Colour Theory as Applied to Landscape Photography

Colour Theory as Applied to
Landscape Photography
From Academia to "Gut Feel"
Unlike painters, most photographs have little if any training in colourtheory. This is a pity, since unless one understands the physiological aswell as psychological basis of formal colour theory it‘s hard to understand whysome photographs work and some don‘t, except on a "gut feel"basis.
I find it remarkable, but over the years I have never seen a comprehensive articlein any photographic magazine about colour theory. A thorough search of the webhas also come up short.  Since most landscape, nature and wildlifephotographers work in colour it is important we understand the underpinnings of ourart.
This is not a simple topic. It intertwines the physics of light, the physiologyof vision and our psychological perceptions. With this essay I hope to assist you inappreciating why we see colour theway we do and what can be done to improve our photography using thisknowledge.

I‘ve used coloured text wherever the name of a colour is used. After someinitial reader feedback I discovered that even thoughit looks a bit garish it‘s a considerable aid to comprehending a somewhatdifficult subject.


Discussions about colour (British spelling) always begin witha colour wheel (above) and a discussion of the Primary Colours. Dependingon the application and environment Primary Colours fall into three families...
RGB(Red / Blue / Green)
CMY (Cyan / Magenta/ Yellow)
YRB (Yellow/ Red / Blue)
RGB is used by most electronic and transmissive-light technologies suchas TV and film, and CMY (actually CMYK including Black) isused with reflected light technologies such as printing inks. The primariestraditionally taught in art school for painters, and for this reason the oneswe‘ll be discussing here, are YRB (Yellow/ Red / Blue). There‘sno point in arguing over which primary system is best — they eachhave their place in a specific discipline.

First and Second Order Colours
Any colour of the spectrum can be made by mixing the Yellow,Red, and Blueprimaries. This is why they are called First-Order colours. Theseare pure colours and are not created though mixing any other colours. If you look at theColourSpectrum at the top of this page you‘ll notice that while there are aninfinity of additional colours, convention has it that there are in fact 9additional Second-Order colours, for a total of 12 in the two groupscombined. Allother colours are considered Third-Order and won‘t be discussed here much.
These 12 colours, starting at the top of the colour wheel with Blueand moving clockwise are; Blue-Violet, Violet,Red-Violet, Red, Red-Orange,Orange, Yellow-Orange,Yellow, Yellow-Green, Greenand Blue-Green.
Do you see the pattern here? Work your way clockwise around theColourSpectrum, starting  with Blueand compare the colours in the list below to their positions.
Blue                Primary
Blue-Violet                              75% / 25% mix of Blue andRed
Violet                     50%/50% mix of Blue andRed
Red-Violet                                25% / 75% mix of Blue andRed
Red                Primary
Red-Orange                             75% / 25% mix of Red and Yellow
Orange                   50%/50% mix of Red and Yellow
Yellow-Orange                          25% / 75% mix of Red and Yellow
Yellow            Primary
Yellow-Green                            75% / 25% mix of Yellow andBlue
Green                     50%/50% mix Yellow andBlue
Blue-Green                                25% / 75% mix of Yellow andBlue
Do you see how the Second-Order colours which are half way betweenthe First-Order primaries,  Violet,Orange andGreen, are comprised of 50% eachof the First-Order primaries on either side of them, and the rest ofthe colours are 25%/75% or 25%/75% mixtures?
"Very interesting", you‘re probably saying, but what doesthis have to do with producing better photography? We will start to see how in amoment through looking at each of the First Order colours and the major Second-Order ones using some of my photograph to illustrate the points.

First Order Colours
Yellow — AFirst-Order Colour
Aspens #1, Route 168, October 1999
Photographed with a Rollei 6008 Integral and 300mm SchneiderAPO Tele-Xenar on Provia 100F
While the Yellow of the Aspens in thisphotograph is a bit toward the Yellow-Orange end ofthe spectrum it will serve to illustrate this primary colour. (Findingpure yellow in nature is tough, except in flowers).
Yellow is the brightest colour. It screams forour attention and this is why warning signs are frequently painted this colour. Yellowand Yellow-Orange also are the dominant colours ofAutumn and as such have a strong appeal to our emotions. Psychologically Yellow isa colour denoting happiness.

