About Colors

The Color Wheel

1-3
4-5
6-7

Hue - name of color group

Chroma - all the different versions of any given hue

Saturation - how pure a color is

Tint - lightening a color/adding white

Shade - adding black

Tone - adding gray

Value - how any given color would look on a grayscale

Temperature - Warm (red, orange, yellow undertones) & Cool (green, blue, purple undertones)



Color Schemes

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9-10
13
14

Complementary Colors - 2 colors that lie directly across from each other on the color wheel - High Contrast

Analogous Colors - 2 colors that lie next to each other - Subtle, calm effect

Triadic Colors - 3 colors that form a perfect equilateral triangle on the color wheel - High contrast

Split Complementary Colors - 3 colors form an isosceles triangle - Not as dramatic, but strong visual contrast

Monochromatic Colors - 3 colors in 1 chroma, vary the tint/shade/tone of the color - Harmony always looks well-balanced & visually appealing; Lacks contrast in complementary color schemes

Double Complementary/ Tetradic Colors - 4 colors in a rectangular arrangement on the color wheel, pairing 2 complementary color pairs - Rich color scheme

Color Dominance

  • Dominant - Warm colors, light values, light/bright tints
  • Recessive - cool colors, dark values/tones/shades