My colour experimentation work was about finding ways to manipulate colours in an image. I wanted to use a range of different editing programmes and apps to discover and learn how each of them could change an image and how I could use them to the best of my ability. The apps I used include PicsArt, Pixlr Express, Leonardo and Aviary.
​
Overall, I am pleased with my experimentation of this work and how it showed control of editing and presentation of a photograph by adjusting only one element of it (colour).
I used Aviary to remove all the colour other than yellow from the image to the left. 'Colour Splash' takes all the colour out of an image, and you can then select the areas you want to remain in colour (bringing back its original colour). This made the yellow stand out greatly. I like the contrast between the black and white of the sign and windows and the colour of the building.
I created the image to the right using PicsArt. By using 'Colour Replace', I adjusted the hue of the image from yellow to blue. As I had already taken the rest of the colour out of the image using Aviary, this did not affect the black and white present in the rest of the image.
Another simple editing technique (completed on Aviary - shown to the left) is putting a vignette effect on the photo. This made the colour and centre of the image stand out more which gave the image more of a focus. It also created a subtle contrast between the dark vignette and highly exposed white sign in the middle of the image.
My original image (shown below left) was quite plain and boring. As it contained many different colours and textures I wanted to experiment to see how I could manipulate this. First of all, I used Leonardo to invert the red, green and blue in this photo. This completely changed the colour scheme of the photograph, making it more exciting and giving me a challenge. I then opened the image in Pixlr Express and used their effect 'poster' to get a very different coloured photo. This changed the texture of the photograph from soft stems of grass and organised lines of the building to a faded soft building and sharp dark bristles of grass. Finally, I overlayed the two images to create a third faded, light image with multiple colours and textures very different from the original image. I used aviary to adjust the saturation and sharpness of the image.
TYPE
Recording: Advertisement through Text and Colour
Step 1
Step 2
Step 3
Original Image
For the two photos above, I focused on eradicating background colour. This was a transitioning step between full colour (in my photographs above) and selective colour (in my photographs below). I found the one on the right did not work very well because the reflection off the lights did not contain any colour in the first place, however I really liked the one on the left and think eradicating the colour from its background really focused in on the detail I wanted to catch the viewer's eye. The only element I think is still a little distracting is the signs to the right of the clown. This could be removed by blurring the background of the photograph.
From editing using selective colour, I narrowed down to leaving just one colour in my photographs and eradicating the rest - this colour was yellow. I chose yellow because, aside from the fact it's my favourite colour, it is very bright and contrasts brilliantly with the dark colours that make up the rest of the image. In all of these photos (two above and one to the right), I highly increased the sharpness as this made stronger outlines in the photos.
My favourite image is the one to the right as it is very bold and clearly outlined. I like the texture and dirt shown on the car due to the increased sharpness, and I also like the darkened yellow shadow shown to the left of the image of the building reflection as it makes the photo more interesting. The yellow in the image goes from very light (bottom right) to quite dark (top left).
My aim with the photographs above was to prove that editing has a massive effect on an image. These edits are all the exact same image, but they all look quite different. This is due to a range of different techniques such as altering brightness, shadows, highlights, saturation, orientation or image centre.
Carrying on from my last experimentation, this time I used the exact same effect on VSCO cam for every photograph. I liked how these photos, even though their content was very different, fitted together as they all had the same rustic effect on them.
 |  |  |
|---|---|---|
 |  |  |
 |  |
 |  |  |
|---|
After experimenting with a range of different colour edits, I wanted to link the work with its use in advertising. I started my experimentation with photographs from a theme park, where colour is very eye-catching and appealing. I have now returned to theme park photographs to look into how they use 'type' to create appeal. In these two photos (left and below), I challenged myself to follow the theme of 'type' without only capturing words and signs. I really liked these two images because although their focus was nature, they both included 'type' through the signs used by the theme park to draw attention.
During the editing stages of these images I increased the saturation of the whole image and reduced the shadows as this lightened the signs in the background making them more prominent and easy to read, even though they were in the background of the image and out of focus.
My focus while taking the photos below was on how businesses, such as Lightwater Valley where these photos were taken, could work with photographers to promote their business. Although I was limited to photographs containing type to follow my theme, I managed to capture a variety of different photographs that could be used to promote the theme park. These are shown below.
 |  |  |
|---|---|---|
 |  |  |
 |  |  |
 |  |  |
 |  |  |
 |  |  |
 |  |  |
 |  |
For these two photos (left and below), I wanted to emphasise and portray a Halloween theme. I decided to do this to add timing to the photos. During the editing stages of these images I darkened the photos to give them a eery look. For the image below, I used selective editing on Leonardo to increase the saturation of the tree and used vignette to darken the corners of the image making it quite scary and mysterious.
I prefer the Halloween images to the scenery ones because they contain more unusual colour. To improve this shoot I could take macro shots of the gravestones, trees and graffiti as this would add interest and diversity to my photographs, however I think taking the photos from a distance was a good idea as it allows the audience to gain a better understanding of the ambience of the place. Halloween decorations is another way the park create appeal.