Red — A First-Order Colour
Snow Fence —Toronto, 1994
Taken with a Nikon F4 and 60mm f/2.8 Micro-Nikkor
Red is intense. This is particularly so whenplaced against a dark background, and is one of the reasons that I chose it as adesign element for this web site, (section dividers). Red is auniversal warning colour and is therefore hard to ignore. A little Redgoes a long way.

Blue — A First-Order Colour
Mirrored Lake —CA, 1996
Taken with a Mamiya 645 and 55mm f/2.8 lens onProvia 100.
The sky is Blue, and water is usually Blue,as it derives its colour by reflecting the sky. Blueis the colour which defines our planet. In fact from space Earth is seen as a Blueplanet.
Blue is a retiring colour and conveys a feelingof restfulness and passivity.


Second Order Colours
Orange — A Second-Order Colour
Warm Turnout, October, 2000
Photographed with a Rollei 6008 Integral and 300mm SchneiderAPO Tele-Xenar on Provia 100F
Orange is a second-order colour formed from themixing of the Red and Yellowprimaries.  While the first-order primaries have limited range before oneis outside their scope, a secondary such as Orangehas a broader range of possible tonalities.
In this photograph, taken along the Blue Ridge Parkway just beforesunset on a day in late Autumn, we have everything from the dark Redtree in the foreground to the Yellow onecenter-right, accentuating the Oranges which add somuch warmth to this image.
The bare trees scattered throughout the frame are essentially medium-Gray.Gray is the most neutral of all colours and throughthe effect of simultaneous-contrast (see below) appears complementary to any other colour inthe frame. In this case it tends to subdue the Oranges,which would otherwise appear over-the-top. Nevertheless, the colours are anaccurate rendition of late-afternoon light illuminating this scene‘s fall foliageand ground-cover.

Green —A Second-Order Colour
Evergreen Hillside, Quebec, 2000
Photographed with a Canon EOS3 and 100~400mm f/5.6LIS lens on Provia F100 film.
Green is a second-order colour formed from themixing of Yellow and Blue.As with Orange it is capable of a wide range oftonalities or shades. Of course Green is the predominantcolour of vegetation and as such is dominant in many landscape photographs.Interestingly, in searching my portfolio for sample images for this article Ifound that Green was the hardest colour for me tofind. Curious. ( I suppose I shoot too much in the desert Southwest).

Violet— A Second-Order Colour
Blue Ridge Sunrise, October, 2000
Photographed with a Rollei 6008 Integral and 300mmSchneider Tele-Xenon lens on Provia 100F
Violet is a Second Order colour formed by themixing of Blue and Red.It is not a colour which is readily found innature, though of course the flower of that name is a notable exception. Violet isa colour traditionally associated with nobility and it conveys a feeling ofelegance and warmth.


Working with Colour
Now for a look at our perceptions of the relationships between variouscolours. The following section discuss the concepts of Complementary Colours,Simultaneous Contrast, Complementary Ratios, and Harmonizing Colours.

Complementary Colours & Simultaneous Contrast
Two Bunch Carp — Desert Hot Springs,CA 1995
Taken with a Nikon F4 and 60mm f/2.8 Micro-Nikkor
Complementary colours are any two colours which lie opposite each other on thecolourwheel. Two such opposite colours can be regarded as being in balance whenthey appear together. In the picture above the Orange carp provide the pleasing complement needed to the Bluewater. In fact, when complementary colours appear together they increase theirintensity though a process called Simultaneous Contrast.

