Why Colour is important.

Colour is what sets a mood and helps tell a story. It keeps the viewer intrigued, and good color processing with photographic editing software is a huge part of being a good photographer. I always think it’s all about making an image come to life.

I often try to create a cinematic feel with my photography with dark tones, moody vibes with contrast and popping colours, but with lightened and toned shadows. Photos where the white isn’t necessarily white and the tones can do the magic.

Of course, Colour grading doesn’t always perfectly suit a photo but it’s important that you include a degree of it in your post processing. I try to blend my personal color grading with my more commercial colour grading and try to create my own vibe.

‍

‍Field Techniques for Better Colour Prints.

1. Set your camera for the lowest ISO you can get away with. A low ISO makes for less noise. An ISO setting of 100 is a great goal.

2. Depth of field control. You probably have a depth of field button on your camera. Use it to check your depth of field and verify the right subject are in focus.

3. Shoot RAW. A RAW photo will help you pull more details out of the shadows. a JPG can produce great prints, but you need perfect exposure. RAW gives you more flexibility.

4. Set it to Adobe RGB. If you are shooting JPG, set your camera for Adobe RGB in the color space setting in your camera. You’ll end up with a greater range of colors when you get those professional prints.

‍

Must have tools for color grading.

To achieve a exact vision and vibe, a good RAW file is always necessary and of course, good photo editing software, My toolkit of choice is Capture One Pro.

Since day one I have been very interested in colouring and expanding my color grading skillset, which is why I chose the software with the best possible color tools. I can’t live without the Advanced Color Editor, the Color Picker tool and the lovely sliders. I never finish an image without turning a knob or two in those tools

‍

Stay true to yourself.

Whether, you are working on your own photography or commercial projects, I always try to be curious about new ways of editing images and be willing to experiment and explore, The mission is always to have your own personal touch. The most important thing as a photographer is to never stop. Open your eyes, be curious and be creative.