Handcoloring Photographs (Paperback)

~ James McKinnis (Author) "My business card describes me as a "handcolorist..." (more)
Key Phrases: handcolored work, handcoloring techniques, handcolored photograph, Agfa Portriga-Rapid, Marshall Photo-Oils, Titanium White (more...)

Product Details

• Paperback: 144 pages
• Publisher: Amphoto Books; First Printing edition (May 1, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0817439722
• ISBN-13: 978-0817439729
• Product Dimensions: 10.5 x 8.5 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #764,638 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

27 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars How to create handcolor images?, December 11, 1999

By A Customer

I'm usually very "kind" in my reviews, but when I received this book, I really felt like I had been "taken". This book, although it has a lot of "pretty pictures", has little, if any information on handcoloring photographs. If your objective is to learn this art, look elsewhere. I'm returning this book and buying the other book in this section.

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent all around resource for the serious hand tinter!, October 2, 1999

By	[e-mail] (Southern California) - See all my reviews

As the owner of PAST TINTS, a photo tinting resource website, I enthusiastically recommend and endorse James McKinnis' book. It remains my favorite photo tinting guide and I have benefitted greatly from the hundreds of suggestions within. Whether you are a beginning hand colorist, or an expert, you will find lots of helpful, interesting information in "Handcoloring Photographs".

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Useful Tips on Photo Oils. Fantastic & Inspirational Gallery, October 26, 2004

By	mirasreviews (McLean, VA USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 100 REVIEWER)    (COMMUNITY FORUM 04)

"Handcoloring Photographs" concentrates on coloring with Marshall's Photo Oils combined with colored pencils. Author James McKinnis is a professional handcolorist with many commercial clients and uses primarily those materials. This book does not provide as much detailed instruction on how to apply color as some other books on the subject. It does, however, include some useful tips not found in other books. Unfortunately, there is no one book that contains all of the pertinent information on handcoloring. "Handcoloring Photographs" is divided into two parts: Part One includes instructional chapters on "Basic Supplies and Procedures". Part Two, "A Gallery of Twenty Handcolorists' Work", is where the book really excels. The works of a wide variety of fine art handcolorists are featured with short essays about the artists' subject and techniques. These artists use a wider selection of media than are discussed in Part One, including photo retouching dyes, watercolors, pencils, gum-bichromate prints, Polaroid image transfers, and infrared film. There is some really spectacular work in this Gallery. It may be worth purchasing the book just for the ideas and inspiration in Part Two.

If you are looking for instruction on handcoloring, these are the contents of Part One: The first chapter, "The Photographic Print", discusses photographic papers that are suitable for handcoloring. Specific fiber-based and resin-coated papers are recommended. The second chapter, "Materials and the Workplace", talks about photo oils, pencils, and materials for applying and removing color. There is a brief discussion of coloring with retouching dyes, but McKinnis admits to having little experience with the medium. The third chapter breaks "Basic Handcoloring Techniques" into three steps: The Wash, Detailing, and Fine-tuning. It takes us through these steps, using one photograph as an example. There is no information on mixing pigments in this chapter. The forth chapter, "Ways to Approach Various Subjects" offers advice for coloring photographs of people, outdoor scenes, and still lifes. The section on people includes some specific suggestions for how to create correct skin tones, but oddly doesn't give advise on how exactly to mix the oils. The fifth chapter, "Special Handcoloring Techniques", discusses "minimal color" and "ultracolor" techniques. Minimal color involves reducing color intensity with Marshall's Extender, and Ultracolor employs Marshall's Extra-strong colored photo oils for a more opaque appearance.

The sixth chapter, "Photographic Handpainting" addresses a topic that I have not seen covered in other handcoloring books. Although I often see the terms used interchangeably, author James McKinnis makes a clear distinction between "handcoloring" and "handpainting" a photograph. "Handcoloring" uses media that are to some degree transparent, so we see the photograph that has been tinted. McKinnis uses the term "handpainting" to mean that parts of the photograph "are obscured by opaque layers of paint", so that we cannot see the photograph underneath. McKinnis finds handpainting best suited to sports photographs and provides quite a few examples. He handpaints with photo oils, applied without rubbing, and artists' oils.

In the Appendix, the author gives us his predictions for the future of handcoloring, which he believes has great commercial potential in the fields of portraiture, boudoir, fashion, photo restoration, advertising, and, of course, fine art photography. There is no list of suppliers. I don't think "Handcoloring Photographs" is the best handcoloring book for a beginner looking for step-by-step instruction, although it makes some valuable contributions in that area. The "Gallery of Twenty Handcolorists' Work" exhibits some fantastic examples of handcoloring in a variety of media, however, and would be an inspiration to handcolorists of all levels and experience. The twenty artists featured really demonstrate this art form's potential.