Color Theory Questions

What is the difference between shade and tint?
Shade is a hue produced by the addition of black, and tint is a hue produced by the addition of white.

What is the colour system used for printing?
The CMYK color system is the color system used for printing.

How can you ensure proper colour rendering in print?
Working within the CMYK color system, or choosing colors from Pantone© palettes insures proper color rendering.

What are complementary colours? Give an example
The colors that are positioned opposite one another on the color wheel are complementary colors. Ex. Purple and Yellow

What are tertiary colours? Give an example
Tertiary colors are achieved by a mixture of primary and secondary hues. Ex. Yellow-green, red-purple, yellow-orange, blue-violet, red-orange and blue-green.

What is meant by a visually advancing colour?
Advancing hues are most often thought to have less visual weight than the receding hues.

What could cause vibrating boundaries to occur?
Vibrating Boundaries may occur when opposing colors are brought together.

How can you find a complementary colour without a colour wheel?
Without a color wheel, it is still possible to find the opposite of a color and this is due to a phenomenon of our eyes. Just use colors that you think are opposites. Due to the physiological differences between individuals, everyone's perceptions do vary.

What is an after image?
An after image is when you stare at something in color for a long time, then look away, and then look again and its in the opposite colors.

What is a monochromatic colour relationship?
Monochromatic Relationship are colors that are shade or tint variations of the same hue.

What is an analogous colour relationship?
Analogous Relationship are colors located right next to each other on a color wheel.

What is contrast?
When you make a color different from the others to make it stand out more.

What could cause simultaneous contrast to occur?
Simultaneous contrast may happen when opposing colors are placed in close proximity to each other.

Name and describe three of Itten’s Colour Contrasts
◘ The contrast of saturation - The contrast is formed by the juxtaposition of light and dark values and their relative saturation.
◘ The contrast of light and dark - The contrast is formed by the juxtaposition of light and dark values. This could be a monochromatic composition.
◘ The contrast of extension - Also known as the Contrast of Proportion. The contrast is formed by assigning proportional field sizes in relation to the visual weight of a color.

How do you determine the dominant colour?
The color with the largest proportional area is the dominant color (the ground).

How can you create an accent with colour?
Accent colors are those with a small relative area, but offer a contrast because of a variation in hue, intensity, or saturation.

What is the difference between contrast dominant and value dominant?
Contrast dominant is a contrast composition that uses a range of luminosity or brightness levels, while value dominance is a composition made up of a variety of tints, saturated hues, and shades.

What is one method of identifying possible options for colour schemes?
By varying the saturation and experimenting with shades and tints within the hue relationship, you can achieve quite a variety of palette options.


All information can be found on:

Janet Lynn Ford. Color Theory Overview. [Online] Available http://www.worqx.com/color/index.htm. 1998-2009