Jimmy T Loc: Virginia

In my humble opinion and with apologies to all of my fellow UHH “Color Impaired” photographers I offer the following opinion.

Silverman:

As a fellow color blind photographer (blue green) I feel your pain. I really LOVE photography!
Now, how do I cope with being color-blind? For starters I concentrate on making stimulating images through composition and by presenting a unique presentation of flowers, candid pics, travel pictures, etc.

While I do admire and enjoy B&W, sepia, tints, etc. or any other specialties in photography, I do shy away from these specialties. Just my preference only.

While I consider myself an advanced (???) hobbyist photographer. For color selection or post processing I am like the beginning photographer. I tend to keep my color selection(s) in the dreaded “A”* (auto) mode. When working in various PP programs I frequently make use of the white balance “eye droppers” and the “auto color” selections offered by various PP programs. I also sparingly use “Saturation, sharpening” or anything that might make the photo appear “over-cooked”. The color blind photographer (me) may think that a picture really “pops” when in reality the picture looks garish.

For any pictures that are going to be used as gifts in calendars, Church website, or any picture that leaves my control has to be reviewed by my personal color consultant, and my wife, aka CINC - Home**. Pictures that don’t pass her naturally calibrated and built in color checker will not leave the house.

Lastly, photography is very worth while! You may get a little exercise taking the pics, see new and interesting places, and feed your inner creative artistic soul. When was the last time that you worried about anything while you were out shooting or post processing the “perfect” picture? OK, maybe you did worry about getting that new “perfect” lens or body. Bottom line, enjoy yourself, and enjoy photography, and the memories you capture and share.

*Warning: some times the “auto modes” will become confused and cause a definite “warming” of the picture. I personally feel that any auto mode will make a change whether it is needed or not.
**CINC - Home, aka Commander In Chief – Home

JimmT
RawTherapee 5.3
Picasa 3.0
Adobe Photograph Express

Haydon

Joel Grimes is color blind and it hasn't stopped him with a 40 year career making 6 digits.

kpmac Loc: Ragley, La

If you look at my black and white images you will see that processing is still an important aspect. I think you can still enjoy photography as much as anyone.

Rongnongno Loc: FL

You are not wasting your time at all.

There are several color blind folks here who have posted gorgeous images. You can do the same.

What I would suggest you to do is to reach out to those and create a section for all of you in order to share information on how to do things when you cannot see colors.

Collective knowledge based on experience it the real key for you. That or using B&W.

Do not give up based on a handicap.

MrBob Loc: lookout Mtn. NE Alabama

Exactly... you have only seen what your eyes have allowed you to see all your life so what changes in photography ? You will record in your image what YOU have seen; Please yourself, thats the way it should be.

DTran

???? There is no such thing.

SharpShooter Loc: NorCal

This may be a bit of ignorance but I’ll assume you see those colors as a shade of grey or black? Do you see them as exactly the same shade or do they vary with the actual color? If there is a variation then why can’t colorblind people learn to distinguish those different shades from each other then consistently associate them as a certain color even though they don’t actually see the true color? Just wondering?!?! Good luck!
SS

JPL

You love photography, that is all that matters. If you enjoy your work then keep on. Do not think about others, do what you like to do.

therwol Loc: USA

This is the second post about these special glasses. They do not make color blind people see the colors they can't see. The glasses somehow make it possible to distinguish between certain colors that look the same to them, but they don't actually see those colors. Color blindness is a genetic variant (note that I didn't say illness.) The most common form results in an inability to distinguish between red and green. This is why stop lights have a lot of blue in the green lights to make it obvious.

You only know what you see. Color blind individuals often don't realize there is a "problem" until someone actually does a color blind test on them, though it may be picked up in school. I don't see why this necessarily has to mean that a color blind individual can't enjoy photography. There are a number of good suggestions here.

RolandDieter

Just a thought: Ansel Adams wasn't colorblind, but he printed in colorblind. (OK, early on he did some color, but he is famous for the black & white.) So don't let colorblindness worry you. Have fun.

Bobspez Loc: Southern NJ, USA

I agree with another poster who said he doesn't change colors in post processing. I rarely do either. Most of my post processing is in light/contrast, shadows and highlights. I believe even if you can't see colors you could judge if the post processing has improved the image. And you could always ask someone their opinion. I'll often ask my wife's opinion when I can't decide between two processed images of the same pic. Lots of people see colors differently. Unless it's the American flag, variations in color between the color in a pic and the actual color of an object are not likely to be noticed.

BebuLamar

I thinh he is color blind.

Rongnongno Loc: FL

Off topic

Color was not taken seriously in photography until the mid-sixties or early 70s.

Color was for 'snap shooters', family informal stuff, not for professional photographer.

B&W was considered the only 'artsy' thing to use, the professional territory.

Both are just as good but sadly the B&W photography is receding into a niche.

--------
Yet, when one sees a good B&W the viewer immediately thinks 'fine art'. That the image is garbage for a trained eye makes no difference: 'This guy still shoots and knows B&W'. Riiiight.

(sorry, venting)

JPL

What is all this talk about b/w photography for the op?? The op is color blind, but that does not mean he sees in black and white, he just does not see all the colors of the spectrum. Many people who are not considered color blind do not do that either but still enjoy color photography.

rehess Loc: South Bend, Indiana, USA

How convenient for you to post this. This morning I was watching the TV program "NCIS" during breakfast - the plot involved a blind photographer, and I was wondering if there was such a thing but hadn't gotten around to searching the subject.