Color Vision

ROIS UDDIN MAHMUD

LECTURER

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 COLOR PERCEPTION
• The normal human retina contains two kinds of
light sensitive cells: the rod cells (active only in
low light) and the cone cells (active in normal
daylight and responsible for color perception).

• Cones enable our day vision and color vision.

Rods take over in low illumination. However, rods
cannot detect color that is why at night wee see
in shades of gray.

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TYPES OF CONES

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TRICHROMATIC THEORY

• Rod Sensitivity - Peak at

498 nm.
• 3 types of cones with 3
different photo-
pigments
• Each cone is maximally
sensitive to one primary
color
• Peak sensitivities occur
– Blue at 445nm
– Green at 535nm
– Red at 570nm
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 COLOR MIXING

• Additive mixing
• Subtractive mixing
• In both cases there are three primary colors, three
secondary colors (colors made from 2 of the three
primary colors in equal amounts), and one tertiary color
made from all three primary colors.
• This point is a common source of confusion, as there are
different sets of primary colors depending on whether
you are working with additive or subtractive mixing.
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 ADDITIVE MIXING

• The additive mixing of colors is unintuitive as it

does not correspond to the mixing of physical
substances (such as paint) which would
correspond to subtractive mixing.
• Despite being unintuitive, it is conceptually
simpler than subtractive mixing. Two beams of
light that are superimposed correspond to
additive mixing.
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 ADDITIVE MIXING

The three
primary
colors in
additive
mixing are
red, green,
and blue.
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 ADDITIVE MIXING

• In the absence of color or, when no colors are

showing, the result is black. If all three primary
colors are showing, the result is white.

• When red and green combine, the result is

yellow. When red and blue combine, the result is
magenta. When blue and green combine, the
result is cyan.

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 ADDITIVE MIXING

• Additive mixing is used in television

and computer monitors to produce a
wide range of colors using only three
primary colors.
• A pixel is a juxtaposition of these three
primary colors.

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 SUBTRACTIVE MIXING

• The mixing of colored physical

substances corresponds to subtractive
color mixing, hence it corresponds to
our intuition about mixing colors.

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 SUBTRACTIVE MIXING

• To explain the mechanism, let us consider mixing

red paint with yellow paint.
• The red paint is red because when the ambient
light strikes it, the composition of the material is
such that it absorbs all other colors in the visible
spectrum except for red.
• The red light, not being absorbed, reflects off
the paint and is what we see.
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 SUBTRACTIVE MIXING

The three
primary colors
in subtractive
mixing are
yellow,
magenta and
cyan.
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 SUBTRACTIVE MIXING

• In subtractive mixing of color, the absence of

color is white and the presence of all three
primary colors is black. The secondary colors are
the same as the primary colors from additive
mixing, and vice versa.
• This is not an accident. By mixing additive
secondary colors subtractively one can re-achieve
the primary additive colors.
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 SUBTRACTIVE MIXING

• Subtractive mixing is used to create a variety of

colors when printing on paper by combining a
small number of ink colors, and also when
painting. Green is a part of mixing yellow and
blue. Orange is a part of mixing red and yellow.
Purple is a part of mixing blue and red.

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 COMPLEMENTARY COLORS
• COLORS AT OPPOSITE SIDES OF
THE COLOR WHEEL, HIGH
CONTRAST WITH EACH OTHER. IF
YOU STARE AT A COLOR THEN
LOOK AWAY AT A BLANK WALL,
YOU'LL SEE AN AFTERIMAGE IN THE
COLOR'S COMPLEMENTARY
COLOR.

• BLUE & ORANGE

• RED & GREEN

• PURPLE & YELLOW
 WARM COLORS

• THE WARM COLORS ARE RED,

ORANGE, YELLOW, AND
ANYTHING IN BETWEEN.

• THEY ARE CALLED WARM

BECAUSE THEY REMIND YOU
OF THE SUN OR FIRE.
• WARM COLORS SEEM TO COME
OUT AT YOU IN SPACE.
 COLD COLORS

• THE COOL COLORS ARE BLUE,

GREEN, PURPLE AND ANYTHING IN
BETWEEN.

• THEY ARE CALLED COOL BECAUSE

THEY REMIND YOU OF THE EARTH
OR A COOL CREEK.
• COOL COLORS SEEM TO RECEDE
FROM YOU IN SPACE.
 BLIND SPOT
• The spot where the nerve connections
leave the eye to form the optic nerve
which transmits the signals to the brain.

• This region contains very few light

sensitive cells and that part of an image
on this area is invisible.

