OUGD404 - Design Principles: Colour Theory Session

Colour Theory Questions

Applied colour theory

• There are two different processes of colour, optical and physical;
• Optical - is made up of dots of colours to make that colour you perceive.
• Physical - it is a flat colour and is mixed so there is no dots.
• When looking at pantone books, formula is physical and CMYK is optical.
• One colour plate is cheaper.
• Greyscale mode has only one plate.
• CMYK mode has three plates.
• You can usually go up to 7 plates
• Work in constant lighting, this is so that the way you perceive the colour doesn't change.
• The tints pantone book - the colour gets more saturated as the dots get closer together. It is not physically getting more saturated, it is just changing the tint. Optically giving you different tints, this is done by adjusting the dot pitch. (which is not the same as DPI, Dots Per Inch)

This session involved presenting our colour theory presentations to a small group. We then thought about some questions we could ask that we want to know the answers to, concerning the colour theory. We then shared the questions we came up with and made a set of group questions.

Group questions

1. When contrast of extension is balanced, is it a high or low contrast?
2. Does contrast of extension apply to colours that aren't complementary?
3. Do tertiary colours have a complementary colour?
4. How does artificial/natural light effect the perception of colour?
5. How does the chromatic value of white stock effect the colour of the print?
6. Does tone affect the temperature of a colour?
7. Is it possible for a colour to be warm if its desaturated?
8. Can complimentary colours be balanced (contrast of extension)?
9. How would simultaneous contrast be used?
10. How do you make gold and silver?