A Web Designer’s Approach to Color Scheme

Knowledge about colors comes naturally and most of us know that they provoke an emotional response but designers are a little ahead in the color department. They know exactly what type of color will be suitable for usage in a specific field and how people will respond to it. This knowhow is part of their job as they have to get the color scheme right for websites. A color scheme is built by following a step by step procedure and getting the same wrong can seriously muddle things up. So, let’s learn the steps through which one can make an effective color scheme.

Step 1 - Selecting the base color

Base color is the very foundation of building a color scheme. The base color, at a subliminal level, gives the visitor an idea about the website. It also helps in setting the mood of the website. Every color leaves an impression and the designer has to make sure that the selected base color is in harmony the objective and image of what the website represents. Imagine General Motors having a website with base color pink and you will get an idea what I wished to convey in the previous line. Any color can be used as base color, given that it accentuates the business, organization or person it is representing.

Step 2 – Working on color harmonies

After deciding on the base color, professional website design specialists start working on color harmonies. Color wheel plays the role of a creator in color harmonies. It is rather easy to work on and, after experimenting a little, even a newbie can evolve different color harmonies to create contrast and feels. Some of the most popular color harmonies are monocromatic, complementary, triadic and analogous. Choice of color harmony also depends on the number of elements designer wish to focus on. An experienced designer has more chances of getting the color harmony right than a novice.

Step 3 – Tint, shade and tone

This is the last step of color scheme work but certainly not any less important. Colors are chosen in the earlier stages along with the place of their respective usage. Now, one has to work on tint, shade and tone of the chosen colors. Working on the tint, decision is to be made about how light one wants the color from its pure hue. This is often accomplished by adding more white. While working on the shade, decision is to be made about how dark one wishes the color from its pure hue. While these elements may seem unnecessary to some, professionals that offer corporate web design services pay great importance to it.

Determining color scheme is not a simple process but it is not at all boring or tiring. With a little interest, one can evolve an awe inspiring color scheme for website without any outside help. Even in small business web design that usually ask for simple websites, great importance is being given to color schemes and other related elements to enhance the visual appeal.

So, this is how a designer handles color scheme.