Greg Pidgeon
Friday, November 26, 2004
How Can Colour Theory Be Useful As A Graphic Designer?
Colour is everywhere and like it or not has a very real impact on each day of our lives. In order to understand how colour theory can be useful in the capacity of a graphic designer there are certain concepts or ideas that need to be taken into consideration.
Firstly the medium on which the design is to be shown is very important when looking at colour theory. There are two models of colours that dictate how a design will look depending on which medium you are designing for.
There are additive primaries and subtractive primaries. Firstly the term ‘additive’ refers to the mixing of light, red, green and blue light to be precise and is what we see in the natural world and on the colour screen of a T.V or computer monitor. When equal amounts of each the additive primaries are combined they produce white. Because you are adding the colours together to get white this is given the term ‘additive’. Using RGB colour is particularly important when designing for web for instance, as your audience will be viewing the design in these colours.
Subtractive primaries are again red, green and blue but when mixed in equal amounts will produce black. If two of these colours are mixed on a subtractive medium they will produce secondary and tertiary colours. One website* describes the mixing of paints as a “subtractive mixing colour paradigm”. Another subtractive mixing colour paradigm is CMYK or cyan, magenta, yellow and black. This is the colour model used for the production of any print based media.
This information is very important to a graphic designer because the correct model needs to be used with the correct medium, the difference when using the wrong model may be subtle but can be catastrophic. Most graphic software packages such as Adobe Photoshop‚ or Illustrator‚ will give you control over which you use and should certainly be taken into consideration.
That said there are also a number of variables within colour theory that can affect the appearance and ultimately the reception by the viewer. Tint and shade affects the light and dark colours (respectively) of any image, they are generally combined into a value called brightness and this can be used to enhance or if not considered ruin an image. Another variable to consider is ‘saturation’, this is what is used to measure the “pureness and brilliance “ of a colour. In CMYK, being a subtractive colour process, the more colours mixed the less pure they will become therefore lower the saturation and the duller an image will appear eventually ending up black and white.
Once we have understood how colour itself works, we can move onto its psychology and schemes used within colour theory. Most of the schemes used within colour theory use a ‘colour wheel’. Shown below is a 12-part colour wheel.
image originally taken from www.saumag.edu
Sir Isaac Newton developed the first colour wheel in 1666. In reality, any colour circle or colour wheel that presents a logically arranged sequence of pure hues has merit. Colour wheels can be an extremely useful tool for graphic designers, as schemes derived from colour wheels can aid something known as colour harmony. The Colourmatters website (full address in bibliography) states “Colour harmony is a visual experience that is pleasing to the eye creating an inner sense of order engaging the viewer”. Without being too chaotic leading to over stimulation or extreme unity leading to under stimulation. “Harmony is a dynamic equilibrium”. This is usually what a designer is looking to do so these schemes should be addressed. Colour harmony is not always the objective but these schemes can just as easily be reversed.
‘Complementary Colours’ are two colours opposite one another on a colour wheel. They can enhance, contrast and intensify each other but although differences in hue and tone can be eye-catching, used too much can ruin a design. Here is an example of complementary colours working together to give this image a strong and vibrant feel.
This process of using complementary colours can be found in many areas of media production from advertising to digital art.
Another example is what’s known as ‘Analogous Colours’, which are three colours next to each other on a colour wheel. They have less energy and impact than complementary colours but often have increased harmony. A design using analogous colours can be found below:
Triadic colours are any three colours found 120∞ apart on a 12-part colour wheel and are also a good tool for any graphic designer looking for colour harmony.
Warm and cool colours can also be derived from a colour wheel by cross sectioning it as below:
These can be used effectively in design, as cool colours will add to the impact of a warm colour rarely overpowering it. This has important applications in design that incorporates text as ease of reading is of utmost importance. See examples below;
An understanding of monochromatic colours is also useful for designers. These are basically all the different hues and tints of any one colour. This results in much more subtle and peaceful imagery shifting concentration more to design and the content itself.
Along with this type of colour theory that can be very useful in design, colour psychology needs to be considered alongside. The psychology of colour is ethnocentric and when designing for cultures not your own the connotations of certain colours need to be carefully researched. When designing for China for example, green packaging is probably best not used as a green hat means a man’s wife is adulterous. An understanding of concepts such as the meaning of colour is useful as a designer because it has impact on how a design is interpreted by the viewer, for instance in a corporate capacity black would suggest sophistication, power and wealth, whereas green may suggest inexperience and misfortune. An understanding of Synesthesia, the activation of one sense caused sub-consciously by another, will also be useful to a designer as triggering a good sense in a viewer may be important. For instance in catering an image of a meal should trigger the smell and taste of something delicious.
