Game Development Reference
In-Depth Information
wheel was reinterpreted. Now, you use the red, green, and blue (RGB) light as the primary colors in the addi-
tive RGB color-mixing system. This system most closely approximates how your eyes see colors, and it is
utilized in television, computer monitor displays, as well as web graphics and virtual worlds. The subtractive
CMYK color-mixing system for painting, printing, and dyeing uses cyan, magenta, yellow, and black (known
as K for key) as the primary colors [5,6]. Figure 7.1 shows how these color-mixing systems relate to the visible
spectrum and what their internal components are.
As you see, there are secondary colors that can be made from mixing two primaries in each system.
Tertiary colors are made from mixing one primary and one secondary or two secondary colors in a color
system like RGB or CMYK.
7.2.2 B asiC C olor T erms y ou s hould K noW
For clear communication about color with your team and clients, you should know the meaning of these six terms:
1. Hue is the actual color. For instance, blue is a hue, as is yellow.
2. Grayscale is the range from pure white to pure black, with a 50/50 mix in the middle.
3. Va lue is the “brightness” of the color. Colors look bright or dark because of the amount of light they
let the surface of an object relect back to your eyes. A color with a high value would let more of
the visible spectrum back to your eyes, and a color with a low value would let less light come back
to your eyes. For instance, if you had two pieces of cardboard, one painted light yellow and one
painted dark blue, laid out on a table under natural light, the yellow card would have a higher value
than the dark blue card. If you imagine the underlying grayscale in the color, the yellow card would
be near the white end of the grayscale, and the blue would be near the black end of the scale.
4. Saturation or luminosity (the latter term is used by painters) is the intensity of the color. A highly satu-
rated color would be close to the spectral color and have almost no gray in it. Saturated colors can be seen
in corporate logos like those of Coca-Cola (the red) and Gulf Oil (the blue and orange). Perception of a
color's saturation is relative to the observer's position and the environment where the color is viewed.
5. Complimentary colors are colors that live across the color wheel from each other. Red is compli-
mentary to green, blue to orange, and yellow to violet. One way to ind the complimentary color
of any color you see is to take advantage of the afterimage effect in your eyes. If you gaze at an
isolated square patch of color for 30-60 seconds and then look at a blank white area, you will see
the complimentary color of the previous color. Gazing at a red square will produce a green square
in the afterimage. This effect becomes useful when you need to mix a complimentary color on the
ly. Once you have found the complimentary color, you can test its accuracy. Complimentary colors,
when mixed together, will produce a shade of gray. A truly great online resource is available at
http://colorschemedesigner.com/. This online application will help you pick all sorts of complimen-
tary color schemes and to view them with a variety of color-blindness ilters to help you achieve
visible accessibility for all. This is exceptionally important when you are designing signage and
graphics for your environments. There is a built-in color preview with color-blindness ilters built
right in Photoshop, as well as a plug-in for GIMP (GNU Image Manipulation Program) that will also
allow you to check your color choices to make sure you are designing for all visitors.
6. Tint, tone, and shade are terms that relate to the amount of white, gray, or black in a color. A lighter
tint of red is pink, while a deeper shade of red is reminiscent of the color of dried blood. A tone
falls in between and indicates that a certain amount of gray or another color has been added to the
original color. Figure 7.1 shows a color sample and how it can become a tint, tone, or shade by using
a grayscale and how that affects its value.
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