What are the primary, secondary and tertiary colors
Before we start learning about this, let’s talk a little about color.
The color is perceived through the eye and occurs independently of the color of the matter itself, it can then be said that it is a sensory impression, which we receive through the eyes.
Most people receive this type of visual experience in the same way, and we can see thousands of colors due to light falling on objects.
Color can be a physical or chemical concept; the first says that it is a physical property and that it is emitted by substances and objects and the second is given by a reaction of various elements (a formula).
It is a physical chemical phenomenon where the color depends on the length of the waves produced by light rays that reach our eyes and are interpreted by the brain, so in order for us to perceive the color there must be light. Light shines and is reflected from an object which bounces some colors and absorbs others, the human eye is able to see only those that are reflected or bounced.
The sun’s rays contain all the colors of the traditional rainbow mixed together, thus giving the well-known white light.
Light is made of electromagnetic waves, which propagate traveling at high speed (300,000 kilometers per second) through different sources of light, such as the sun. Each color has a different wavelength. Red is the color with the longest wavelength that the human being can perceive and the shortest is the violet color ; That is why the human eye cannot see ultraviolet (shorter wavelength) although bees and some birds can; Humans cannot see infrared, which has a longer wavelength than red, but they can feel its heat.
Even the colors that are reflected can influence the psychological behavior of the human being, for example, yellow expresses serenity, white peace, black evil, but at the same time elegance and nobility, among others.
There is a traditional color circle created by Isaac Newton in 1666 and which is based on the colors yellow, blue and red (primary), from there various artists and scientists have shown variants of this initial concept.
In color theory there are several colors; Next we will see what the primary, secondary and tertiary colors are.
What do you need for the Colors?
Want differences and know what the primary, secondary and tertiary colors are.
Color Instructions
- Primary colors: Primary colors are those basic colors that cannot be formed by mixing other colors, they do not have shades in common. Three primary colors are the ones that predominate and are given by the trichromatic vision of the human being, who has three types of receptors, which respond to very specific light wave lengths. Color wheels are made based on the primary colors. There is a modern theory and a traditional one that do not agree between what the primary colors should be. Modern theory differentiates between light colors and pigments. Light colors (RGB) are red, green and blue and pigment colors (CMY) are cyan, magenta and yellow. The traditional primary colors (RYB) are yellow, blue and red, from this model comes the CMY and science says that the RYB is already obsolete,
- Secondary colors: are those that are produced by mixing 2 primary colors. For example, if red is mixed with yellow it will give us orange, if red is mixed with blue it will give purple and if yellow is mixed with blue it will give green.
- Tertiary colors: are those that are given by mixing a primary color with a secondary one. These really what they achieve is to give the nuances to the colors. For example, if green is combined with blue, it will give a blue-green or navy blue color. In short, tertiary colors are secondary colors with fewer or more primary colors to achieve darker or lighter tones.
Tips for Colors
- The white color is the result of the set of all colors, it is the superposition of colors, while black is the one that has the absence of color, that is, white does not absorb colors but rather reflects them, while black absorbs colors and does not reflect them. Artists consider black as a color, but scientists do not, since it is the absence of color.
- Cyan is a color that is not among the colors of artists, such as painters, it is more typical of photography and graphic arts, that is why the primary colors used by artists such as painters and by color theory are not in agreement. agreement.