So in conclusion the usefulness of colour theory is not only useful to a graphic designer but often in practical terms, i.e. use of the correct colour model for production, and in terms of audience interpretation, i.e. corporate identity, colour theory is essential.
Bibliography
http://iit.bloomu.edu/vthc/Design/psychology.htm (25.11.04)
http://webdesign.templatemonster.com/category/web-design-basics/ color-theory/graphic_design_using_color.2378.html (25.11.04)
www.bu.edu/neuropsychology/synvc.html (25.11.04)
www.bathroomexpress.co.uk/chromatherapy.htm (25.11.04)
www.bainultra.com/documentations/Guide_Chromo_ANG.pdf (25.11.04)
Colour is everywhere and like it or not has a very real impact on each day of our lives. In order to understand how colour theory can be useful in the capacity of a graphic designer there are certain concepts or ideas that need to be taken into consideration.
Firstly the medium on which the design is to be shown is very important when looking at colour theory. There are two models of colours that dictate how a design will look depending on which medium you are designing for.
There are additive primaries and subtractive primaries. Firstly the term ‘additive’ refers to the mixing of light, red, green and blue light to be precise and is what we see in the natural world and on the colour screen of a T.V or computer monitor. When equal amounts of each the additive primaries are combined they produce white. Because you are adding the colours together to get white this is given the term ‘additive’. Using RGB colour is particularly important when designing for web for instance, as your audience will be viewing the design in these colours.
Subtractive primaries are again red, green and blue but when mixed in equal amounts will produce black. If two of these colours are mixed on a subtractive medium they will produce secondary and tertiary colours. One website* describes the mixing of paints as a “subtractive mixing colour paradigm”. Another subtractive mixing colour paradigm is CMYK or cyan, magenta, yellow and black. This is the colour model used for the production of any print based media.
This information is very important to a graphic designer because the correct model needs to be used with the correct medium, the difference when using the wrong model may be subtle but can be catastrophic. Most graphic software packages such as Adobe Photoshop‚ or Illustrator‚ will give you control over which you use and should certainly be taken into consideration.
That said there are also a number of variables within colour theory that can affect the appearance and ultimately the reception by the viewer. Tint and shade affects the light and dark colours (respectively) of any image, they are generally combined into a value called brightness and this can be used to enhance or if not considered ruin an image. Another variable to consider is ‘saturation’, this is what is used to measure the “pureness and brilliance “ of a colour. In CMYK, being a subtractive colour process, the more colours mixed the less pure they will become therefore lower the saturation and the duller an image will appear eventually ending up black and white.
Once we have understood how colour itself works, we can move onto its psychology and schemes used within colour theory. Most of the schemes used within colour theory use a ‘colour wheel’. Shown below is a 12-part colour wheel.
image originally taken from www.saumag.edu
Sir Isaac Newton developed the first colour wheel in 1666. In reality, any colour circle or colour wheel that presents a logically arranged sequence of pure hues has merit. Colour wheels can be an extremely useful tool for graphic designers, as schemes derived from colour wheels can aid something known as colour harmony. The Colourmatters website (full address in bibliography) states “Colour harmony is a visual experience that is pleasing to the eye creating an inner sense of order engaging the viewer”. Without being too chaotic leading to over stimulation or extreme unity leading to under stimulation. “Harmony is a dynamic equilibrium”. This is usually what a designer is looking to do so these schemes should be addressed. Colour harmony is not always the objective but these schemes can just as easily be reversed.
‘Complementary Colours’ are two colours opposite one another on a colour wheel. They can enhance, contrast and intensify each other but although differences in hue and tone can be eye-catching, used too much can ruin a design. Here is an example of complementary colours working together to give this image a strong and vibrant feel.
This process of using complementary colours can be found in many areas of media production from advertising to digital art.
Another example is what’s known as ‘Analogous Colours’, which are three colours next to each other on a colour wheel. They have less energy and impact than complementary colours but often have increased harmony. A design using analogous colours can be found below:
Triadic colours are any three colours found 120∞ apart on a 12-part colour wheel and are also a good tool for any graphic designer looking for colour harmony.
Warm and cool colours can also be derived from a colour wheel by cross sectioning it as below:
These can be used effectively in design, as cool colours will add to the impact of a warm colour rarely overpowering it. This has important applications in design that incorporates text as ease of reading is of utmost importance. See examples below;
An understanding of monochromatic colours is also useful for designers. These are basically all the different hues and tints of any one colour. This results in much more subtle and peaceful imagery shifting concentration more to design and the content itself.
