Study#14: Fishing Boat and Dory

Look, there's Color... (cont)

The are just three properties of color - "hue", "value", and "intensity". To artists, "value" refers to how light or dark the color is. Of the three properties, "value" is the most important because it is always present in any work of visual art. It is the most primitive. Want to get better at color? Start with "value". These tools make it simple and easy.

How to Assess Values with these Tools

Focus on an object or part of an object that you are interested. As you mask values in and out of the photo, watch how the object's color appearance changes. Also, take note of the value step or range of steps as you study each part of the object.

For example, use the Value Scale controls to answer these two questions. What is the value level of the red shack in the foreground? What about its roof?

Both are value "2".

In seconds you can easily determine what the values really are... and not what they appear to be. What matters here is that you are able to assess the important, overall values of that object in any particular scene and understand the key value contrasts. You will be surprised time and again. As you use these tools, you begin to realize what is important and what's not, what you can stretch and what you cannot.

Now, try this...

Value Assessment of the Orange Dory

1. click "ON", then the "White" underlay.

First, let's focus on the shadow that is cast by the post on the front end of the dory and see how it relates to the sunlight on both sides. Do you see it?

Now, as you click each of the following buttons OFF and ON, determine what the value of the shadow is.

2. Click "1", then "2", then "3". It's 3.

3. now, click "5". Notice that the sunlight area, immediately to the right of the shadow, is two value steps lighter.

4. next, click "6". Notice that the sunlight area, immediately to the left of the shadow, is three steps lighter.

Now, let's look at the shaded part of the dory.

5. Click value "2" and "1". As you can see, most of the shaded part of the dory is value "2"... including the back end of the boat.

NOTE: If you could assess the back of the dory with the "hue" controls or the real time "color info" window (not used here), you also would see a shift in hue on the back of the boat... all within the same value range.

The Result

In the context of this scene, we quickly learn the following about the values that capture the lighting on the yellow dory.

ONE: The value range includes values "1" to "7".

TWO: The sunlight on the both sides of the "cast" shadow is at different values. One side is three value steps lighter while the other side is two steps. You also know that the shadow itself is "3" to start with.

THREE: The sunniest parts of the boat are "6" and "7".

FOURTH: The darkest parts of the boat are "2" and "1".

Other Notes

With regard to "value" contrasts, amateurs will often be distracted by the "white" or "near white" surface of the canvas when starting a painting. Consequently, the initial values are off to start with and that, in turn, effects the rest of the values in the painting.

For example, if the general "values" of the trees and grass in the background were much lighter, they would not look so close. What is the "value" range of the trees? They are 2 to 4. The grass... 5. What is the value of the red fishing shack in the foreground? ...2. Why does it look so close? Because it is dark. If the shack was white, what value do you think it would be? Not 8... and there are reasons for it. There's much to see and much to discover.

Here's something else to think about. Space... the position of objects in the overall scene. It is important to note that the value relationships tell us something about the position of the dory in this scene and its local color. If you had a few different photos of the dory, positioned at different places in the scene, you would notice that the value relationships would change. You will discover many things.

New Horizons

As you can see, this is a powerful technology for study purposes. It makes it easy to assess "values" and help you develop a good sense for "value" relationships... especially if you want to capture realistic lighting. These tools are designed to help you with that. They equip you with the means to evaluate "value" relationships realistically and it automatically converts the screen color "values" (which have a much higher range in luminance) into pigment "values" for you. It's instant, interactive, and artist friendly.

Also, keep in mind, that the other two elements play a role too. So, with this technology and the G-Lab™ Color Charts, you will quickly learn that mastering color is simply a matter understanding "hue", "value", and "intensity" relationships. We recommend that you start with "value". Once you begin to discover a few things, you can apply what you learn to the canvas using the color charts with whatever medium you choose.

[ Previous Page ]


If you want to try another study, click on the small photo below.

STUDY#1986:
It's Richer... not Lighter!

READ...
About the demos and G-Lab™ Color Technology