Hue describes the identity of the color, saturation is it intensity, value describes its darkness or lightness, and temperature is a subjective quality related to our experience of hot and cold. All are subjectively impacted when compared with adjacent colors.
Color values can affect the reading hierarchy of the text. The element with the greatest value contrast will be read or seen first.
Hue Relationships: The closer together the hues appear on the wheel, the more harmonious or related. The farther apart, the more contrasted.
Analogous colors are adjacent to each other on the wheel, and primarily feature a temperature difference. Complementary colors are opposite of each other on the wheel. Triadic colors are 120 degrees apart from each other on the wheel.
Extension: The volume of a given color needed to support the presence of another color depends on the wavelength and intensity.
VALUE RELATIONSHIPS: Regardless of hue, all colors will have a relative relationship to each other in terms of lightness and darkness. Manipulating this relationship allows the designer to create rhythm and visual hierarchy.
Cool colors appear to recede in space, while warm colors appear to advance. Of the primary colors, blue will recede and yellow will advance, while red stays in the middle.
When working with limited color systems, choosing them based on deeper saturation and closer value allows for a wider range of possible combinations and potential contrast.
Color Psychology: Warmer colors require more energy to process them through the eye and the brain, causing a rise in metabolic rate. Cooler colors require less energy to process, causing a lowering of metabolic rate.
Manipulating color changes the feeling of images, and the designer must anticipate what the viewer will experience.
