The video above talks to kids about Primary Colors. The video is performed by the band OK Go, which you may remember from their primary colored video This To Shall Pass. Also check out the OK Go Color game on SesameStreet.org to mix primary colors and create some art. The image below is useful to remember the combinations:
More than one primary color system
But it’s more complex than that. The three primary colors as seen above only apply to Humans, or other animals with trichromatic vision. Our eyes only respond to red, yellow and blue light waves. So as light wave amounts vary we see the different complimentary colors. But there are other systems.
Primary colors are sets of colors that can be combined to make a useful range of colors. For human applications, three primary colors are usually used, since human color vision is trichromatic. [Wikipedia]
CMYK
For most printing the CMYK color color model is used. This process is slightly different than the color model above, but also uses black to make photographic and graphic prints really pop. This is color by subtraction:
The CMYK model works by partially or entirely masking colors on a lighter, usually white, background. The ink reduces the light that would otherwise be reflected. Such a model is called subtractive because inks “subtract” brightness from white. [Wikipedia]
When all those colors are combined and printed on paper, it looks like this:
RGB
The RBG process is used in a televisions and electronics. This is color by addition, or adding colors of light together to get a new color.
-Mike
Sources:
- Sesame Street
- Wikipedia: Primary Colors, CMYK, RGB
- Kidsone.ws
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