Just For The Color; What Color?

All colors and no colors or both!  Not just random lines but ‘tortured’ faces. (click to enlarge)

In my last post, here, I saw an interesting subject, photographed it then added it to my "Just for the Color" project and gallery on my website.  You can see that gallery here.  So, when I saw the scene above I thought it, too, would make a nice addition to that same project.  But what does this scene, a subject only consisting of blacks and whites, have to do with my "Just For The Color" project in which I photograph subjects based more on the colors present rather than any other aspect.  After all, it is a project I've been working on for years looking for unusual color, unusually colored subjects, contrasting colors, complementary colors, color variety and unexpected color.  This is the only image I've ever made with just blacks and whites for the project.

But again, what does this image have to do with color (and its not that it was shot in color, however, it was)?

How about this phrase:  Black is the result of all colors combined and white is the absence of all colors—except when it is not and when it is the opposite.  Huh?  I'll explain.

In the world of photography and art, we often talk about color in ways that can seem contradictory—especially when it comes to black and white.  Depending on the context, black can either be seen as the combination of all colors or the absence of them, and the same goes for white.  Confusing?  A little.  Fascinating?  Absolutely.

In the context in which black is considered the combination of all colors, that is called the subtractive color model.  This narrative applies to physical pigments like inks, paints, or dyes where colors are created by absorbing (subtracting) wavelengths of light.  In this model, mixing together all the primary pigments (cyan, magenta, and yellow) in equal amounts theoretically results in black.  That’s why, in printing, black is represented by the letter “K” in CMYK—the combination of all colors.

So, when you’re mixing paints on a palette or layering printer ink on paper, black is the result of adding all colors together, and white is the absence of pigment—the blank canvas or paper left untouched.

But now flip the context to light, which is what we deal with when photographing.  This context is called the additive color model and everything reverses.  In this model, which is used in screens, stage lighting, and yes, even your camera sensor, combining red, green, and blue light at equal intensity produces white.  Here, white is the combination of all colors of light and black is the absence of any light at all.

This duality is a great reminder of how perspective shapes understanding.  The same terms—black and white—carry opposite meanings depending on whether you’re talking about pigments, ink or light.

So next time you hear someone say “black is the combination of all colors,” just ask, “Are we talking about ink, paint, pigments or light?” 

Back to the image above.  In either context, the additive model or the subtractive model, either the black or the white is the combination of all colors.  Hence, it fits into my "Just for the Color" project.

Join me over at my website, https://www.dennismook.com.  

Thanks for looking. Enjoy!  

Dennis A. Mook  

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