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 DEFECTIVE COLOR VISION/ COLOR
BLINDNESS

• Color blindness causes patients, particularly men, to

have difficulty distinguishing between colors.
• Color blindness is not actually a form of blindness, but
a vision problem that causes people to have difficulty
distinguishing colors.

• The most common type of color blindness is red and

green color blindness, though some will experience
difficulty distinguishing blue and yellow.

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 SYMPTOMS OF COLOR BLINDNESS

• Those that have color blindness may find that they

have difficulty telling the difference between two
colors such as red and green.
• Color blinds actually see some colors quite vividly
while others appear washed out, making it difficult
to tell which color they are seeing.
• If any one has been able to see a variety of colors
previously and suddenly develop difficulty seeing
colors, should contact doctor right away.
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 CAUSES OF COLOR BLINDNESS

• Color blindness is caused by cells in the retina

failing to respond to the varying light
wavelengths the eye uses to detect colors.

• These cells are known as the photoreceptors or

rods and cones. Rods are sensitive to light while
cones are responsible for detecting colors.

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 CAUSES OF COLOR BLINDNESS

• Apart from genetic reasons, some conditions

can cause a deficiency in the cones or cause
some types of cones to be absent.

(i) Genetic ( inherited by born)

(ii) Illness (severe long lasting diseases)
(iii)Damage (blow on head, may happen to
the kids by accident).

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 WHAT'S IT LIKE BEING COLORBLIND?
• Most color-blind people see
normally in all other aspects
other than the color of their
weakened cone.
• Color-blind people can usually
Weak green cone
learn by experience to
associate certain colors with
different sensations of
brightness.
• Many victims of the defect are
unaware that they are color- Weak red cone
blind. 11/14/2020 23
 WHAT'S IT LIKE BEING COLORBLIND?
• This condition is largely inherited genetically with men
experiencing it around eight times more frequently than
women.

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 Color Blindness Test

What do YOU see?

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 COLOR BLINDNESS TEST
Image 1
Both the normal
and those with all
sort of color vision
deficiencies read it
as 12.
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 COLOR BLINDNESS TEST
Image 2
The normal read this as 8.
Those with red-green
deficiencies read this as 3.
Those with total color
blindness cannot read any
numeral.
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 COLOR BLINDNESS TEST
Image 3
The normal read this as 29.

Those with red-green

deficiencies read this as 70.

Those with total color

blindness cannot read any
numeral.
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 COLOR BLINDNESS TEST
Image 4
• The normal read this as 5.
• Those with red-green
deficiencies read this as 3.
• Those with total color
blindness cannot read any
numeral.

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 COLOR BLINDNESS TEST
Image 5
The normal read this as 3.
Those with red-green
deficiencies read this as 5.
Those with total color
blindness cannot read any
numeral.
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 COLOR BLINDNESS TEST
Image 6
The normal read this as 15.
Those with red-green
deficiencies read this as 17.
Those with total color
blindness cannot read any
numeral.

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 COLOR BLINDNESS TEST

Image 7
The normal read this as 74.
Those with red-green
deficiencies read this as 21.
Those with total color
blindness cannot read any
numeral.
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 COLOR BLINDNESS TEST

Image 8
The normal read this as 6.
The majority of those with
color vision deficiencies
can not read them or read
them incorrectly.

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 COLOR BLINDNESS TEST
Image 9
The normal read this as 45.
The majority of those with
color vision deficiencies
can not read them or read
them incorrectly.

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 COLOR BLINDNESS TEST
Image 10
The normal read this as 5.
The majority of those with
color vision deficiencies
can not read them or read
them incorrectly.

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 COLOR BLINDNESS TEST
Image 11
The normal read this as 7.
The majority of those
with color vision
deficiencies can not read
them or read them
incorrectly.

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 COLOR BLINDNESS TEST
Image 12
The normal read this as 16.
The majority of those with
color vision deficiencies
can not read them or read
them incorrectly.

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 COLOR BLINDNESS TEST
Image 13
The normal read this as 73.
The majority of those with
color vision deficiencies
can not read them or read
them incorrectly.

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 COLOR BLINDNESS TEST
Image 14
The majority of the
normal and those with
total color blindness
cannot read any numeral.
The majority of those with
red-green deficiencies
read this as 5.

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 COLOR BLINDNESS TEST
Image 15
The majority of the
normal and those with
total color blindness
cannot read any numeral.

The majority of those

with red-green
deficiencies read this as
45. 11/14/2020 40
 COLOR BLINDNESS TEST
Image 16
The normal read this as 26.

