Color Systems

SUBTRACTIVE COLOR PROCESS

• The mixing of pigments and dyes so that all colors of light except the color are absorbed (subtracted).

ADDITIVE COLOR PROCESS

• The mixing of colored lights so that they shine on a surface, they combine (add) to make other colors.

SUBTRACTIVE COLOR PROCESS

• The mixing of pigments and dyes so that all colors of light except the color are absorbed (subtracted).

ADDITIVE COLOR PROCESS

• The mixing of colored lights so that they shine on a surface, they combine (add) to make other colors.

PRIMARY COLORS

• In a color system, the basic colors that cannot be broken down into other colors and that can be combined to create other colors.

Hue – the color wheel.

SECONDARY COLORS

• The product of mixing two primary colors.

TERTIARY COLORS

• The products of mixing a primary and secondary color.

Hue – the color wheel.

KEY

• Used synonymously with value. In a scale of values, high-key colors are lighter than colors in the middle of the scale; low-key colors are darker than the colors in the middle of the scale.

High key

Low key

TONE

• A color that has gray added to it.

TINT

• A color that has white added to it.

SHADE

• A color that has black added to it.

INTENSITY, SATURATION

• The strength or weakness of a color.