Green With Envy: Using the Color Green to Create Eye-Catching images

Text and Photos by Heather Cline 

Corn Lilies, Lassen National Park

This is my fourth article in this series on color, and today I have chosen my favorite color: Green. In this article, I’ll show you how to leverage the color green to improve your images in three ways: by highlighting the subject to grab the viewers attention, creating a mood or emotion, and exposing the unique qualities of the subject. 

Highlight The Subject 

Choosing a green subject against a contrasting or monochromatic background will help it pop out from the image. This photo of a tree balanced on a mossy outcropping of granite is a good example of how to use green when the background is a contrasting color. 

Tree on Granite, Yosemite National Park

In contrast, these mushrooms on a mossy tree limb on the forest pop out because of the contrasting green surroundings. 

Mushrooms on mossy tree, Silver Falls State Park

Evoke a Feeling or Emotion

What do you think of when you see the color green? Green symbolizes nature and the natural world. Green is often associated with growth, springtime, lushness and new beginnings. Because it is the most common color found in nature, this may explain why this color evokes these feelings. 

Rain soaked leaf, Maui

Using green in your images can have a very calming and tranquil effect because people associate it with nature which is often thought to be relaxing. 

Hall of Mosses, Olympic National Park

Reveal the Natural Qualities of the Subject 

Some things are uniquely green and if you asked someone to describe these, one of the first words they might use is "green" and they just wouldn't be the same if they came in a different color. There are too many examples to list here, so I've included just a few, but you can check out my full Green Gallery here. 

Ferns, Point Reyes National Seashore

Redwood Sorrel, Redwoods National Park

Gecko, Kona Hawaii

I hope this has given you some ideas for how you can use green to improve your nature photography.