Gallery: celebrating reds, yellows and blues
Red and yellow and pink and green
Purple and orange and blue,
I can sing a rainbow,
Sing a rainbow,
Sing a rainbow too.
Songwriter: Arthur Hamilton
Except today’s rainbow will have only three colours: red, yellow and blue. Why? Because they are the primary colours from which all other colours can be made.
I’m a big fan of what I term ‘monochrome colour’ photography. After all, monochrome simply means ‘single colour’ and nowhere does it say that colour has to be black!
This week Sofia has challenged us to find photos celebrating these shades for the Lens Artists challenge. So I want to share some almost monochrome images dominated by those three primary colours.
My feature photo however has all three. This is one of the famous palenquera women of Cartagena. They deserve a post all of their own one day as they have a proud history and have become symbolic of that city. That city, and its colourful Getsemani area in particular, was a rich source of images for this post, as was all of Colombia!
I’ve grouped all my photos in galleries for maximum colour impact. You can hover over any image for a caption or click to open a slideshow of each gallery if you prefer to view one shot at a time. But feel free to skip! I know there are a lot of them and I’ve shared many before; I just couldn’t resist going a bit mad with this one!
Red
Red warns us of danger and tells us to stop. It is the colour of anger and aggression. But conversely it also symbolises love and passion. In photography it can leap out of an image. Manuals on composition often advise including someone dressed in red in your landscape shots, something I personally dislike as I find it too distracting.
My reds come from Japan, India, China, Nepal, Colombia, Portugal, the US and at home in London.
Yellow
Yellow is the colour of sunshine and happiness. It makes us smile and energises us. Who doesn’t love to see yellow daffodils in the spring? But it’s also the colour associated with cowardice and sometimes with sickness.
My yellows are from China, Colombia, Chile, Vietnam, the US, Bulgaria, India, Oman and Morocco.
Blue
Blue is the colour of calmness and tranquillity. A blue image is often peaceful and relaxing to look at. But blue also symbolises depression and sadness; we even talk of ‘feeling blue’.
Many of my blues come from Colombia but you’ll also find the US, Nepal, Chile and Bulgaria.
61 Comments
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equinoxio21
Nice. Yellow, blue and red is the Colombian flag… (That applies to all “Great Colombia” countries)
Sarah Wilkie
Yes, perfect for this challenge!
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philosophy through photography
You got lovely colourful clicks!
I am partial to blue!
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you, I appreciate the feedback 🙂
philosophy through photography
You are welcome, Sarah Wilkie.
Anita
What an amazing presentation of the three primary colors!! I love color and I love your post. Every single photo is like a small piece of art which together create a wonderful giant painting!!
Sarah Wilkie
That’s such a lovely way of describing this Anita – a bit like a mosaic?! Thank you 😊
Wind Kisses
Sarah, I knew I would love this. Brilliant captures and fun photos. I was especially glad to see you had capture photos from Friday Harbor, WA. And Port Townsend. We didn’t live very far from Port Townsend and often took our boat over for the weekend. And the San Juans, a little more of a trek was a once a year trip. I loved Friday Harbor and the sea life we could enjoy along the way, It was a bit intimidating to come across a humpback in the fog, in a 32′ boat. Loved all your photos, but you always seem to generate a memory for me too. Thank you. Have a good week.
Sarah Wilkie
Thanks so much Donna, and I’m pleased to have generated such lovely memories 😊 We loved Friday Harbor too, although our whale watching there was a bit disappointing (all the orca pads had headed out for a spell at sea the night before we arrived, and although we eventually saw humpbacks they were at quite a distance!) But we rented a super apartment above a quirky antique shop and enjoyed exploring the town and the island, as well as some great meals 🙂
Leya
Thrilling galleries, Sarah, where I totally fell in love with the yellow. The images were in harmony.
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you Ann-Christine – I’m happy you liked my yellows so much 💛
Rose
What a beautiful, bright selection of red, yellow, and blue from around the world! The blue iceberg and whitecapped Himalayas certainly captured my eye.
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you Rose, I’m pleased you enjoyed seeing these 🙂
grandmisadventures
What a beautiful celebration of the primary colors! 🙂
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you, so glad you liked it!
rosalieann37
Those are the three primary pigment colors which when combined make black. It might be fun (but more difficult I think) to do the same with the three primary light colors which when combined make white.
