Early photography was entirely monochrome - primarily black and white although some processes created shades of brown or blue. However, in the 1840s an artist by the name of Johann Baptist Isenring developed a process by which he was able to apply color to a dagerreotype using pigments, gum and heat. While other methods subsequently came into existence, Isenring is credited with the earliest methods of coloring images.

By then end of the 1800s, hand coloring of images was exceptionally popular, especially in Japan where the use of watercolors and oils became the method of choice to color silver gelatin imagery.

In the United States, hand-coloring was used primarily in portraiture into the early 1900s.

With the introduction of color photography and the American infatuation with new technology, hand-coloring fell into steep decline by the 1950s. However, since the 1970s we have seen a resurgence of the technique as a purely artistic and aesthetic endeavor. We now use oil paints specifically designed for fiber-based photographs. It is used in nature photography.

Or to add a sense of surrealism to a photograph.

Partial hand-coloring is also popular as method for emphasizing certain elements of an image.

It is also used successfully in collage and mixed-media work. Feel free to experiment with any or all of these methods.