Selective colour photography (or color in American) is a process of photo manipulation in which a photographer will convert a photograph from colour to black & white yet leaving an "accent" or partial colour in a defined area of the image.
Watch the following video of some of my selective colour photographs:
Selective colour can be frowned upon by photographers for whichever reason (often execution is bad or subject choice is a bit cheesy) when in fact any genre of photography can be executed both well or not so well depending on who the artist is.
I for one believe this technique can produce very original results.
So much so that based on this technique I have created a brand new conceptual London series: “Captured London”.
Underused by photographers, it’s perfectly possible to create striking urban photographs when used with common sense and good taste.
Many selective colour apps and cameras enable photographers to do it quickly and in a fairly automatic way but I prefer to use Photoshop for more precision and control, yet it remains quite easy. Automation through apps has the downside of letting an app make creative decisions for you.
Selective colour was something I did lots more of when I started shooting in 2008 and it helped me produce some of my most popular photos, some which I was paid for. The process and Photoshop tools I use to convert photos also has other applications relating to photography. Think transferable skills.
I then moved on for nearly a decade to come full circle with my new 2020 series “Captured London”.
Here are examples of London photography using selective colour:
I find that selective colour in photography can really be a powerful tool to attract the viewer towards a specific area of the image.
Of course remember that what matters first is the image. No amount of selective colour will turn a bad image into a good one.
Another thing to remember… have fun! There’s no point doing photography if you’re not shooting what you love. Follow your gut feeling, that voice inside you, and do YOUR thing.
Have you tried selective colour technique with good results?
Watch this video tutorial I created which shows you just how easy it is to achieve selective colour photos in Photoshop:
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Until next time,
Nico