Colour Theory: A Beginner’s Guide to Hues, Tints, Shades, Tones and Everything In Between
The colour wheel is one of the most useful tools for choosing colours, building colour palettes and understanding why some combinations look wonderful while others … well, let’s not go there. Simply put, the colour wheel visually represents how colours relate to one another.
Primary, Secondary and Tertiary Colours: Let’s Start at the Beginning
Colour theory is the study of how colours interact, mix and relate to one another.
There are 3 primary colours: red, yellow and blue.
By mixing 2 primary colours, you can create a secondary colour. Mixing red and yellow gives you orange, mixing yellow and blue gives you green, and mixing blue and red gives you purple.
When you mix a primary and a secondary colour, you get a tertiary colour. These are red-orange, yellow-orange, yellow-green, blue-green, blue-violet, and red-violet. Tertiary colours are where the colour wheel gets interesting, giving you many of the nuanced colours we actually use in illustration.
Complementary Colours: When Opposites Actually Attract
Complementary colours are opposite each other on the colour wheel. They consist of one warm colour and one cool colour, creating a high contrast when placed next to each other.
The complementary colour pairs are:
red and green
blue and orange
yellow and violet
One of the best ways to use complementary colours in an illustration is to create a focal point. They create a strong visual effect, so illustrators often use them for main character outfits or other details that need to stand out.
If you have any additional questions, please let me know,
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