CHROMA FOR HUE FULL

As you move into the center of the wheel, the hue we are using to describe the color dominates less and less. On the outer edge of the hue wheel are the ‘pure’ hues. Saturation is also referred to as “intensity” and “chroma.” It refers to the dominance of hue in the color. Primary, Secondary, and Tertiary Hues Saturation The next level colors, the tertiary colors, are those colors between the secondary and primary colors. This process can continue filling in colors around the wheel. The colors on the outermost perimeter of the color circle are the”hues,” which are colors in their purest form. They are produced as secondary colors when RGB light hues are mixed, as follows:ĬMY Secondary Light Colors Overview of Hues print purposes, the hues CMY do not exist in a vacuum. Mixing Adjacent Primaries = Secondary Hues Making Cyan, Magenta, and YellowĪlthough additive and subtractive color models are considered their own unique entities for screen vs. The absence of all three of these colors produces complete darkness, or black.

CHROMA FOR HUE FULL

RGB Primary Color TriadĪs we mentioned before, in light, all three of these wavelengths added together at full strength produces pure white light. Thus, that is why televisions, computer monitors, and other full-range, electronic color visual displays use a triad of red, green, and blue phosphors to produce all electronically communicated color. The three primary hues in light are red, green, and blue. So let’s start with the light Additive model to see how it filters into the Subtractive model and to see how hues, values and saturation interact to produce unique colors. Regardless of the two Additive and Subtractive color models, all color is a result of how our eyes physically process light waves. Not only do graphic designers need to understand this color construct, but fine artists do as well since digital art and rendering has become such an integral part of art processes. The HSV scale clearly stands for “Hue, Saturation, Value.” It does a better job at visually explaining the concept of light, and it is a very useful one to comprehend, as it is what most sophisticated digital color pickers are based on (including all Adobe software). There is a more complex, 3-dimensional scale that allows us to look at how hue, saturation, and value intersect to create colors: the “HSV Scale.”

This is a fairly simple way of looking at it, but it still might not be completely clear. The scales above illustrate the value and saturation changes of a hue in the same way visually, although they explain what’s happening differently based on how pigment works vs. The second model illustrates the same scale but explains the phenomenon based on light properties.) Pigment Scale Light Scale The HSV Color Scale (NOTE: In the simple scale diagrams below, the first model indicates amount of black, white, or grey pigment added to the hue. In terms of the “additive” light color model, though, saturation works on a scale based on how much or how little other hues are represented in the color.

When a pigment hue is “toned,” both white and black (grey) are added to the color to reduce the color’s saturation. Saturation defines the brilliance and intensity of a color. Lastly, let’s look at “ saturation,” or “ chroma“ Light values with white pigment added are called “tints” of the hue name. When referring to pigments, dark values with black added are called “shades” of the given hue name. It indicates the quantity of light reflected. Next, let’s look at the “ value“Īs is discussed on the “Elements: Value” page, value refers to the lightness or darkness of a color. When discussing spectral “light primaries” (RGB), a pure hue equivalent to full saturation is determined by the ratio of the dominant wavelength to other wavelengths in the color. (Full desaturation is equivalent to a muddy dark grey, as true black is not usually possible in the CMY combination.)

When discussing “pigment primaries” (CMY), no white, black, or gray is added when 100% pure. Hue is also a term which describes a dimension of color we readily experience when we look at color, or its purest form it essentially refers to a color having full saturation, as follows: “yellow”) when adding in the three components of a color. Hue is more specifically described by the dominant wavelength and is the first item we refer to (i.e. This will REALLY help you understand how color works! Color consists of three main integral parts: Color is the light wavelengths that the human eye receives and processes from a reflected source.įor the physics behind color, see the Primary Color Models page. In short, color is the visual byproduct of the spectrum of light as it is either transmitted through a transparent medium, or as it is absorbed and reflected off a surface.