When talking about photography the term tone refers to the overall range of lightness and darkness, and color variation within an image. Also often referred to as ‘value’ the tone of an image can have a drastic effect on how an image ‘feels’; Images containing many dark tones often appear dramatic and sad while images featuring light tones appear happy and vibrant. juxtaposition between image subject and tone can be used to create jarring and powerful images. The difference between the lightest and darkest tones within an image is referred to as ‘Dynamic-Range’.
Tone is incredibly powerful. It is a large part of what sets the mood of the final image.
Tones in Color Photography
In black and white photography, the tones are a lot more obvious since it changes the photo to sepia and white or another color and white. However, that doesn’t make the toning of color photography, even though it is subtler, any less powerful. With color photography, it all comes down to enhancing the mood and meaning of the image.
As you’re thinking about tones, start with warm and cool colors, and think about their properties. Warm colors — reds, yellows, oranges and browns — can lend a variety of different feelings to an image, ranging between excitement and welcoming warmth. Cool colors, like green, blue and violet, on the other hand, tend to be more relaxing and refreshing, although blue can be used to indicate sadness.
Color tones can be broken down even deeper than that, however. As you are choosing a tone, it helps to think about the psychology behind colors — in other words, how colors affect people. Here is a quick list of the meaning of various colors to help you choose the perfect tone:
- Red is a rare color to use as a cast in a color image, but it has been done before. In general, red has warmth and energy to it, and it can also be used to convey a sense of strength or danger. When you see a red color cast, most often, it will be a shade that trends towards brown.
- Orange tones make people think of comfort — good food, warmth and a sense of security.
- Yellow is a commonly used tone, and in fact, it is the tone that you’ll get when you take photographs as the sun is getting ready to set for the day — that rich, golden color that makes everything seem more cheerful.
- Green is the color of harmony. It tends to make people feel refreshed, so when you add a green cast to an image, make sure that the subject material matches the fresh and tranquil tone you’ve chosen.
- Blue is likely the most versatile color. Depending on your subject material, it can indicate serenity or tranquility. Because it is such a chilly color, however, it can also lend a depressing sort of feeling to your images.
- Violet tends to make images feel more authentic, and with certain subject material, the image may see more upscale or luxurious. In fact, in monochrome photography, this hue is popular since it conveys a sense of grandeur or motion.
Be aware that shifts in shade mean a lot, too. For instance, a red that trends toward brown, a completely brownish cast, or a yellow-green color can all give the image a completely different feeling than their parent colors will. Experiment in post processing with various shades, and you’ll quickly see what I mean.
Tones in Black and WhitePhotography
As mentioned before, when it comesto tones in monochrome photography, they tend to be a lot more obvious. Thereare also three ways to add tones to your monochrome images: Add the color tothe lightest areas of the photograph, keeping your blacks black, change thecolor of the blacks and middle tones while leaving the highlights alone, or toneall of the colors across the range.
- When it comes to colors, there are several popular options. For instance, sepia is used to soften the image, or to make the image resemble an old-fashioned photograph. If you browse sepia photos, you’ll notice that some trend more towards black, with brownish highlights, while others are sepia all the way through.
A Note on Subtlety
With every image that you create,don’t hesitate to tinker with the tones. You’ll be amazed to find that slightadjustments make a huge difference. And, since most of us aren’t attempting toapply tones using obscure and old-fashioned processes anymore, you’ll be ableto experiment endlessly to learn what works best for each individual image.
FAQs
What Are the Elements of Design? The elements of design are the fundamental aspects of any visual design which include shape, color, space, form, line, value, and texture.
What are the 7 elements of design in order? ›
Design elements are the basic units of any visual design which form its structure and convey visual messages. The elements of design are line, shape, form, space, texture, tone (or value) and color, "These elements are the materials from which all designs are built."
What are the 7 elements of design quizlet? ›
The design elements are line, shape, space, form, value, scale, texture, and color. Either a dot or a location in space. A point can be visible or invisible and can be of any size, but refers to a particular location or place in a composition. A pathway, the closest distance between two points, a moving point.
What are elements of design in a PDF? ›
The elements of design are color and value, form, line, shape, space, and texture.
What are the 7 elements of art? ›
The seven elements of art are line, shape, space, value, form, texture, and color.
What are the four 4 basic design elements? ›
Line, shape, color, texture, and space are the basic elements of design.
What are 5 basic designs? ›
As someone in the field of design, it's important to understand and utilise these principles: balance, contrast, alignment, hierarchy, and repetition. These principles serve as the foundation for creating designs that are not only visually appealing but also functional.
What are the 7 elements and 8 principles of design? ›
These are line, shape, color, value, form, texture, and space. Meanwhile, the principles of art represent how the artist uses the elements of art to create an effect and to help convey the artist's intent. The principles of art and design are balance, contrast, emphasis, movement, pattern, rhythm, and unity or variety.
What is the 7th principle of design? ›
There are seven traditional and universal principles of design, which are significant across the industry: emphasis, balance & alignment, contrast, repetition, proportion, movement, and white space.
What are the key elements of the design process? ›
The key elements of the design process include understanding the problem or need, brainstorming and generating ideas, creating prototypes or models, testing and refining the design, and finally implementing the design.
What Are the Basic Elements of Graphic Design? Line, shape, form, texture, space, imagery, typography and color.
How many elements of design are? ›
7 Elements of Design and Rule of Thirds
Design elements are the basic units of any visual design which form its structure and convey visual messages. The elements of design are line, shape, form, space, texture, tone (or value) and color, "These elements are the materials from which all designs are built."
What are the 7 principles of design PDF? ›
The most important, fundamental principles of design include emphasis, balance and alignment, contrast, repetition, proportion, movement and white space.
What is the basic principle of design? ›
There are twelve basic principles of design: contrast, balance, emphasis, proportion, hierarchy, repetition, rhythm, pattern, white space, movement, variety, and unity. These visual and graphic design principles work together to create appealing and functional designs that make sense to users.
What are the 5 elements of design describe each? ›
Elements of design are the basic units of a visual image, they include space, line, balance, color, and shape. The elements also compliment each other. Lines can be vertical, horizontal, zigzag, diagonal or curved.
What are the 8 elements of design definitions? ›
Line, shape, form, texture, space, imagery, typography and color. Understanding each of these basic elements of graphic design in isolation will help you see how to bring them together and open a whole world of creative possibilities.
What are the elements of form in design? ›
Forms are three dimensional, and there are two types: geometric (man-made) and natural (organic). A digital or physical form can be measured by height, width, and depth. A form can be created by combining shapes, and it can be enhanced by color or texture.
What are the elements of type design? ›
Type design may be intimidating to many, with terms such as leading, baseline, kerning, ascender, tail, and many more … The good news is, there are eight basic, universal typographical design elements: typeface, hierarchy, contrast, consistency, alignment, white space, and color.
