Retouched and repaired
photography
“hand” tinted black and white photography
• There are two main methods of “adding” color to
an image.
– Hand Coloring…
• Hand Coloring involves adding color to an image that was
black and white through the use of paints, pencils or in our
case, PhotoShop.
– Spot Coloring
• Spot color uses PhotoShop to take a colored photograph and
remove the color from everywhere except specific areas (for
specific aesthetic reasons).
– We will examine two techniques for achieving this look.
More painterly or unrealistic approaches…
• In 2005, legendary
comic artist Frank Miller
and movie director
Robert Rodriguez
teamed up to create a
movie version of Millers
classic detective comic
series “Sin City”.
• One of the hallmarks of
Millers style is his
unique approach to both
story telling and ink
work.
Miller is know for a very simple
looking (yet complex) high
contrast style of working.
Figures are highly stylized and
there are virtually no grey areas.
Miller is also a master of composition and the use of negative space
to create form and the illusion of depth.
His sense of balance and focal point are among the best in the
comic industry.
Some examples of the panels from Frank Millers comic books and
the corresponding frames form Rodriguez’s film.
Notice the same use of light, high contrast areas, composition and
framing (as well as how faithful the director was to the artists
images).
One of the most interesting visual devices Miller used in his comic
book series was the use of spot color to create mood as well as
establish focal point and balance.
Spot color in the movie…
• By using new
computer
technology, the
film was able to
create the same
type of high
contrast shots
and spot
colorization.
Your assignment…
• Using the same concepts as Miller create a high
contrast self portrait and use spot color (judiciously)
to create emphasis and focal point.
• Things to consider…
– Framing, lighting (think film noir), props and costumes and
background.
• Be sure to remember your background should be incongruous or
you should be able to easily rip yourself from the background.
– Use of the levels and contrast tools, in combination with your
dodge and burn tools.
– A narration box must be included.
• What will be in the narration box (should reflect you).
– Some sort of writing, song lyrics, poem, something you have written
etc.
A faux Miller comic style
layout using the high contrast
style of working and some
spot color.
http://tutorialseeker.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=2279
www.metacafe.com/watch/373984/sin_city_style_photoshop_tutorial/
Hand coloring black and white
photographs (from scratch)…
Hand coloring
• Hand coloring is the
way color was added
to a photograph prior
to the advent of full
color photography.
• An artist used colored
pencils, or more
commonly oil paints
to paint color “into”
the image.
In a hand colored
black and white
photograph, the
color is usually
much more
subdued and
muted and
normally only in
certain areas (spot
coloring).
Marshall’s Oil Color
• One of the most
common ways to add
color – the oil pencil
blended with thinner
and cotton.
• The oil color would
soak into the
photographic paper,
making the image
permanent.
More painterly or unrealistic
approaches…
Your challenge…
• Create two images.
– The first is to be a hand colored photograph. Find an
old family photo, and using the techniques discussed
and demonstrated in class, add coloring.
– The second is to be a spot colored image. Find a
color image, de-saturate the image (as demonstrated
in class) and create spot coloring,
• This image is to be narrative in nature. I would like you to
spot color an image in order to create or communicate a
mood, feeling or tell a story.
– How does one tell a story through color (or spot color)?