selective coloring...

goldilocksandmy3bears

I know the majority of us here in this forum do not care for selective coloring however, I have had several clients ask me "can you do a black and white picture with one thing in color". So why is it that we don't care for it but clients do?:dunno

Richard

goldilocksandmy3bears wrote:

I know the majority of us here in this forum do not care for selective coloring however, I have had several clients ask me "can you do a black and white picture with one thing in color". So why is it that we don't care for it but clients do?

We have better taste?

:hide

Seriously, selective coloring is a cliché. Clients generally don't look at as many photos as we do and so they may not be aware of it. But if your client asks for it, by all means give the client what he/she wants. Photography is art, but it is also business. If you have to do it, just try to make sure that you're giving color to something that's important to the frame, not just any old thing that's easy to select.

Scott_Quier

Usually because it's done wrong. By that I mean the the color is left on something in the photo that is not the point of interest/focus. For example, for a wedding shot a lot of photogs have desaturated everything except the flowers. The viewer's eyes are going to be drawn to the color. Is the flowers to be the focus of the photo? Usually not.

Another reason it has fallen in disfavor is that the B&W conversion is not done well because the photog has used all his time to get the masking right rather the devote some of that time to a good conversion (and a good conversion usually takes a bit of time to get it right).

Finally, like Richard says, it's been done to death. Every photog, once they've figured out layers and masking, wants to take a shot at this. Granted, most clients have not seen it much, if at all, so it's new to them. And it does sell. But .... please, if you must .... do it right!

bdcolen

goldilocksandmy3bears wrote:

I know the majority of us here in this forum do not care for selective coloring however, I have had several clients ask me "can you do a black and white picture with one thing in color". So why is it that we don't care for it but clients do?

"Most people" includes those who think that Thomas Kincade produces great art, Anne Geddes is a truly great photographer, and any monkey can do what Jackson Pollock did. Need I go on?

Wil Davis

I agree with Scott; if it's done correctly it can be very effective, but like anything else can be beaten into a cliché so very easily.

Some of you might remember Gary Ross's "Pleasantville" (1998) where the main device of the film was a gradual transition from black & white (think 50's sitcom) to full colour over the duration of the film (~2hrs). Some very striking scenes in the film especially when the transition first appears. The film was nominated for several Academy Awards, but that was the year in which "Titanic" swept the boards.

It's interesting to view "Pleasantville" listening to the director's cut, as he explains how all the magic was done.

(back to the original thread) - selective colouring can be badly done and it can be overdone, and usually both…

- Wil

chrisdg

I've seen some effective use in the past, but can't remember where. If anyone knows a great example or two of what you think effective selective coloring can accomplish, please provide a link.

Also (not to hijack the thread, but along these same lines) is there equal disdain amongst pros for desaturating photographs to the point where only a bit of color comes through? (like recreating the feel of a faded photograph from the 70's)

bdcolen

chrisdg wrote:

I've seen some effective use in the past, but can't remember where. If anyone knows a great example or two of what you think effective selective coloring can accomplish, please provide a link.

Also (not to hijack the thread, but along these same lines) is there equal disdain amongst pros for desaturating photographs to the point where only a bit of color comes through? (like recreating the feel of a faded photograph from the 70's)

Chris, this really is a matter of taste. Some "pros" live to do this. Some think it's a gimmick, often used to attempt to turn mediocre images into desaturated mediocre images. I'm in the latter group.

Hackbone

Bottom line....if your client likes it and the money is green......go for it.

WingsOfLovePhoto

Hackbone wrote:

Bottom line....if your client likes it and the money is green......go for it.

I agree with Hackbone. I usually do one image in a gallery in selective coloring and many times those photos are the ones that are chosen for purchase. Maybe it is the subject matter I am working with that makes it endearing but there is green so I go for it! Here is an example.....

goldilocksandmy3bears

WingsOfLovePhoto wrote:

I agree with Hackbone. I usually do one image in a gallery in selective coloring and many times those photos are the ones that are chosen for purchase. Maybe it is the subject matter I am working with that makes it endearing but there is green so I go for it! Here is an example.....

Funny that you posted this picture because after you reccommended (in a another posting) that I check out your website I saw this picture and thought wow that was a good use of select. coloring