Monday, September 19, 2011

PHOTOGRAPHING THE COLOR BLUE..MAGNIFICENT MONDAY

I'm back just in time for Magnificent Monday. This week's theme is colors!! I'll take the color blue!!!


" She wore blue velvet. Bluer than velvet was the night. Softer then satin was light. From the stars."
    (Blue Velvet, Bobby Vinton 1950)


 "Like him, I am doubtful that your love is true. But if you decide to call on me, ask for Mr Blue."
    ( Mr Blue, The Fleetwoods 1959)


There have been many songs written about blue. Blue velvet, Blue Bayou and Mr. Blue are just a few examples. Elvis alone had 21 songs with blue in the title. We speak about feeling blue, singing the blues or that we love blueberries. Frank Sinatra was called Old Blue Eyes. Do you know anyone called Old Hazel Eyes? It just doesn't have the same ring to it!!!  What would song writers do without the word blue? 


Photographers, especially ones that work with colors, would be lost without blue. It is such a great color and it has so many shades: azure, baby blue, cobalt, cyan, indigo and sapphire are just a few of them.  Sometimes colors create a physical reaction. For example 'red' has been shown to raise blood pressure. But colors also have a cultural reaction. In the U.S., white is for wedding dresses while in some Eastern cultures white is the color for mourning and funerals. 


Some colors are classified as warm colors: red, pink, yellow, gold and orange. Others are cool colors: blue, green, turquoise and silver. The warm colors are thought to be exciting and the cools are thought to have a calming, nurturing effect on people. In nature, blue is the color of water and green is plant life, a natural, life sustaining duo. 


I really love having a mixture of warm and cool colors in images. Think of sunsets and sunrises. The cool blue sky and the warm red/orange sunlight blend together to create a wonderful expanse of colors.  I think that is why people love them. That combination of warm and cool excites people and calms them all in one image. 


Here is an example; the mixture of the warm orange color in the sky and the cool silver, blue of the ocean give a great backdrop for these two different ships!!




I love photographing a beautiful woman in a blue dress. It is almost as if all I see is the blue dress!!




But in nature is where I think I love the color blue the most!!!
A Great Blue Heron with its silver blue feathers is an amazing example of nature's palette being put to work better than any artist could ever think of doing!! Notice the blue water and green plant in this image!!




A beautiful deep blue sky on a clear day is a wonderful feast for the eyes. Add a blue lake and the image is even more awe inspiring!!





White is considered a neutral color! If you add a splash of it to a canvas of blue, as in this image of a solitary egret standing in a blue lake on a early morning in Sanibel Florida, I think you have a great but simple combination of colors.




That same combination can be seen in this photo of a bride and her bridesmaids. They in their blue dresses are helping the bride put her white wedding dress on. The mother's brown dress, which matches with the curtain in the background, adds a sense of balance to the image. 



If I am photographing a gathering and you're wearing a blue or red dress, you can be sure I will be photographing you!!



            Young or old I love to photograph people in blue!!






But in nature is where I really love photographing blue!! Give me a blue sky, throw in some blue water and I am one happy photographer who is never BLUE!!!





28 comments:

Anonymous said...

I love blues... it has a calming effect...Your pictures are always amazing to look at.

AJ said...

Wow! A great collection of blue! These aren't just photos - they're works of art. Love 'em all, but I keep going back to the heron photo. It's so crisp!

Nelieta said...

This is so beautiful Jim! This post and the photos didn´t make me feel blue at all but made me appreciate the colour! Beautiful, Beautiful!

Irene said...

Your "Blue" photos took my blues away... Beautiful, Jim! :-)

Alfandi said...

blue..the cool color..in the tropics here the photos tend to shift to the warm..great collection of blue photos..

Unknown said...

i love blue and with green though they should never be seen apparently.. the one with the bird in water with the green leaves... truly gorgeous

A

photos by jan said...

I love the boat dock photo. They are all stunning. wonderful blues. Thanks for posting.

Larry Lewis said...

One of my all time favourite songs is Mr Blue Sky.The two children in blue look very cute but the scenic scenes are just mouth watering. They just transport you into such a relaxing mind set. Then on a rainy horrid day like today you finish your set with a beach setting. That is just so cruel

Mari Sterling Wilbur said...

