For those who are curious: You can't reflect a color of light that isn't there. By doing the experiment in a neutral space with no other ambient light, using a bulb that absorbs all but one color of light, the only color the shadows (and objects) can possibly be is that of the light source. When you do the experiment in a space that does have ambient light, there are other colors already there reflecting as light rays, and the ones which are complimentary to the direct light source stand out more in shadow. This is because the object obscures the direct light and causes its complimentary colors to be over-represented in the shadow by comparison. It's a subjective thing, like how midtones look dark against light and light against dark when the other value extreme isn't present, except this time it has to do with saturation (and probably how the color cones in our eyes function) instead of value. How much of each color is represented in the shadow to begin with will depend on the color of the ambient light and color of nearby objects. When you put, for instance, a red piece of paper near the shadow, that red piece of paper absorbs any light rays bouncing around that aren't red. That means colors other than red in the ambient light start to become occluded, and the shadow as a whole might look darker. The red light it does reflect mixes with whatever light wasn't occluded and shifts the shadow towards red. The farther away that paper is, the more ambient light can sneak in, giving the red light less influence over the shadow and the shadow a lighter value.
Thanks for this! I have never accepted at face value the cool light/warm shadow, warm light/cool shadow rule. I was always wanting to do this experiment myself and you just saved me a lot of time. I always felt that the shadow color would have to be influenced by the light being reflected from objects around it. Still not sure what to make of the complimentary color shadows though, would like to understand the reason behind this. I wonder if it has to do with our perception as a result of the strong color of the lighted areas. Sort of a color compensation thing. Cheers!
+CreativeWatersArt Yeah it's pretty wild honestly. I couldn't believe my eyes when I first saw it. From what I've read across the internet, apparently our eyes get 'tired' of seeing [blue] so we end up seeing [orange], etc.. very weird. Of course if you're painting a still life indoors using a neutral kind of light like 5500k - white light - the shadows going to be pretty much black, not counting surrounding factors. And even painting outside, the light usually isn't as dramatic as the lights I used in this video, but it is at least interesting to finally know.
I have wondered the same exact things about things taught regarding colors to use in shading and painting shadows. Thank you so much for doing this experiment! I always just used what was already on my palette, because it made sense to me. Now I see why it made sense...it was values of colors I was already using for the object and or other objects in the setting. I'm brand new at painting, but I've never been one to have 'blind' faith. Keep up the great videos. Good info!
this is especially noticeable during winter evenings, when lampposts cast light at the snow, you see blue and purple shadows, when the highlights are orange
okay now i understand how the colour palette on photoshop or lightroom the way they are! i certainly agree with your explanation on the colour did affect the shadow of an object cast. thanks for this video!
thanks that was very interesting, I think we see complementary colors in shadows mainly outdoors because of a general greying of colors that occurs when the direct sunlight is blocked, and because most of the object we're generally surrounded by are actually cool and quite greyed down in color, like earth, asphalt, mud, grass, vegetation (unless you're standing on red cloth or other very warm objects)..and this makes the reflection of the sky bluish color much easier to be viewed on the part of the objet in shadow!
Brilliant Brandon.....glad you brought this to our attention cause I had no idea....like you said, just followed the general guidelines but then again, I am a beginner! TFS....peace!
Very nice video! I used to think that the rule for color shadow was just to help color harmony, or just to get a more pleasing effect in the painting. For sure it's more interesting to use the complementary instead of just blue, for example. You asked for a suggestion, here it goes! I never believed the rule of opaque lights and transparent shadows. Maybe you could analise this in a future video, discussing examples for and against this. One thing that occurs to me is that a sun ray, for example, shining through a forest, is very TRANSPARENT! And if you paint it with thick titanium white you will get an amateurish look to your painting.
