Post by Lisa on Jan 3, 2010 15:02:03 GMT 10
Tips for Colour Schemes
by Ubiquitous
Colour is an important tool in art. Picking the right colour scheme can be just as important as any other element of your artistic work. So below are a few ideas on types of colour schemes
Types of colour scheme:
• Monochromatic - Use different shades of the one colour. Many of Goldenlake’s theme-week layouts use these sorts of colour schemes.
• Warm or cool colours – Blues and greens are cooler colours, while yellows and reds are warmer. These colour schemes allow for a bit more of a blend between colours
• Neutral Colour Schemes – Use browns, greys, or white and black, particularly where you don’t want colour to be the focus.
• Accented Colour Schemes – Using a neutral colour scheme, but with a non-neutral colour. The art tutorial is a example of this one (as is the normal Goldenlake layout), and it’s a great way to highlight something particular in a piece of art.
• Complementary Colour Schemes – Uses colours that are opposite each other on the colour wheel. Blues with oranges, purples with yellows, and reds with greens are examples of this. Mind you, the latter often runs the risk of looking like Christmas.
• Analogous Colour Scheme – Uses colours that are next to each other on the colour wheel. For example red, orange and yellow.
Tips for colour schemes
• Pick colours from an image – If you have colours that work well in an image, they’re usually going to work well in a broader colour scheme.
• Be aware of how colour is read – Certain colours look different against different colours, and where the colour might look quite good on some colours, it might clash or look hard to read against others.
• Use different shades – adding lighter and darker shades of colours adds depth to the piece, while also lessening the chances of colours clashing. This is a bit of a must for analogous colour schemes.
• Break the rules – at the end of the day, it is art, so don’t be afraid to break the rules and do your own thing. There are times when they can be broken and still look awesome!