Along with this type of colour theory that can be very useful in design, colour psychology needs to be considered alongside. The psychology of colour is ethnocentric and when designing for cultures not your own the connotations of certain colours need to be carefully researched. When designing for China for example, green packaging is probably best not used as a green hat means a man’s wife is adulterous. An understanding of concepts such as the meaning of colour is useful as a designer because it has impact on how a design is interpreted by the viewer, for instance in a corporate capacity black would suggest sophistication, power and wealth, whereas green may suggest inexperience and misfortune. An understanding of Synesthesia, the activation of one sense caused sub-consciously by another, will also be useful to a designer as triggering a good sense in a viewer may be important. For instance in catering an image of a meal should trigger the smell and taste of something delicious.
So in conclusion the usefulness of colour theory is not only useful to a graphic designer but often in practical terms, i.e. use of the correct colour model for production, and in terms of audience interpretation, i.e. corporate identity, colour theory is essential.
Bibliography
http://iit.bloomu.edu/vthc/Design/psychology.htm (25.11.04)
http://webdesign.templatemonster.com/category/web-design-basics/ color-theory/graphic_design_using_color.2378.html (25.11.04)
www.bu.edu/neuropsychology/synvc.html (25.11.04)
www.bathroomexpress.co.uk/chromatherapy.htm (25.11.04)
www.bainultra.com/documentations/Guide_Chromo_ANG.pdf (25.11.04)
Monday, November 22, 2004
composition 4
Composition 3 (Complementary colours))
Composition 2 (analogous colours)
Composition 1
Sunday, November 21, 2004
Composition 3 (complementary colours, unfinished)
Wednesday, November 10, 2004
Tarmac
image originally taken from
http://www.limeyinbermuda.com/photos/hurricane_fabian/hurricane_fabian_279.html
Back when I was at school during the summer break we primarily did one thing; skate. Not on the inline jobs but on quads called Bauers. We used to go to a park called Southey Park which had a rusty half pipe with bent boards & a square of tarmac along with the usual playing fields & playground. Skating @ Southey was an experience, many injuries accrued especially due to the poor state of the tarmac. Which brings me onto this image, when I walk along the street & see broken tarmac such as this sometimes I'm taken back to Southey with long summer nights filled with skating & general debauchery.
Tabacco Brown
I chose this color because for me it represents the two sides to smoking, and being a smoker this obviously comments on a reasonably large part of my life. On the one hand it represents the sweet tasting smoke from the first cigarette of the day with its caramel color & its warm appearance. But on the other hand it conjures feelings spawned from the mainstream connotations of smoking, shortened life span, lung cancer, phenomenally expensive. The cons out way the pros & I’m sure I’ll give up soon…………..
Breakdown Rusty Brown
The color I’ve chosen from this image is slightly painful for me. The picture is of the pieces that fell out of the engine of my Renault Clio just after the engine blew up early morning on the motorway back from Birmingham to Bristol. I loved that car & whenever I see broken parts of cars it reminds me of my pride & joy, sad I know but hey it was a nice motor.
Tattoo's are forever not just for Xmas
This again is a particularly personal image. Its of one of my tattoos, I choose to show the off black color because its now a part of me. It represents permanency & forever ness but also a good time in my life when I was enjoying myself as much as possible with some great people, not much has changed but it will always make me smile.
Sun Kissed Navel
I absolutely love the golden brown of tanned skin. Reminds me, as it must do for many people, of sun & sand. But also of relaxation, warmth & calm. This picture for me conjours images of the Caribbean perhaps, strolling down a beautiful beach, crystal blue sea lapping against your feet, palms arching overhead & it must be around sunset. A real romantic scene, on a honeymoon or something maybe. Beautiful.
p.s Many thanks to Racheal who without her lovely midriff this entry in my colour diary wouldn't be possible.
Mitsubishi Racing Red
Now this color I choose mainly because of the car it was painted on. It’s a Mitsubishi 3000 GT owned by a friend of a friend and was being used for a college project a couple of years ago at the time this was taken. A beautiful vibrant red on a very sexy car. Enough said.
Balinese Orange
This color conjures slightly better feelings for me. It’s actually a picture of the uniform worn by a member of staff working at the hotel I stayed at for a month in Bali. Over the course of the month we got particularly friendly with most of the staff & this just reminds me of the amazing time I spent there & the sheer friendliness of the people I met.
