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Color Wheel A color circle, based on red, yellow and blueIs traditional in the field of art. Sir Isaac Newton developed the first circular diagram of colors in 1666. Since then scientists and artists have studied and designed numerous variations of this concept. Differences of opinion about the validity of one format over another continue to provoke debate. In reality, any color circle or color wheel which presents a logically arranged sequence of pure hues.
Color Theory A color wheel (also referred to as a color circle) is a visual representation of colors. Begin a color wheel by positioning primary hues equidistant from one another, then create a bridge between primaries using secondary and tertiary colors.Color is the perceptual characteristic of light described by a color name. Specifically, color is light, and light is composed of many colors—those we see are the colors of the visual spectrum: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and violet. Objects absorb certain wavelengths and reflect others back to the viewer. We perceive these wavelengths as color.A color is described in three ways: by its name, how pure or desaturated it is, and its value or lightness. Although pink, crimson, and brick are all variations of the color red, each hue is distinct and differentiated by its chroma, saturation, intensity, and value.
Primary | Secondary| Analogous | Triads Color Primary – Color Wheel begins with YELLOW, RED, and BLUE. You cannot create these colors. These 3 colors are the base colors for every other color on the color wheel. This is why they're called "primary." When you mix two primaries together, you get a secondary color.Primary colors are useful for designs or art that needs to have a sense of urgency. Primary colors are the most vivid colors when placed next to each other, which is why you'll notice that most fast food joints use primary colors in their logos, as it evokes speedSecondary Colors: Orange, Green, Purple. These 3 colors are what you get when you mix the primary colors together, i.e. Primary Colors: Red, Yellow, Blue.They're located in-between the primary colors to indicate what colors they're made from. Notice how green is in-between yellow and blue.Secondary colors are usually more interesting than primary colors, but they do not evoke speed and urgency.Tertiary Colors: These are those "in-between" colors like Yellow-Green and Red-Violet. They're made by mixing one primary color and one secondary color together. There can be endless combinations of tertiary colors, depending on how they're mixed.
Analogous Color Analogous colors sit next to each other on the color wheel. They tend to look pleasant together because they are closely related.Orange, yellow-orange, and yellow are an example of analogous colors. How do you know that these colors are closely related? They share a color—each of them contains some yellow.TRY IT! Choose a primary color and a secondary color. For example, you might choose blue and green. Don't they look nice together? That's because they are analogous. With just these two colors, you can create even more analogous colors—blue-green, green-blue, and others in-between. All of these will have a color in common: blue.
Triads Color COLOR TRIADs: three colors spaced an equal distance apart on the color wheel, such as red, yellow & blue; orange, green & purple; yellow-green, purple-blue & red-orange; blue-green, red-purple & orange-yellow.Strengths: These color combinations convey liveliness and variety. They offer an exciting combination for any web design and are especially helpful for complex designs where many areas of the page contain useful or key information.Weaknesses: Be careful that these colors don't compete with your message for attention. Their profusion of color can be overpowering, especially if your website is trying to convey a serious message.
RGB Vs CMYK Color RGB Color: This is color based upon light. Your computer monitor and television use RGB. The name "RGB" stands for Red, Green, Blue, which are the 3 primaries (with green replacing yellow). By combining these 3 colors, any other color can be produced. Remember, this color method is only used with light sources; it does not apply to printing from computers. CMYK Color: This is the color method based upon pigments. "CMYK" stands for Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, and Black (its what the K stands for). Using these 4 colors, most other colors can be achieved. Unfortunately, CMYK cannot reproduce the same amount of colors as RGB can, which is why yellow-greens sometimes look a bit muddy when printed.This is the method used by printers the world over, and is also a clever way of mixing paints.
Shades and Tints Chroma, intensity, saturation and luminance/value are inter-related terms and have to do with the description of a color.Chroma: How pure a hue is in relation to gray Saturation: The degree of purity of a hue. Intensity: The brightness or dullness of a hue. One may lower the intensity by adding white or black. Luminance / Value: A measure of the amount of light reflected from a hue. Those hues with a high content of white have a higher luminance or value.Shade and tint are terms that refer to a variation of a hue.Shade: A hue produced by the addition of black. Tint: A hue produced by the addition of white.
Color Scheme MONOTONE: using a single neutral color such as black, light to medium grays, beiges, taupes, and off whites. Gives a feeling of calm, quiet quality or a classic understated look. Very subtle and very appealing for use in more expensive products. Not good for signage, packaging, advertising or any other graphic application because the monotones are so subtle that they appear unreadable, so some contrasting color or texture is needed.MONCHROMATICS: using one color family in various values of intensities. Very effective in imparting refreshing quality of contrasting green foliage or the deliciousness of rich chocolate melting into a creamy mocha color. Also called monochrome/monochromatic. ANALOGOUS: neighboring families on the color wheel. Colors that are closely related such as blue, blue-green, and green; three or four colors that are adjacent (touch) on the color wheel. Total harmony with analogous colors is not necessarily a good thing because a too subtle use of color may lack impact. Expanding the group by adding touches of another neighboring color will get more attention. (blue-purple, purple, red-purple, and red)COMPLEMENTARY: colors directly opposite each other on the color wheel, such as yellow & purple, red & green, blue & orange. The red family appears redder when contrasted with green as will orange with blue and yellow with purple. Complementary colors balance as they are opposites one warm, one cool. In their brightest intensities, complements literally command attention so are especially effective in packaging, advertising, point-of-purchase, banners, sports uniforms or any other usage where exuberant and instant attention is important. In softer or deeper values, the effect is more subtle.SPLIT COMPLEMENT: use of the colors on each side of a complementary color, such as yellow, red-purple & purple-blue; red, yellow-green & blue-green; blue, orange-yellow & red-orange; orange-yellow, blue & purple; red-orange, green & blue; red-purple, yellow & green; purple-blue, orange & yellow; blue-green, orange & red; yellow-green, red & purple.
Shades and Hues There are plenty of other names and titles that refer to different aspects of color:Warm Colors: Colors such as red, yellow, and orange. These colors evoke warmth because they remind us of things like the sun or fire.Cool Colors: Colors like blue, green, and purple (violet). These colors evoke a cool feeling because they remind us of things like water or grass.Neutral Colors: Gray, Brown. These aren't on most color wheels, but they're considered neutral because they don't contrast with much of anything. They're dull and uneventful.Value: Usually refers to the amount of black in a color. The more black a color has, the darker its value.Brightness: Refers to the amount of white in a color. The more white a color has, the brighter it is.Saturation: Refers to the amount of a color used. When a color is at full saturation, it is extremely vibrant. When a color is "desaturated," a large amount of color has been removed. Desaturated colors tend to be close to being neutral because there is so much gray in them.
Improve your computer colors 75% of all computers have some degree of color blindness and very few people are aware of it. However, there are a number of things you can do to help you see better colors.Adjust your brightness and intensity controls on your monitor. Consult the links for more information.Check to see that your control panels are set to the maximum possible. (Your system or the video card may be defaulting to 16 or 256 colors and you may possibly have many more available.)Those who have good video cards (16 or 24 bit capable) might want to set them to the maximum number of colors for color accuracy.A good monitor can improve the colors. Color will be brighter and you will lessen the "sunglasses" effect common to PCs.Avoid anti-glare screens and compensate for glare in other ways.Get a computer that has built-in gamma correction and built-in compatibility between all elements such as a Macintosh.Purchase not only for the best components, but components that work together and give the most accurate result. If you're considering a graphics or video card, make sure it will work with your system and your monitor. Some cards may work only for games.
