Some notes on color

These are some ideas I wrote down a while ago with the intention of making an actual tutorial on color ('cause I was asked to), but as they so often do, time and energy got in the way. Plus I'm just not sure which direction to go in. There's a lot to color...but when you work with it to a point where you're semi-comfortable with it, it's not really something that's consciously thought about a whole lot.. You just start picking the appropriate colors instinctually, or you can see that colors aren't working together, without fully considering why. So I just wrote down my personal approach. Color is just something I do, not so much something I think about....though I'm trying to change that.

Spekle and I have been talking about color harmony a bit though, so this kinda focuses on that I guess.

SO! If you have any questions about this, or want me to pick a specific color idea to make a specific tutorial on, please let me know.

Edit: I didn't really think this would get such a large response, but since it did I just wanted to clarify a couple of things. This isn't really a complete tutorial, more like notes that I wrote out trying to get my thoughts on color in order. I just decided to post it 'cause... I don't know, thought someone might get some use out of it. I understand color, it's tutorials I'm not so good at...

So here's a couple of significant points I didn't bring up,
- This is relevant to digital coloring specifically. Mixing colors is very different depending on the medium you're using.
- That said, you can quite successfully mix colors digitally with a roughly 50% brush (at least in SAI and PS, which are all I use)
- You can also get a Key Color by working with colored paper/colored canvas. This mostly applies to traditional media, unless you do most of your coloring on one layer for digital.
- Color is all about trial and error, in my opinion. You just gotta jump into it, throw colors together, and see what happens. However it's much easier when you understand the nature of the color wheel. Once you can integrate that information into your thought process, that's when it becomes something you consciously think about less. You'll know what colors work together just like it's common knowledge. But again, that's just my opinion.

And eventually I will make a proper tutorial on color. >.<


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And some art by me,