Basics of Color

Technology of Food Flavorants and Colorants

A.Sangamithra, Dept. of Food Technology, Kongu Engineering College, Perundurai, TN

Color
Color - perceptual characteristic of light
Light is composed of many colors
We see - colors of the visual spectrum:
red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and
violet
Objects absorb certain wavelengths &
reflect others back to the viewer
We perceive these wavelengths as color
Colors described using hue,
saturation & brightness (lightness) or

HSL

Technology of Food Flavorants and Colorants

A.Sangamithra, Dept. of Food Technology, Kongu Engineering College, Perundurai,
TN

Hue
Hue is the wavelength within the visiblelight spectrum at which the energy
output from a source is greatest
Refer to the set of "pure" colors within a
color space
Hue means both a color and a shade of
a color. Green is a hue, and turquoise is
a hue of both green and blue
Hue - quality that normally identifies a
color such as red, green, and blue.

Technology of Food Flavorants and Colorants

A.Sangamithra, Dept. of Food Technology, Kongu Engineering College, Perundurai,
TN

Saturation (chroma)
Saturation is how pure hue is
The saturation 'range' goes from vivid to
dull to grayscale (the absence of hue)
A hue that is 100% saturated would be
vivid
As the hue is desaturated, it will become
duller and if further desaturated, it will
eventually become grayscale
A saturated color looks clear and bright;
an unsaturated color appears pale,
muddy, or dull.

Technology of Food Flavorants and Colorants

A.Sangamithra, Dept. of Food Technology, Kongu Engineering College, Perundurai,
TN

Lightness/Brightness
Lightness defines a range from dark
(0%) to fully illuminated (100%)
Brightness is the relative lightness or
darkness of a particular color, from black
(no brightness) to white (full brightness)
Lightness and brightness are grouped
into a single term called value, although
the lightness and value terms are
commonly used interchangeably
The value of a color is distinguished by
its relationship to a scale of white to
black

Technology of Food Flavorants and Colorants

A.Sangamithra, Dept. of Food Technology, Kongu Engineering College, Perundurai,
TN

HSL

Technology of Food Flavorants and Colorants

A.Sangamithra, Dept. of Food Technology, Kongu Engineering College, Perundurai,
TN

Technology of Food Flavorants and Colorants

A.Sangamithra, Dept. of Food Technology, Kongu Engineering College, Perundurai,
TN

Technology of Food Flavorants and Colorants

A.Sangamithra, Dept. of Food Technology, Kongu Engineering College, Perundurai,
TN

Color description systems

CIE Color model
Hunter Color lab System

Technology of Food Flavorants and Colorants

A.Sangamithra, Dept. of Food Technology, Kongu Engineering College, Perundurai,
TN

CIE Color model

The CIE color model is a color space model

created by the International Commission on
Illumination known as the Commission
Internationale de lElcairage (CIE)
It is also known as the CIE XYZ color space
or the CIE 1931 XYZ color space
First mathematically defined color spaces.
Mapping system - uses tristimulus (a
combination of 3 color values that are close
to Red/Green/Blue) values, which are
plotted on a 3D space
When these values are combined, they can
Technology of Food Flavorants and Colorants
reproduce
any color that a human eye can
A.Sangamithra, Dept. of Food Technology, Kongu Engineering College, Perundurai,
TN
10
perceive.

Technology of Food Flavorants and Colorants

A.Sangamithra, Dept. of Food Technology, Kongu Engineering College, Perundurai,
TN

11

Hunter Color lab System

The HunterLab system (1958) was the
first to use the opponent color theory
stating that the red, green, and blue
cone responses are re-mixed into
opponent coders as they move up the
optic nerve to the brain
L (Lightness) axis
a (Red-green) axis
b (Blue-yellow) axis

Technology of Food Flavorants and Colorants

A.Sangamithra, Dept. of Food Technology, Kongu Engineering College, Perundurai,
TN

12

Technology of Food Flavorants and Colorants

A.Sangamithra, Dept. of Food Technology, Kongu Engineering College, Perundurai,
TN

13