Colours can help make people take notice of your images, writes Razz Rozzfaisal
COLOUR is an important part of a photo’s composition. Knowing how to use and manipulate colours will differentiate between a knowledgeable photographer and an enthusiast.
When taking photos, you can use colours as an element in your composition. They will help your viewers focus on a subject, and attract attention to your photo.
Colours can also evoke the mood. Blue, for example, brings a sense of calm, comfort or cold, while tones of orange, red and yellow bring about the feeling of warmth.
Here are some tips to help you use colours to create strong photo compositions.
1. USE SATURATED AND BRIGHT COLOURS TO GRAB ATTENTION: A mixture of bright and saturated colours will definitely attract attention. That’s why many love autumn scenes which are a mix of red, yellow, orange and green.
2. PLAY WITH BASIC COLOURS LIKE RED, YELLOW AND BLUE: Find these colours in your composition and use them as background. For example, a boy in a red shirt running in a green rubber plantation will create a good contrast to the photo.
3. USE SAME COLOUR TONES: There are some scenes with only one prominent colour but with different tones. Train your eyes to spot this and you can get a beautiful photo.
4. USE COLOUR TO EVOKE MOOD: Blue has the sense of calm and peace. Shooting immediately before sunrise and after sunset will give you a blue background, known as blue hour.
5. RED MARKS THE SPOT: Red will help emphasis or highlight your subject. For example, a red shirt, jacket, letterbox or car usually jumps out from your photo.
Razz found his passion for photography while travelling abroad. He has been in a relationship with his camera ever since.