Age is taking a toll on me and my eyesight. With the proliferation of public domain tools and free services to promote the proliferation of advertisements on the masses there has also been the addition of publishing by the uninitiated. I am too included in this group. Over the years I have endeavored to ensure that things I published were simple and serviceable. I am definitely a utilitarian type of person. I do not care much for the frills. Leave the parsley in the fridge.
But then again I do enjoy something that is beautiful. Jeanette lured me with her good looks and snared me with her virtues. Color is not all that important to me, unless it inhibits the function. White is a good color for a car in Texas because it does not get as hot. White walls keep the house lit better. I have been told that the colors in the bathroom that are hot or very contrasting tend to drive the occupant out sooner.
Pigment and light can both be used to generate the illusion of color. Paint uses pigment to generate color and computers use light to generate color. The two act a little different in origin, but the products are related. Art is generally dependent on the infusion of color in a skillful fashion. I have even been known to dabble a little in oil.
Well, anyway, now to the subject that I really wanted to address. Some color combinations are putrid. They clash. Pink on a bright green background is not pleasant to me. Even though we may at first be excited about the freedom afforded by computers and the ability mix colors to our hearts delight, sometimes we should reign in a bit. It is akin to giving a teenager a friend and a car and then setting them out into the world to do what they will with no instruction.
I know that I am dull and boring (to others), but I like things to be conservative. Some people even say I am hard core. The little strip below is made from a color gradient of red with pink text superimposed. I dare you to read it.
Every time somebody finds the background design tools I cringe a bit because the only way to read a message is to highlight it by swiping the cursor over the text and causing the contrasting colors of the highlight to reveal the hidden message. I do like a solid background with a uniform color. I also like the ornate, but not at the expense of utility. I have seen some very beautiful designs of BLOG pages, but the best ones have nice contrasting colors between the text and the background. A color wheel is a great help to know what colors work best together. Opposite sides of the wheel make reading the text easiest.
Some colors are just painful to see. I despise Kermit Green as a background. With 16 million colors in a 24 bit pallet there is no reason to have monochromatic designs, unless you are lazy like me. 
I hear that there are emotions attached to colors. Red is passion, blue represent loyalty, etcetera.
The Sleepover
1 year ago
I worked for years on monochrome monitors and I enjoy creative use of color. To me, colors can be calming, relaxing and soothing or they can be energizing and stimulating. At times though, colors on the monitor can even be aggravating.
ReplyDeleteI have epilepsy and color is a big issue to me. If there is to much red on a page, and it is on top of strong blue or strong green, it strobes. That can actually trigger seizures for me.
I had an employer years ago that asked me to learn some software so that I could help him learn to use it. The screens were made from the primary colors. When I attempted to read red fonts on a blue background, I paid for it with my health. It took us a while to figure out what the cause was.
I work with an extended worktop at work. Part of my work surface is a CRT monitor and part is LCD. The colors resolve differently on the two. I can select colors on the CRT montitor that are just what I'm after. When I see the same screen on the LCD screen, the same settings can be less than desirable.
Thanks for your article.
I've never understood why Providence hospital chose to have it's name in a dark blue neon color. At night, that blue is very difficult to read. You'd think doctors would be smarter than that.
ReplyDeleteI have noted more, not less BLOGs, that are violating my senses since I posted this. Is it a conspiracy?
ReplyDelete