+Natan Estivallet Thanks for the suggestion, pretty interesting topic to touch on. I'll have to do some experimenting and look at some artwork and see what I come across. I know what you are talking about though and I think you are correct. My take at the moment is go with what you observe :)
This was so cool and helpful! My only suggestion would be to decrease the background music volume a little. It’s just a bit distracting from what otherwise was a great video!
Very interesting subject to say the list. Is kind of wanting to light a color by just using white, isn't it? it doesn't apply at all times because looks unrealistic. But I have a question. Why is that some professional painter use a dark room and artificial light? I am a self taught painter who believes that there is no white white nor a peach black because there is always something to reflect on, am I wrong?
Knowing about the different color schemes is useful for painting but which one do we see in real life? If I was to paint a red apple from imagination, assuming my light source is sunlight, would the shadow side be green (red’s complementary in the red-yellow-blue system) or teal (red’s complementary using the rgb system)? I’m self-taught so I’m really curious about this and can’t really find the answer.
interesting video, still what's the reason for the complimentory color showing up when influenced by daylight? I get that in outdoor scenes the shadows are lit by blue ambient light from the sky which makes the shadows shift towards blue but how did it affect the shadows of the different colored light sources? I remember reading that it's an optical illusion but still I'm not really convinced.
I think the shadows in the daylight test aren’t actually colored, but look like the complementary color because of an effect called color constancy ( illusionsindex.org/i/grey-strawberries ). If I’m right, using an RGB color picker will show that the shadow is always a grey color. This means that you should choose a color that looks like the complement in context, but might not on its own.
From what I’ve read, the eye get tired of seeing the color of the light - for instance orange - so it starts to see the complement of that color. It’s basically the eye playing tricks and it’s all perception.
@@SchaeferArt but how come the eye creates the complement color in the shadows when the colored light is accompanied by daylight and not when the colored light is isolated? Some kind of a trick daylight plays?
@@SchaeferArt ah im sorry my english is really bad, what i mean is how to paint picture that you made from imagination/invention with warm and cool colours or things like complementary colors,
+WonderWoman Ah you picked up on that :) Just trying to get a different look, upping the blues and oranges a bit. Although for this video, I turned the filters off for the colored lights part so that it would not interfere with the test.
Yes I can see that! ;) The only reason why I picked up on that is because I do it myself on videos that I make. So it looks pleasing to my eye ;) Also - I sent this to couple of friends of mine who study art and they were really enjoying the video! :)
For those who are curious: You can't reflect a color of light that isn't there. By doing the experiment in a neutral space with no other ambient light, using a bulb that absorbs all but one color of light, the only color the shadows (and objects) can possibly be is that of the light source. When you do the experiment in a space that does have ambient light, there are other colors already there reflecting as light rays, and the ones which are complimentary to the direct light source stand out more in shadow. This is because the object obscures the direct light and causes its complimentary colors to be over-represented in the shadow by comparison.
It's a subjective thing, like how midtones look dark against light and light against dark when the other value extreme isn't present, except this time it has to do with saturation (and probably how the color cones in our eyes function) instead of value.
How much of each color is represented in the shadow to begin with will depend on the color of the ambient light and color of nearby objects. When you put, for instance, a red piece of paper near the shadow, that red piece of paper absorbs any light rays bouncing around that aren't red. That means colors other than red in the ambient light start to become occluded, and the shadow as a whole might look darker. The red light it does reflect mixes with whatever light wasn't occluded and shifts the shadow towards red. The farther away that paper is, the more ambient light can sneak in, giving the red light less influence over the shadow and the shadow a lighter value.
Well said.
Thanks for this! I have never accepted at face value the cool light/warm shadow, warm light/cool shadow rule. I was always wanting to do this experiment myself and you just saved me a lot of time. I always felt that the shadow color would have to be influenced by the light being reflected from objects around it.
Still not sure what to make of the complimentary color shadows though, would like to understand the reason behind this. I wonder if it has to do with our perception as a result of the strong color of the lighted areas. Sort of a color compensation thing. Cheers!
