Subjective Colour theory

Subjective Colour theory 

In this session we began to look into subjective color theory and the use of colors and contrasts. 

We recapped on elements from last weeks session on basics into the color wheel, the idea of how color is viewed through visible lightwaves and how rods in the retina receptors distinguish black, white and grey shoes. Cones allow the brain to translate the waves into perceived color. 

The session taught us how the difference in hues can create contrast depending on tone and lamination and the combination off different colors. 

Feelings of temperature can be creates through the use off different hues and again tone (luminance), and saturation.  Some colors work well together as contrasting hues (Complementary contrast).

Contrast within tone

Contrast within tone is best presented with monochromic values to show the contrast off light & dark values. 

The larger the tonal range the higher the contrast. As shown bellow in this monochromic color wheel, the hue at the 12oclock positioning contrasts the most with 8oclocks hue creating a large tonal range difference thus creating higher contrast levels. 

This use of tonal ranges can create differences in legibility of type when different type is set onto different hue backgrounds. Small differences in tonal ranges between the two hue creates a more subtle contrast decreasing readability of the word, its hard to distinguish the glyphs due to similar tonal levels in the hue.

Large tonal differences work much better. Opposing tones work with stronger contrasts as seen bellow. This is why its most common to place black type on most body text heavy documents, they also have very light tonal hues which create this strong contrast. 

This works similar with the physical hues. Opposing colors on the wheel work well in conjunction with each other. 

Orange type doesn't work well on red backgrounds due to small tonal differences, as you can see the tonal differences between blue type on red background is greater creating a stronger contrast and better legibility off the glyphs. 

Example of simultaneous contrast. 

Contrast of hues

The next thing we looked into was the contrast of hues.

"Formed by the juxtaposing of different hues. The greater the distance between hues on a colour wheel, the greater the contrast."

The contrast off the hue white and the colors shown bellow show the colors as more individual elements.

When framed up with a dark tone within the hues value like black the hue has similarities in tone with the blue yellow and red blocks creating a more solidified selection of colors. Meaning individual elements are tied in together more rather than been individually distinguished. The colors also seem lighter and less intense. 

When the colors are presented next to each other the colors tie in together as a harmonic block. But due to there positioning on the color wheel been opposing colors they still have separation throughout contrasting values even though they are physically combined.  

Within typography this use off different hues creating contrast has different effects in my opinion to the use of color blocking as show below. 

On a white background the shade of the yellow creates hard to distinguish letterforms due to the smaller contrast of colors between the type and the background. The heavier tonal shades of blue and red create stronger contrasts and better legibility. 

With a black hue background the yellow becomes the more dominant word due to the larger contrast off hues. This is due to black been a very strong tonal hue and yellow been a softer shade within the 3 hues (blue red and yellow) this in turn creates a stronger contrast. 

Red now loses legibility due to its similarity with the background. A darker shade off red creates this confusion between the 2. Now blue is the more prominent visible word. 

Similar to the above blue loses its legibility due to the similar shades used for background and type. Red stands out the most due too differing tonal ranges and higher contrasts. 

Contrast of saturation

Contrast within saturation through the combination off light and dark values and there relative saturations.

Even though there is only 1 square element off the intense blue it is the most legible due to the less intense saturated blues(lighter tones) surrounding it creating strong contrast. This to me shows how hierarchy can be altered through the use of color, if something is important don't just depend on mass or volume through use of bold type. 

This is even more obvious here through the surrounding boxes with lower saturated elements. The tone of these surrounding boxes is much lighter though with the tint been much lower with values off green within the color creating even stronger contrast between the centre block and the outer blocks of colour. 

Contrast of temperature

We then looked at contrasting colors using temperature this is formed by the combination of colors that appear "cool" and "warm". This is known as the contrast of warm and cool. 

As a singular element this color appears warm, due to common connotations of red been associated with heat. 

A cooler element is added through the contrast off this strong tonal range (centre) with the more pinky less saturated and tinted color contrasting creating contrast.

A physical example off off cool merging into warm (left to right) The tonal range progresses through gradual increase in saturation and tonal values. 

Complimentary colors 

Now we look into complementary colors by combining complimentary colors from the color wheel or perceived opposites which are visually obvious like the contrast of black & white. 

Within this example its clear these don't contrast well, the use off reen and red creates a visual illusion making it look like the lines are moving and causing a major clash. This shows that using complimentary colors to create contrast in this instant doesn't work. 

Again this visual illusion of movement and confusion is apparent here though less obvious due to the less saturated colors used which are more pastel in there tones. 

 Another big mistake you can make is using "complimentary" colors in conjunction with typesetting. These 2 examples are very hard to ready when trying to differentiate individual glyphs and words the color seems too "vibrate" making it very difficult to read.

Contrast of extension

Is formed by assigning proportional field sizes in relation to the visual weight of a colour. Also known as the contrast of proportion.

This is based on the proportion of color used, there are 2 main factors that determine the value off color. Its saturation (vibrance) or its value, or physical amount.

To create an even balance between purple and yellow due to the vibrant values off yellow and how the eye perceives yellow through wave lengths off light there needs to be a larger portion off purple. To create a contrast in this increase the amount off purple in its physical amount.

To understand this color theory more i investigated it personally, theres a formula called Geothes formula, he set up the blow ratios to simulate balance within light levels through these contrasting colors. 

Simultaneous contrast. 

The final subject we discussed was the use off simultaneous contrast.  Formed when  boundaries  between colors visually vibrate which began to happen through the use off complementary colors been used in conjunction with each other. 

This is most obvious with the use off yellow and green been a perceptive contrasting hue. Two colors in conjunction with each other side by side interact with each other and change the perceptive completely through a visual illusion, the real color itself isn't changed only the perception, the yellow and green bellow would appear very different in isolation but as a combination they are very vibrant and loud.