Improving Your Illustrations with Basic Color Theory

 Before the digital age, people normally used organic materials to paint colors. They used these materials to create the paintings discovered in the walls and ceilings of caves and even art during the Renaissance. However, for every medium, the colors behaved differently when applied on canvas.

 

Today, illustration software has made creating artwork much simpler and easier in terms of colors. Most digital software programs using the RGB (Red, Green, Blue) color model work with three parameters—hue, saturation, and value. 

 

So what are these parameters, and why are they important? As an artist, you must know the basics of color theory and how to apply them to dramatically improve your paintings and illustrations. Let's talk about them more below.

 

Hue

Image by stux

 

By nature, colors take shape from a range of light wavelengths in a visible spectrum. From warm oranges to cool blues, hue refers to the position in that spectrum. The common representation of this spectrum is the color wheel, as shown in the image below.

 

Image by TheDigitalArtist

The right side of the color wheel shows warm colors, while the cool ones are on the left. Remember where each color's position is on the color wheel. Some design software makes it easier for artists by having a temperature knob that you can quickly adjust depending on how warm or cool you want your image to look.

 

Take note of the following basic color schemes when enhancing your work. 

 

Complementary colors

Complementary colors are opposite from one another—these colors contrast, typically on the opposing ends of the color wheel.

Analogous colors

Analogous colors are three adjacent colors. They are near or next to one another on the color wheel. For example, red, orange, and yellow.

Split complementary colors

Split complementary includes a base color and two secondary colors. To achieve this color scheme, choose one color and find its complement, then use the two colors on either side.

 

Bear in mind that when coloring a scene, all hues are affected by the color of the light. An example is this illustration created by Pheladii.