What makes colors look vivid in a photo besides the camera?
Asked 5/14/2012
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Once you have a reasonably capable camera, what factors most affect how vivid colors appear in a photo? For example, why might one photographer get much richer color from the same scene than another? Is it mainly lighting, camera settings, lens, or post-processing?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
14y ago
2 Answers
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The type of lighting, the way the subject reflects light, presence of haze, the lens design and coatings and the dyes used in the sensor all have an influence on the vividness of colours in an image. But the major factor, which outweighs all of these by a significant margin, is how the image is processed.
Either in camera or on a PC the saturation settings matter far more than any of the factors listed above (although they all contribute to image quality in more subtle ways).
You can easily achieve results like the image you posted by boosting saturation in post. But remember just because you can, doesn't mean you should. Evaluate each image on its merits and try to decide whether you are enhancing the image, or trying to cover up deficiencies in other areas, such as composition or lighting.
Originally by user1375. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user1375
14y ago
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The biggest factor is usually processing, especially saturation/contrast settings in-camera or in post-processing. Two people can photograph the same scene with similar gear and get very different color simply because one image was processed for stronger color.
Lighting also matters a lot. Color often looks richer in soft, diffuse light (such as cloudy conditions) than in harsh direct sunlight, which can create strong specular highlights and wash colors out. Haze can also reduce color intensity.
Lens design/coatings, subject reflectivity, and the camera sensor’s color response can influence the result, but these are usually smaller factors than light and processing.
So if your photo doesn’t look as vivid, the main things to check are:
- quality and direction of light
- haze/reflections in the scene
- picture style/saturation settings
- post-processing choices
You can often make colors more vivid by increasing saturation, but it’s best used carefully so it enhances the image rather than just hiding weak light or composition.
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