Green Eyes
image originally taken from http://inluminent.com/imagine/w_greeneyes.jpg
I don't know why but I've always been really attacted to green eyes, I guess its just one of those things. Most people associate green eyes with jelousy & envy but to me this image has different connotations. When a see beautiful female, green eyes like this it always makes me think of passion, depth, mystery & the exotic. Also one of my favorite tunes is a song called 'Pretty Green Eyes' by Ultrabeat & this obviuosly in a very literal way reminds me of that. The song also provokes emotions that I associate with green eyes, for instance the courus of the song exaplins 'You Never Have to be Alone' which gives me the impression of vulnerability.
car wash
image originally taken from http://www.hoffmancarwash.com/graphics/photos/4.jpg
Although not an image of my own, this picture does remind me of the work experience I did for my BTEC in Media Production. After a large amount of perseverance I finally managed to get the placement I wanted. Two weeks at a Bath based publishing company called Future Publishing working on a modified car magazine called Redline. One of the features the editorial team were working on was called 'Jockass' a takeoff from the popular TV series & film, Jackass. I went on one of the photo shoots for the feature which involved donning a ginger wig & tartan kilt, scarf & hat (as Jockass was Redline's Scottish take on the original) & taking a banger of a Ford Escort through a car wash. But the funny thing was the guys, me included, that were in the car had all the windows, sunroof & boot open. One of the team (a guy called Malc)was even on the bonnet all the way through the wash. It was so cold, but amazingly funny. I'll never forget the looks from passers by when we opened the doors to the Escort on the garage forecourt & a good few litres of water came out when we exited covered in soap suds & dressed as Scotsmen! Brilliant.
Funky Lights
This image although not taken there, reminds me alot of the cosmopolitan delights of Singapore. I have never experienced something so awe inspiring as the phenomenal skyscrapers in Singapore at night. The buildings are a light show in themselves, the edges illuminated with miles of rope lights, the tops alive with neon signs & the sides glow with the flood of multi-coloured spotlights beaming from the ground. The energy dipicted in the dancing gold light in this image is just like the dancing lights across the cityscape & also reflects upon the lifestyle in Singapore, busy, modern & viberant.
Blurred Neons
After many a night out, having indulged in maybe one too many all too appealing, fantastically named & illuminously coloured drinks, my vision tends to be effected in much the same way as depicted in this photo. Happening with all too much regularity, myself not being able to say no to socialising, I thought it would be a nice addition to my colour diary. Blurred neons such as this always remind me of holiday clubbing in particular. Even just looking at this picture it gets my adreniline going remembering all the flat out nights I've had abroad, partying from dusk til dawn usually waking up on a sun lounger, on the beach not having a clue who I am let alone where I am. Surrounded by family holiday makers, kids & all! What a sight I must have been, hilarious!
Snow
image originally taken from http://www.parks.it/parco.alpe.veglia.devero/foto/neve-800.jpg
I must admitt that of all the places I've been none has been more breathtaking than at the summit of a mountain at day break with dew forming on the lush forestry with nothing but a sea of crisp, white, untouched power waiting to be carved by a blades on my feet. I've only been sking twice, once to Austria & once to France but I absolutely loved it, finances allowing I hope to go again soon with Italy looking to be the likely destination. This image isn't mine but I'm sure the beauty is communicated nether the less. Would recommend sking to everybody, try once & you'll be hooked as I am.
Paddy Fields
Another image depicting a true place of beauty is this. The fields of rice paddys found in the mountainous, rural areas just outside Kuta in Bali. The revenue for the population of Bali is now many gained through tourism but alot of farming still remains & after the bomb in Oct 2002 alot of Balinease residents had to resort back to agricultural vocations while the goverment tried to encourage holiday makers to return. As shown in this image I took whilst on holiday in Bali, rice paddys can literally be put anywhere the ground is flat regardless how small. So despite the altittude changes, fields are still harvested producing this pituresque valley of greenery.
Number Plate
Another image taken from my much missed Renault. Although I wouldn't choose this particular design of number plate again (talking really about the addition of 'Big Pidge' at the bottom) it does remind me of my personality & attitudes at the time I was driving it & this yellow despite being the same on every number plate never fails to take my mind back to this car. At the time my friends & I were heavily into modified cars, we often attended car shows (alot more than I'd like to say I do now) & generally spent alot of time either working on or talking about our cars. As I remember alot of good times were had racing them all down to Weston or Bournmouth for the weekend, beach racing included. Good times, good people.
Mould
Ha ha, imagine my digust when I opened the fridge in my flat to find the majority of food in there I'd not managed to eat before complete mini ecosytems seemed to have evolved on it. I choose mould green for my diary because it reminds me of my first shop living on my own at uni, since then I have either been much more careful in selecting the food I buy. More tinned goods & freezable ready meals, trust me I've enough provisions to survive armageddon. Or to make sure I know the use by dates, almost to far as keeping a diary. Sad I know but a mans gotta eat ha ha.
