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Adobe Web Tech Curriculum

Unit 5: Introduction to Graphics

Lesson 5.2: Introduction to Color

Hue, Saturation, and Brightness

The Color Wheel
Hue, Saturation, and Brightness

The Color Wheel

Let's briefly discuss the concept of the color wheel and why you should have a general understanding of its significance when working with color. Think of the color wheel as a 360-degree circle of color (red starts the circle at 0 degrees). It is divided into three types of colors:

Primary colors — Red, Yellow, Blue. Primary colors are true colors; they don't involve blending colors together.
Secondary colors — Orange, Green, Purple. Secondary colors are the result of the blending of two primary colors. Orange results from blending red and yellow; green results from blending yellow and blue; and purple results from blending blue and red.
Tertiary colors — Tertiary colors are the result of blending a primary color with a secondary color.

So why is it important to have a basic understanding of the color wheel? When we begin exploring color in Photoshop and Illustrator, you'll put some of the basic color wheel information to use.

Hue, Saturation, and Brightness

The basic color terms hue, saturation, and brightness are used to describe color. You will have an opportunity to see how these terms are used and actually manipulate their values in an upcoming lesson, but right now, let's check out the definitions of hue, saturation, and brightness:

Hue: Refers to what most of us mean by "color." It is the generic name used to describe a color, e.g., red, green, yellow, orange, etc.
Saturation: Refers to how pure the color is. A fully saturated color is the truest version of that color. Primary colors (red, yellow, and blue) are fully saturated.
Brightness: Refers to the amount of white there is in the color.