Blue is a wonderful color to photograph and your photos definitely do the color justice! Loved the post and especially love the wedding photos.

Jim said...

Now I see why you were itching to post about 'Blue".
Love that blue heron photo. Great composition.

Martha Jane Orlando said...

Gorgeous photos, Jim! Blue has always been my favorite color; maybe, because I have blue eyes, but I'll take any shade of blue any day!

Blessings!

Bongo said...

Your pictures are AWESOME...I love all the blue...As always...XOXOXO

Roy Durham said...

they tell me that the earth looks like a big blue marble from space. i see more blue then any other color. from navy blue to robin egg blue your photos are true blue-ti-full. the prize is your. what else a blue ribbon. thank you for sharing and god bless , i think he like blue.

Red Nomad OZ said...

I've always thought of blue as a rather cold colour - but there's a glorious warmth to it in several of your pix! And I love the contrast of the icy blue sea with the warm orange sky! FAAAABULOUS!!

Anonymous said...

Those photographs are amazing! Very very beautiful & mesmerizing. Great job.

Leah Griffith said...

Jim, you have brought blue to a new level! These photos are dreamy and gorgeous. I feel so peaceful after looking at them. You're amazing!

JIM said...

Thank You Leah I think I'll do a few more post on different colors!!
AJ & Jim I took that photo years ago in the middle of Brandeis university in a duck pond with students all around.
Nelieta thank you for your support!!

Hi Irene glad I could help lol
Alfandi I have seen that in some of your images. Thanks

I to love that combination Alejandro... I'll try and take a few more like that
Hey Larry Visit Florida it is wonderful here!!

Hi Martha Miss Blue Eyes lol


Bongo Thank You for your comments, it is really appreciated
Red OZ and Chronic R thank you for visiting and please come back again!!

Melissa Tandoc said...

I love how you've expounded on the different colors and focused on blue...

Those wedding pictures are great but you are right about nature...blue looks pretty cool...and is quite a delight to the eyes!

Those orange streaks in the sky makes me dreamy...

The word 'blue' in songs have yet to make me imagine a totally different world...

I wore blue for my birthday :P...I wish you had me photographed too...so the next time I wear blue, I'm sure to call you :P

Love love love blue...that's my aura :P

The Poet said...

Hello.
My first time visiting.
Your photos are incredibly beautiful. I don't have a favorite...they are all awesome! I agree 100% with sparklemezen...blue has a certain calming effect.

Many thanks for sharing.

Thanks also for visiting & following my blog. I always like to return the kindness & have become your newest follower too. I'm looking forward to exploring your blog to see more of your work.

BlogNostics said...

Jim,

Your images are absolutely stunning..

Love the nature shots

xoxox
jessica

Alpana Jaiswal said...

beautiful as ever Jim...

Nancie said...

Stunning shots Jim. The blues are definitely stunning.

Corinne Rodrigues said...

Blue, blue my heart is blue, blue is my heart.......and not a sad blue, but a happy one, thanks to you :)

Irene said...

Hi Jim! I just featured your blog on my blog! Do stop by if you would like to know what I wrote about you haha!

Painting Words Through Pictures: My Featured Sponsor
http://softvoiceofafreespirit.blogspot.com/2011/09/painting-words-through-pictures.html

Unknown said...

Awesome pictures! I found this post very interesting! I am a new Follower of your Blog. I heard about it on IRENE'S Blog. You give true meaning to the saying " A picture is worth a thousand words."

Kriti said...

Those are some really good pictures Jim! But I doubt you'd be lost without blue - You work wonders with anything! Blue is a great color though. It was my favorite color till someone who I don't like very much said it was his : (. It remains my favorite color still - just that I don't like to admit it and run the risk of having anything similar with this person - LOL. Loved the post.

Tameka said...

Hmmm, let's see, which one is my favorite??? It's hard to pick. I loved the lady in the blue dress sitting next to her guy in white. The children's innocence popped vividly in their blue outfits. The water danced the blue ballerina... Sorry, can't pick. I loved them all!

http://lyricfire.typepad.com/lyric-fire/2011/09/lyric-fire-look-at-my-fabulous-life-episode-6-.html

fantasy in practicality said...

i loved the intesection of blue waters and the orangish blue horizon. it traced tranquility in silence.

the other blues were also excellent, some charming , some innocent:))