Photographed with a Canon EOS D30 and 100~400mmf/5.6L lens @ 400mm
Red / Green isone of the most common colour contrasts. In this photograph, taken in thePacific lowlands of Costa Rica, pale pinky/red of the out of focus bush in thecenter of the frame makes itself and the varying shades of green around it moreintense by its presence. Cover it with your thumb to see how the intensity ofthe greens diminishes.
Note as well that a small amount of a complementary colour (here red)is needed to enhance its complement.

Complementary Ratios

There‘s a test that you can do for yourself in Photoshop or almost anygraphics program. Create squares of complementary colours and compare theirrelative intensities. While Red and Green areroughly equal in their affect on each other Orange andBlue need about a 3:1 ratio for the same balance.With Yellow and Violetit‘s about 5:1. (Your mileage may vary).

Harmonizing Colours
Russian Olive
Photographed with a Canon EOS D30 and 70~200f/2.8L lens at ISO 100. RAW Mode.
Harmonizing colours are ones which can be found on the colour circle byvisualizing the three points of an isosceles triangle that sits in the middle ofthe circle. This places two of the three colours just one colour zone apart withthe third at the long end of the triangle opposite.
People with a good colour sense instinctively choose colours which areharmonious when decorating their home. Photographers, unless they are working ina studio, rarely have the ability to select their palette. But it is helpful tounderstand when you do encounter a colour combination that is harmonious, suchas the one in the photograph above, why this is so.
In this photograph the key colour is the Blue-Greenof the Russian Olive leaves. The harmonizing colours are the Orangeand Red found in the rock face. The thing tonote about Harmonizing Colours is that if mixed together they would produce Gray.

Intensity
The intensity of a light source also affects our colour perception. At lowlight levels, blue and greenobjects appear brighter than red ones when comparedto their relative brightness in stronger light. This effect is known as thePurkine Shift. When the light become brighter, there is another in hues,called the Bezold-Brucke effect. This causes most colours to appear lessred or green and moreblue or yellow asthe intensity of the light source increases.
Half Dome and Tree (Rollei), 1999
Half Dome and Tree - (XPan), 1999

Conclusion
If you‘ve gotten this far, congratulations! Colour theory is a complexsubject. It contains objective laws of psycho-optics as well as subjective valuejudgments. This page is just a quick overview of a large and complex topic. Each of thesesmall sections is at least a chapter in text books on the subject so I‘ve onlybeen able to cover selected highlights.
To my knowledge there is no book currently in print with detailed discussionof this subject aimed specifically at photographers. The only one I know of was HaraldMante‘s Color Design in Photography published by FocalPress in the U.K. in 1970; originally publication in German as Farb-Design.It has been long out of print but is well worth searching for. The translationis poor (or the original German text may have been badly written), but Iowe much of what I‘ve learned about colour over the years to this book. (Itis also the predominant source reference for this article).
The other book that deserves specific mention is Theory of Colours by Goethe,published in 1810. Yes, that Goethe, of Faustian fame. In addition tobeing an author and theatrical figure Goethe was an amateur scientist and wasfascinated by colour. His book, though scientifically at odds even in its daywith the wavelength theory of colour developed by Sir Isaac Newton, isstillinprint today, almost 200 years later, because of its beauty and philosophicalinsights. One review described it as having , "excellent observationsexplained by an untenable theory."
Colour theory is usually taught to student painters in the first-year of artschool. It makes sense for them to learn it because painters create theircolour environments, while photographers for the most part find them.Nevertheless, photographers are well served understanding the basics so thatthey can appreciate why some colour images "work" and othersdon‘t. Taste after all does have its roots in objective reality.
One closing thought ‹ to quote from the Encyclopedia Britannica;"Artists and designers have been studying the effects of colours forcenturies and have developed a multitude of theories on the uses of colour. Thenumber and variety of these theories demonstrates that no universally acceptedrules apply; the perception of colour depends on individual experience."
Michael Reichmann ‹ March, 2001

Light & Colour
If you enjoyed this article you might also wish to readLight-Colourand Human Vision by guest contributor Miles Hecker.