COLOR

COLOR
KEY TOPICS
VISIBLE SPECTRUM
COLOR VISION
BLACK AND WHITE
COLOR ADDITION
COLOR SUBTRACTION
COMPLIMENTARY COLORS

COLOR SENSORS
CONES SENSITIVE TO COLOR
THE PRODUCE THE SENSATION OF
COLOR

RODS SENSITIVE TO LIGHT

RESPOND TO LIGHT, BUT PRODUCE NO
COLOR SENSATION

Color Vision
Perceiving
Color
Primary colors

Whataretheprimarycolors?

Color Vision
Perceiving
Color
Primary colors

RedGreenBlue

Color Vision
Perceiving
Color
Primary colors

Whatmakesthemprimary?

Color Vision
Perceiving
Color
Primary colors
Every color (hue) can be created by
blending light of the three primary
colors in differing proportions

Perceiving
Color
Color Vision
Primary colors
Every color (hue) can be created by
blending light of the three primary colors in
differing proportions
Led to prediction that there must be three
(and only three) distinct color receptor types

Color Vision
Perceiving
Color

Absorption/Coneresponse

Four absorption peaks in retina: 3 cone types plus

rods

THE PhET SIMULATION CALLED

COLOR VISION SHOWS HOW AN
OBSERVER CAN PERCEIVE NEW
COLORS BY ADDING WAVELENGTHS
OF RED, BLUE AND GREEN LIGHT.

Color Vision
WavelengthInput

Cone
Blue

Green

Red

SignaltoBrain

Blue

Color Vision
WavelengthInput

Cone

SignaltoBrain

Blue

Green

Red

Green

Color Vision
WavelengthInput

Cone

SignaltoBrain

Blue

Green

Red

Red

Color Vision
WavelengthInput

Cone

SignaltoBrain

Blue

Green

EqualParts
Redand
Green=
Yellow

Red

Color Vision
WavelengthInput

Cone

SignaltoBrain

Blue

Green

EqualParts
Redand
Green=
Yellow

Red

Color Vision
WavelengthInput

Cone

SignaltoBrain

Blue

Green

EqualParts
Redand
Green=
Yellow

Red

Color Vision
Trichromatic theory of color vision:
brain interprets the relative amounts of
signaling from each of these cone types

Color Vision
Trichromatic theory of color vision:
brain interprets the relative amounts of
signaling from each of these cone types

This means that some colors can be

matched by a pair of wavelengths

Color Vision
Trichromatic theory of color vision:
brain interprets the relative amounts of
signaling from each of these cone types

This means that some colors can be

matched by a pair of wavelengths
This also means that any color can be
matched by mixing (not more than) three
different wavelengths

Color Vision
Trichromatic Theory can explain some
aspects of colorblindness:
most of us are trichromats
someone missing one of the three cone
types is a dichromat
someone missing two is a monochromat
someone missing all cone types is called a
rod monochromat (very poor vision!)

Color Vision
Trichromatic Theory can explain some aspects of
colorblindness:
dichromats have only two primaries: any color they can see
can be matched with differing proportions of the two
wavelengths to which they are sensitive

Color Vision

IshiharaColorPlates
canindicatecolor
blindness

DONT DO THIS !
~3%ofmalereaderswillhavetroubleseeingit!

Color Vision

But this is OK.

Color Vision

So is this.

Color Vision

Even this is good.

Color Vision
Wavelength
and Color
White light is a mixture of wavelengths
prisms decompose white light into assorted
wavelengths
OR recompose a spectrum into white light

 Additive vs. Subtractive

Therearetwodifferentwaystomixcolors.

 Additive vs. Subtractive

Whatdoyougetifyouuseaprismtocombine
allwavelengthsoflight?

 Additive vs. Subtractive

Whatdoyougetifyouuseaprismtocombine
allwavelengthsoflight?

 Additive vs. Subtractive

Whatdoyougetifyoumixabunchofpaint?

 Additive vs. Subtractive

Whatdoyougetifyoumixabunchofpaint?

 Additive vs. Subtractive

 Additive mixing is most intuitive:

ADDwavelengths:
red+green=yellow
red+blue=magenta
blue+green=cyan
red+green+blue=white

COLOR ADDITION
THE ILLUMINATION OF
OBJECTS WITH
MULTIPLE COLORED
LIGHT SOURCES.

ADDITIVE
PRIMARIES
RED - BLUE GREEN
THESE COLORS CAN BE USED TO
STIMULATE THE THREE
DIFFERENT CONES AND
PRODUCE ALL POSSIBLE
COLORS.

RULES OF COLOR ADDITION

THE ADDITIVE PRIMARIES CAN BE
USED TO PREDICT THE COLOR OF A
WHITE OBJECT
RED + BLUE = MAGENTA
BLUE + GREEN = CYAN
RED + GREEN = YELLOW
RED + GREEN + BLUE = WHITE

APPLICATIONS OF
COLOR ADDITION
STAGE LIGHTING
COLOR TELEVISION

 Subtractive mixing is much less intuitive

(but much more common)
Subtractive mixing happens when we
mix pigments (paint) together
Different pigments subtract different
wavelengths:
red subtracts all but red, blue all but blue,
green subtracts blue and red, etc

 Example: blue + yellow = green

Technicallyitscalledcyan

SUBTRACTIVE PRIMARIES
THE SUBTRACTIVE PRIMARIES CAN BE
USED TO REMOVE WAVELENGTHS
FROM WHITE LIGHT TO PRODUCE ALL
OTHER COLORS.

YELLOW CYAN MAGENTA

Amountofreflection

The result of a mixture depends on what wavelengths dont get

absorbed by the two pigments

blue

green yellow
wavelength

red

Amountofreflection

Both yellow and blue pigments reflect a bit of green

blue

green yellow
wavelength

red

RULES OF COLOR
SUBTRACTION
WHITE YELLOW = BLUE
WHITE CYAN = RED
WHITE MAGNETA = GREEN

COLOR SUBTRACTION
Common applications:
1.Mixing pigments
2.Technicolor movies

 Subtractive mixing is commonly used in

color printers

BLACK
THE SENSATION THAT OCCURS AT NO
OR LOW LIGHT INTENSITY.
AN OBJECT MAY APPEAR BLACK IF
THE INTENSITY OF ITS REFLECTED
LIGHT IS MUCH LOWER THAN THE
SURROUNDINGS SO THAT IT APPEARS
THAT NO LIGHT IS COMING FROM THE
OBJECT.