DEC colours

From: John Foust <jfoust_at_threedee.com>
Date: Tue Nov 16 14:10:20 2004

At 11:17 PM 11/15/2004, John Allain wrote:
>Why I like RGB, chapter 3... All of electronic graphics is based on it. If
>it looks good on a TV, a computer monitor or anything from a Digicam,
>then it has been RGB digitized at some point. A digital camera just
>seems like a super convenient instantaneous color digitizer.

RGB color is far more complex than that. What about the monitor
you're displaying it on? Consider the various phosphor blends
and the implicit or customizable settings of color temperature
in the monitor. RGB "White" isn't "white".

And gamma? If you've installed Adobe products, you may have their
gamma-tweaking tool inline in your display without realizing it.
Some video cards have their own gamma- and color-tweaking tools,
similarly adjusting your palette behind your (and your application's) back.

And digital cameras? You've got to be kidding. They're not
absolute devices by any means. Unless we're talking very high-end,
they're all tweaking the color balance in odd ways and you
probably aren't given any controls over it. Some begin to do
wacky things when the scene doesn't include a wide range of colors.

Reproducing a finish on metal or plastic must be even more
complicated than anything computer-based. Your perception of
the appearance of the finish is potentially dependent on all
sorts of specular and multi-layer-reflective and transmissive
colorings.

- John
Received on Tue Nov 16 2004 - 14:10:20 GMT