Resolving some issues about colour

I have been racking my brains trying to work out how to fulfil the Colour assignment.  We have been asked to provide 16 images that indicate complimentary colours, harmonious colours, contrasting colours and an accent.  In addition the subject matter must be varied - so the colours shouldn't all be based on light, or coloured objects.  There should be still life and 'found' scenes, the last of which is the most difficult to realise as you have less control - although a fellow student seemed to have done a brilliant job photographing all these elements at a day long event.

I was planning something linked to some thoughts I'd had a few weeks ago and up until last night I was trying to hold myself to that.  I wrote a little about it in my previous post.  I had 4 sets of images planned or in the case of 'found' hoped for.  But the problem was none of the sets was really related although I had tried to convince myself they were all loosely based on childhood or thoughts of childhood, even tenuously.  However, I was not entirely convinced.

Today I went to buy some props from the local party store and found myself beginning to get a clearer idea of where I might be heading with this and as a result have adjusted my plans, or allowed them to evolve at any rate.  I've dropped certain ideas altogether and linked up other ideas so there is more continuity between each set. 

One of the things I was told was not to make this project about COLOUR!!!  Well, I have to say at least one set of images is going to be a riot of colour.

There are four sets and in each colours will be either complimentary, harmonious, contrasting or with an accent:

1. Still Life - Preperation

2. Colours 1

3. Colours 2 incorporating light and a gel or a colour filter in Lightroom

4. The final set is the hardest to reconcile.  The word 'found' in my mind suggests heading out and searching for images that I come across in the street or shops or parks etc.  But if I do that then this final set of images is going to be totally unrelated to the first three and will stand out as something entirely separate and that would be a shame.  So I think I am going to wait for my kids to come and inspect what I've been doing, playing with props etc and photograph that.  Perhaps it's a bit of a cheat but the photos I take here will be entirely unplanned and spontaneous which I hope gets round it.  It will also be a fitting finish to the whole assignment which in the end for me is not really about colour at all but about how I go about producing something cohesive and authentic and creative.

I have had to do some little drawings.  These it turns out are a shining example of why I use a camera to try and express myself rather than draw or paint.  So I wouldn't dream of calling it a drawing board, rather a squiggle board.  It's been very useful as I can see that Set 2 is too dominated by red and it's various relationships whereas Set 3 is too dominated by blue and green.  So I must go back to the squiggle board and do some shifting round.  Once I've achieved that I will do a shot list for all sets apart from the final one which will just be about finding the four relationship requirements.

I'd better get on with it all as it's due very soon.