Sarah Wilkie
Very hard (impossible?) to do in a blog post but feasible with lights and coloured acetate in a darkened room I reckon!
jazzibee
Sarah, All your images are excellent. I enjoyed them all – and so many of them. It must have taken a good while to put this together. I appreciate all your work on the post
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you 😀 Yes, it did take quite a while and I questioned my sanity, but I was glad I persevered as it came out just as I’d hoped and seems to have been popular!
jazzibee
Rightly so!!
SoyBend
What a wonderful way to present these images, Sarah. I especially liked the blue gallery. So calming!
Sarah Wilkie
Thanks so much Siobhan 😊
bushboy
How can anyone be expected to have some favourite photos when They are all so good. Spoiling us from a very colourful start right down to giving us the blues at the end. Wonderful 🙂
Sarah Wilkie
Haha Brian – no expectation/requirement to choose favourites, although it’s always interesting to hear if you have one 😀
JohnRH
Beautiful examples from around the world. Outstanding as always.
Sarah Wilkie
Thanks so much John, really appreciated 😊
Len Kagami
Fantastic gallery, Sarah! The opening photo is just wow. Love the vibe and the color combination.
Sarah Wilkie
Thanks Len – she was just too perfect for this challenge!
Egídio
Beautiful gallery and presentation.
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you, I’m glad you liked this 😀
Tanja
the explosion of colours! marvelous gallery
Sarah Wilkie
Thanks Tanja, an explosion of colour is just the effect I was aiming for!
Sofia Alves
Maximum effect for sure! Marvellous galleries, Sarah. I’m lost for words 😀
Sarah Wilkie
Thanks so much Sofia, I’m happy you liked the impact!
Mike and Kellye Hefner
Outstanding, Sarah! I enjoyed all of your galleries and as always, your creative eye. I always learn something new from your posts.
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you Kellye, I really appreciate your comment 😊
Tina Schell
Amazing collection Sarah and beautifully displayed (I did not have reader issues but came to the site for full effect). Too many favorites to mention – your approach to the way they’re combined made them that much more impressive. Terrific post.
Sarah Wilkie
Aw thank you Tina, I’m so glad you like this and were able to see all the photos OK 😊
sheetalbravon
What a smashing post, Sarah! A feast for the eyes. I confess, the red really had my heart. Also I was amazed to see the Kumari mural from Nepal. I had been checking a post about her just yesterday and I see her in your set. Serendipity!
Sarah Wilkie
Thanks so much Sheetal 😀 And yes, that’s quite a coincidence!
Heyjude
Stunning blocks of colour here Sarah. Not sure how you created the galleries but they don’t show well on the phone app. I’ll have another look on the laptop later as they are so fab.
Heyjude
Oh and the lady is stunning.
Sarah Wilkie
Thanks – I’ll write more about the palenqueras soon
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you Jude 😊 I use the Modula plug-in for my galleries as it gives me lots of flexibility to arrange the shots as I want them. They usually show up OK on a phone but these ones ARE rather large!
isaiah46ministries
What beauty you have added to our lives. I am amazed at the colors and the oblects and people. Thank you do much. This post is a keeper for when I need an uplift in my spirit.
Sarah Wilkie
Aw,, thank you, I really appreciate your comment and am so glad to have given you a lift 😃
Anne Sandler
Wow, Sarah, you’ve presented such beautiful and artistic photos to illustrate this challenge. And, your narrative leads right into my challenge for next week.
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you very much Anne. And now I’m curious to see what next week’s challenge will be!
margaret21
Oh how fabulous. But in a crowded field, your first one must be the winner. I’m keeping this post to go through it again. So many wonderful shots!
Sarah Wilkie
Thanks so much Margaret, I’m thrilled you like this enough to want to save it 😊
margaret21
Coffee break calling later to sit and have a good look!
Sue
Wow! What a fantastic set of images, Sarah, showcasing, reds yellows and blues-you are the mono chrome diva! I have rarely managed monochrome images to such a degree
Sarah Wilkie
Thanks so much Sue, and thank you for persevering in order to see them 😊 A bit of cropping can help a lot if you want the monochrome effect!
Sue
Yep, but a long Ken’s helps, which I rarely carry now
Sue
Just off to check www as none of the meat of your post is showing in the reader….
Sarah Wilkie
Oh dear – I very rarely read posts in Reader because they never look right!
Sue
Well, I have been over as you will see. I usually fin Reader works well enough, never had problems wit your posts before. This on couldn’t cope with the number of images
Anabel @ The Glasgow Gallivanter
Wow, each colour gallery was my favourite until I came to the next one!
Sarah Wilkie
Aw thank you Anabel, I’m so glad you liked them 😊