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The Basic Concepts of Colour DesignThe first time your Web site loads into someone's browser window is the last time you get to make a first impression! Web designers have but a few seconds to engage a visitor, before they're gone.The importance of colour cannot be overstated, but it is one of the few areas of Web design that gets nothing more than casual consideration. The strategic use of colour can add impact and clarity to your message, and if used correctly, gives you the opportunity of guiding your user toward a variety of emotional responses, helping you to convey your message in a convincing manner. We define harmony as a pleasing or satisfying arrangement of separate parts and you might straight away think of music, a sunset, poetry, nature or even fruit salad. Understanding some principles of colour theory simplifies the design process, which is to establish a harmony of colour.
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Primary Colours There are 3 primary colours. |
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Secondary Colours 1:1 mix of primary colours. |
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Intermediate Colours 2:1 mix of primary and secondary colours. |
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Warm Colours & Cool Colours. |
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Complementary Colours Two colours that are opposite each other. |
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Split-Complementary Two colours either side of opposite - less contrast. |
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Triads of Colours Equi-distant colours, aesthetically pleasing. |
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Analogous Colours Alongside each other - Low Contrast, Monochromatic. |
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Web designers who want to stick to the 216 available common colours that browsers understand and reproduce or the 256 colour (8-bit) capacity of some video cards may find it fairly restrictive, but it does ensure your work is viewed the same over multiple browsers, computer platforms and operating systems.
Getting the colours right is one of the best ways to enhance the user experience and a
Printable Web Safe Colour Palette is available for you to use in your design work. The main point to remember is to avoid the colour clashes which will make your site unattractive or illegible and send your visitors packing. Whilst making broad generalizations about colour has limited value, they are a useful launch platform when considering a new site scheme, layout, subject and target market. We all interpret colours in our own unique way and know what we like and dislike, but broadly, in the Western world, colours signal these meanings: |
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Red: Danger, excitement, passion, love, violence, strength, sex, cheerfulness, blood, urgency and irritablility. Orange: Warmth, playfulness, sweetness and sour. Yellow: Cowardice, warmth, happiness, richness, freshness, aged, sunshine, treacherous, brightness and sensational. Green: Youth, immaturity, environment, health, nature, money, gullible, growth, new, naive, fresh and abundance. Blue: Coolness, dependable, honest, reliable, melancholy, tranquility, depression, dignity, trust, gloomy and power. Purple: Wealth, royalty, dignity, sophistication, elaborate and intelligent. Pink: Soft, innocent, secure and sweet. White: Clear, empty, clean, youthful and cold. Black: Mysterious, rebellious, bleak, evil, unethical, death, elegant, dishonourable, sophisticated and strong. It's interesting to note how all the colours convey both positive and negative feelings and emotions, and emphasizes the importance of careful colour coordination.
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