was a good one to practice on. There are some truly wonderful examples out there - especially in commercial work I think!
StevenG wrote:
I think selective coloring has its place. When done correctly, I think it looks great. I think it is very effective, for example, in making individual people stand out from the crowd.
Steve
Steve
Dec 18, 2017 13:09:05 #
Exploring styles and looks, trying new techniques, is a fine way to pass a few hours IMO.
I'm sure many of the folks who poo-poo selective coloring went through their own phases and explorations. And there is often a disconnect between what "the people" want and what the critics think. btw, has anyone spotted Elvis or a tiger painted on black velvet in recent years?
I think your photo is quite appealing, deer2ker. A little change in rotation and aspect ratio (maybe crop as a square?) and it could be part of series of similar effects and subjects.
I'm sure many of the folks who poo-poo selective coloring went through their own phases and explorations. And there is often a disconnect between what "the people" want and what the critics think. btw, has anyone spotted Elvis or a tiger painted on black velvet in recent years?
I think your photo is quite appealing, deer2ker. A little change in rotation and aspect ratio (maybe crop as a square?) and it could be part of series of similar effects and subjects.
Dec 18, 2017 17:30:47 #
You didn't mention the Clown with the Tear! LOL Now that was a winner ;)
Linda From Maine wrote:
Exploring styles and looks, trying new techniques,... (show quote)
Dec 18, 2017 17:31:25 #
deer2ker wrote:
You didn't mention the Clown with the Tear! LOL Now that was a winner ;)
Dec 19, 2017 17:27:10 #
I think there is a place for it. Color on B&W is a bit extreme in most cases, but a slight to moderate desaturation of the background is an effective way to emphasize the subject in many cases. (Just my opinion).
Dec 21, 2017 20:41:48 #
deer2ker wrote:
Practicing at Lightroom and thought I would try my hand at selective coloring - found out it is frowned upon by a lot of photographers - overdone? This was not the best pic nor the prettiest leaf but it sure looks a lot better than the original laying on a bunch of brown leaves ;) All I know is that a young lady, who showed at our shop, sold several black and white canvases with selective coloring - people loved them!
A few years ago there was a big controversy in our local club about selective color. We have color and mono competitions. Some people were entering selective color photos in the mono competitions. Several people complained that they were color photos. Others said that they were "enhanced" mono photos. We ended up compromising in a way. We would not allow individual areas of the photo to be color enhanced (like your nice photo of the leaf); but you could use monochrome toning of the entire image like sepia. I've seen the technique used to good effect; but it has to be the right photo. I guess you could say that of any effect, though.
Erich
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