Choose colors from a wheel or photograph, then test them in the same design.
What you will learn.
Recolor one existing poster with a small role-labeled palette and compare the same content before and after.
Before you begin.
Start with one of the four posters from Give each color a clear job. Keep the original intact. Three separate palette mini-studies are optional exploration, not another completion route.
Learn the concept.
Choosing and combining colors
Words to know.
Swatch
A small sample that shows one color.
One color sample
Dominant color
The color with the largest or strongest presence in the design.
The most prominent color
Accent
A color used in a few places to make something stand out.
A color that draws attention
Color value
The code your design tool uses to save the exact color.
A specific color
The idea in practice
See a worked example.
Keep the text and layout unchanged so you can see what the palette changes.
For exampleKeep the same poster while trying a warm and a cool palette.
Describe the reading experience: “The heading is easier to find” is more useful than “I like pink.”
For example“The dark heading is easier to find” explains what changed for a reader.
Save exact color codes so repeated parts use the same colors.
For exampleRecord the exact color code so the same yellow appears on every button.
Worked swatches. A swatch is one color sample; a palette is the chosen set. On the same poster, write Background #…, Main text #…, and Accent #… beside three samples. Compare the actual foreground/background text pair in a contrast checker, record the ratio, and adjust the pair if reading suffers. The relationship on the wheel and the color’s job are different descriptions.
