RGB

Light creates the RGB color space. The visible spectrum is created by merging Red, Green and Blue colored light from the sun. Different combinations of color strengths from these three primary colors create the RGB color spectrum. Since the colors are added together, this color model is called Additive. Color is created in RGB by designating the strength of each color light. Each color strength can range from 0 to 255. The amount of color combinations possible in the RGB color space is 16,777,216.

Pixels are used to display RGB color. Most monitors are capable of displaying "true color" which utilizes all 16.7 million RGB colors and is accomplished by using 24 bit pixels. Each pixel on the screen has a full 8 bit byte of information for Red, an 8 bit byte of information for Green and an 8 bit byte of information for Blue. Each 8 bit byte carries 256 levels of color strength (256 x 256 x 256 = 16,777,216).

Creating colors

in RGB is accomplished by adjusted each level of Red, Green and Blue numerically. Each number representation of the color is part of an RGB color triplet: (r,g.b). For example, the color triplet for pure red is: (255,0,0). Red is "full on" with blue and green turned off completely. The primaries are some examples of "full on / full off" color triplets.
RGB Triplets
Mixing the color strengths between 0 and 255 creates the millions of colors available. For example, by keeping red at full strength and adjusting green and blue, you can transform an orange into a magenta by increasing blue. To lighten the color, simply increase the strength of green. The closer the numbers are to 255, the lighter the color. As you adjust closer to zero, the colors become darker.

RGB Triplets Adjusted RGB Triplets Adjusted Darker Eye Graphic Camera Graphic Tablet Graphic

BLACK & WHITE

To create white in RGB, each primary must be turned "fully on". Light from the sun is white until you bend or refract the light to see the rainbow of the visible color spectrum. Theoretically, if you had three flashlights, one with a pure red light bulb, one with pure green and one with pure blue, and each light was aimed to overlap, you would have pure white light. To create black, we simply turn off the light. A black pixel is a pixel that is "fully off".

RGB Lights creating white RGB Lights out for Black

  White (255, 255, 255)                 Black (0, 0, 0)



DEVICES Which devises use RGB? The human eye percieves color in RGB. Any digital or analoge display will use RGB color: monitors (CRT, LED, Plasma), tablets, phones, televisions and video game consoles. Input devices such as digital cameras and scanners also use RGB color. If your design will be viewed digitally, you'll want to either create it or convert it into RGB. To ensure your colors are communicated properly on the web, learn about Hexadecimal colors. For conversion resources, take a look at the Tools section. If you'd like to understand how each color space relates to each other, check out the Guide.

Monitor Graphic