Planning your colors

Color is one of the essential building blocks of design. It's as integral to a…designer's layout as an if/then statement is for a programmer's code.…A developer who understands the importance of color in a design will have a much…easier time communicating with designers.…A particular color is as important as a particular note in a piece of music.…A color scheme is as important as the key of that music.…The key determines the emotional response of the listener. A minor key creates a…sad mood, whereas a major key generally creates a much happier mood.…

The color palette on the left, with the strong red, orange, and yellow might evoke…something like a street sign, or a traffic light,…whereas the softer colors on the right might evoke autumn leaves.…A good designer uses their intuitive sense, as well as some algorithms found in…their design tools, to create colors that work together in a particular way.…The underlying harmony is governed by mathematical relationships between the…components and colors, just as the underlying harmony between musical notes is…