+CreativeWatersArt Yeah it's pretty wild honestly. I couldn't believe my eyes when I first saw it. From what I've read across the internet, apparently our eyes get 'tired' of seeing [blue] so we end up seeing [orange], etc.. very weird. Of course if you're painting a still life indoors using a neutral kind of light like 5500k - white light - the shadows going to be pretty much black, not counting surrounding factors. And even painting outside, the light usually isn't as dramatic as the lights I used in this video, but it is at least interesting to finally know.
I wonder the exact same thing! How is it that when exposed to blue a,being light the shadow will become the complimentary color. Truly a mystery!
I have wondered the same exact things about things taught regarding colors to use in shading and painting shadows. Thank you so much for doing this experiment! I always just used what was already on my palette, because it made sense to me. Now I see why it made sense...it was values of colors I was already using for the object and or other objects in the setting. I'm brand new at painting, but I've never been one to have 'blind' faith. Keep up the great videos. Good info!
this is especially noticeable during winter evenings, when lampposts cast light at the snow, you see blue and purple shadows, when the highlights are orange
+Love Baltazar Good point.
What a refreshing approach and conclusion ! Subscribed
okay now i understand how the colour palette on photoshop or lightroom the way they are! i certainly agree with your explanation on the colour did affect the shadow of an object cast. thanks for this video!
thanks that was very interesting, I think we see complementary colors in shadows mainly outdoors because of a general greying of colors that occurs when the direct sunlight is blocked, and because most of the object we're generally surrounded by are actually cool and quite greyed down in color, like earth, asphalt, mud, grass, vegetation (unless you're standing on red cloth or other very warm objects)..and this makes the reflection of the sky bluish color much easier to be viewed on the part of the objet in shadow!
0:54
I need that website please can someone give me the link
www.schaeferfineart.com/blog/2015/01/26/understanding-light-and-shadow
so informative my dude saving this video and rewatching it probably multiple times in a near future THANK YOU SO MUCH BRO
Glad to hear 😊 thanks for tuning in.
@@SchaeferArt anytime my dude 🤙🤙
Brilliant Brandon.....glad you brought this to our attention cause I had no idea....like you said, just followed the general guidelines but then again, I am a beginner! TFS....peace!
+Nancy Lynn No problem, glad it was helpful. Peace to you.
Awesome video! Short, informative, interesting and straightforward. Probably one of your best videos now. :D
Very nice video! I used to think that the rule for color shadow was just to help color harmony, or just to get a more pleasing effect in the painting. For sure it's more interesting to use the complementary instead of just blue, for example.
You asked for a suggestion, here it goes! I never believed the rule of opaque lights and transparent shadows. Maybe you could analise this in a future video, discussing examples for and against this. One thing that occurs to me is that a sun ray, for example, shining through a forest, is very TRANSPARENT! And if you paint it with thick titanium white you will get an amateurish look to your painting.
+Natan Estivallet Thanks for the suggestion, pretty interesting topic to touch on. I'll have to do some experimenting and look at some artwork and see what I come across. I know what you are talking about though and I think you are correct. My take at the moment is go with what you observe :)
Very informative! You helped me a lot with these examples. Thank you
Great to hear!
This was so cool and helpful! My only suggestion would be to decrease the background music volume a little. It’s just a bit distracting from what otherwise was a great video!
Very interesting subject to say the list. Is kind of wanting to light a color by just using white, isn't it? it doesn't apply at all times because looks unrealistic.
But I have a question. Why is that some professional painter use a dark room and artificial light?
I am a self taught painter who believes that there is no white white nor a peach black because there is always something to reflect on, am I wrong?
I am enjoying your videos and learning as well. Thanks so much Brandon!
Great video Brandon, very helpful!
Knowing about the different color schemes is useful for painting but which one do we see in real life? If I was to paint a red apple from imagination, assuming my light source is sunlight, would the shadow side be green (red’s complementary in the red-yellow-blue system) or teal (red’s complementary using the rgb system)? I’m self-taught so I’m really curious about this and can’t really find the answer.