A Color Blind person may

only see a 2 or 6
depending on the type of
poor color perception.

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 COLOR BLINDNESS TEST
Image 17
The normal color vision
person will see both
colors that make up the
path back to the X.
A color blind person may
only see the upper or
lower half.
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 COLOR BLINDNESS TEST
Image 18
In tracing the winding line
between the two X's, the
majority of those with red-
green deficiencies trace
along the line, but the
majority of the normal and
those with total color
blindness are unable to
follow the line. 11/14/2020 43
 COLOR BLINDNESS TEST
Image 19
In tracing the winding line
between the two X's, the
normal trace the bluish-
green line, but the majority
of those with color vision
deficiencies are unable to
follow the line or follow a
line different from the
normal one.

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 COLOR BLINDNESS TEST
Image 20
In tracing the winding line
between the two X's, the
normal trace the line
connecting the bluish-green
• AND THE YELLOWISH-GREEN, THOSE
WITH RED-GREEN DEFICIENCIES TRACE THE
LINE CONNECTING THE BLUISH-GREEN AND
PURPLE, AND

those with total color

blindness cannot trace any
line.
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 COLOR BLINDNESS TEST
Image 21
In tracing the winding line
between the two X's, the
normal trace the line
connecting the purple and
orange, those with red-green
deficiencies trace the line
connecting the purple and
bluish-green, and those with
total color blindness and
weakness cannot trace any
line. 11/14/2020 46
 DEFECTIVE COLOR VISION/ COLOR
BLINDNESS

Approximatelly 8% of male and

around 0.5% female population suffer
some form of color-blindness.

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Unfortunately, there is nothing that can be done
once diagnosed with color blindness. Color
blindness is a life long condition that can exclude
people from certain jobs such as a pilot or a job
that would include electronics. If you suspect
colorblindness, you can visit an ophthalmologist
or your health care provider. Being aware of the
disease is the best way to help someone
overcome this disease.
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AFTER-IMAGE EFFECT

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 After-image Effect
Use both eyes, stare at area shown in blue for 15 seconds or so

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 ADVANCED COLOR THEORY
• THE COLOR ORDER SYSTEMS ARE OF THREE TYPES,
• COLORANT-MIXTURE SYSTEM BASED ON SUBTRACTIVE
MIXTURE OF COLORANTS. E.G. PANTONE.

• COLOR-MIXTURE SYSTEM BASED ON ADDITIVE MIXTURE

OF COLOR STIMULI E.G. OSTWALD SYSTEM.

• COLOR APPEARANCE SYSTEM BASED ON THE PRINCIPLES

OF COLOUR PERCEPTION OR COLOR APPEARANCE E.G.
MUNSELL.
 PANTONE COLOR SYSTEM

• PANTONE COLOR SYSTEM IS BASICALLY A COLORANT

MIXTURE SYSTEM. THE PANTONE SYSTEM BEGAN IN
1963 IN THE USA, FOR DEFINING COLORS FOR
PRINTERS, BUT EXPANDED INTO OTHER FIELDS LATER,
E.G. TEXTILES IN 1984, PLASTICS IN 1993, AND
ARCHITECTURE AND INTERIORS (1925 COLORS) IN 2002.
 MUNSELL COLOR SYSTEM

• ON THE OUTER EDGE OF THE HUE

WHEEL ARE THE INTENSELY
SATURATED HUES. TOWARDS THE
CENTER OF THE COLOR WHEEL, NO
HUE DOMINATES AND THEY
BECOMES LESS AND LESS
SATURATED. THE MUNSELL COLOR
SYSTEM IS A COLOR SYSTEM THAT
SPECIFIES COLORS BASED ON
THREE COLOR DIMENSIONS, HUE,
VALUE, AND CHROMA.
 MUNSELL COLOR SYSTEM

THE SYSTEM CONSISTS OF THE FOLLOWING THREE INDEPENDENT

DIMENSIONS:

1. HUE (COLOR NAME) IS DESCRIBED WITH THE WORDS WE

NORMALLY THINK OF AS DESCRIBING COLOR: RED, PURPLE,
BLUE, ETC.

2. VALUE (LIGHTNESS) DESCRIBES OVERALL INTENSITY TO HOW

LIGHT OR DARK A COLOR IS.

3. CHROMA (SATURATION) MAY BE DEFINED AS THE STRENGTH

OR DOMINANCE TO HOW BRIGHT OR DULL A COLOR IS.
MUNSELL COLOR SYSTEM
MUNSELL COLOR SYSTEM
MUNSELL COLOR SYSTEM
THANK
YOU!
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