The shadow side of any object will be the color of whatever is around the apple. I teach drawing and painting.
Thank you for sharing this. I had the same confusion. I'm struggling with lights and shadows a lot!
Where was the day light coming from in the second experiment? also would you recommend the book: Color and Light: A Guide for the Realist Painter?
Coming through my front door windows. Not sure haven't read that one..
Thanks! also I meant by what side does it come from ;D
@@blrug22 Opposite of of the colored light.. I believe the daylight is coming in from the right side.
@@SchaeferArt Thank you so much!
you sir did a great job by doing these experiments.
this is going to help me ....
thank you
interesting video, still what's the reason for the complimentory color showing up when influenced by daylight? I get that in outdoor scenes the shadows are lit by blue ambient light from the sky which makes the shadows shift towards blue but how did it affect the shadows of the different colored light sources? I remember reading that it's an optical illusion but still I'm not really convinced.
Very informative TY!!!!!
I think the shadows in the daylight test aren’t actually colored, but look like the complementary color because of an effect called color constancy ( illusionsindex.org/i/grey-strawberries ). If I’m right, using an RGB color picker will show that the shadow is always a grey color. This means that you should choose a color that looks like the complement in context, but might not on its own.
I think you’re right. Color is relative so colors can appear different depending on the color next to it. That’s basically what I was showing.
Love the video quality..wow what a great experiment...really interesting. Thanks...
Good Advice and I also enjoyed watching your video.
where can I read about the subject? what book you recomend?
I’m not too sure honestly.. I’d have to do some googling.
Observation must override any 'rule' or knowledge than the other way round.
Great Video!
What is shadow color in yellowish wall
This is confusing? So are you saying that blue light from the sky casts red/orange shadows? To my knowledge, it reflects back blue into the shadows.
Awesome video and the colored lights were very cool. You're doing so well and your video skills have gotten pretty good. Xo
+ladyowned Thank you :) It was a lot of work.
I'm sure it was!
+SchaeferArt I've never seen you so clear! Do more! More kitty too! XD
Thanks - really interesting subject matter and entertaining vid
Thank you, it was fun to “investigate” haha 😊
found this interesting and enjoyable, great video
+Aztriq krio Thank you!
What a great idea. very interesting
but what is the reason daylight casts different colors in the shadow???
From what I’ve read, the eye get tired of seeing the color of the light - for instance orange - so it starts to see the complement of that color. It’s basically the eye playing tricks and it’s all perception.
@@SchaeferArt but how come the eye creates the complement color in the shadows when the colored light is accompanied by daylight and not when the colored light is isolated? Some kind of a trick daylight plays?
awesome!!!! Thank you!!! SUBSCRIBED!!! :D
And now the problem is how to paint made stuff with temperature?
What do you mean made with temperature?
@@SchaeferArt ah im sorry my english is really bad, what i mean is how to paint picture that you made from imagination/invention with warm and cool colours or things like complementary colors,
Excellent
excellent video. let me simplify the concept.
SHADOW COLORS ARE COLORS OF AMBIENT LIGHT COLORS!
Yes well said
That was useful, thanks. Not sure about your acting though!
I'm not sure about it either.
Love that you startd using filters on your videos! Love the blue tones ;)
+WonderWoman Ah you picked up on that :) Just trying to get a different look, upping the blues and oranges a bit. Although for this video, I turned the filters off for the colored lights part so that it would not interfere with the test.
Yes I can see that! ;) The only reason why I picked up on that is because I do it myself on videos that I make. So it looks pleasing to my eye ;) Also - I sent this to couple of friends of mine who study art and they were really enjoying the video! :)
Nice test
Thanks, hope it was interesting
great!! video
thank you
No problem 😊
you danm right bro
Cat appears
Suscribe instantly
goood
The difference between God made and man made. the difference between the original and imitator.