PSYCH 1XX3 Lecture 12: Module 8 Colour Perception

• School: McMaster University
• Department: Psychology
• Course: PSYCH 1XX3
• Professor: Joe Kim

Document Summary

Colour exists as our way of interpreting light waves. Colour adds to the richness of our visual experience. Colour has a purpose beyond adding richness to aesthetics. Not all living things can see colour. Primates are the only mammals that see in colour. Primates benefit from colour vision when foraging for food. Colour vision is critical for mate selection in birds. Bees see ultraviolet hues on flowers that act a nectar maps. We process colour similar to how artists mix colour pigments. Primary colours: the three colours that can be combined in various proportions to make every colour in the spectrum. Subtractive colour mixing: when coloured pigments selectively absorb some wavelengths and reflect others. A single wavelength is reflected off the surface of an object. Cyan, magenta, and yellow are the primary colours of subtractive colour mixing: these are the colours in a colour printer. Additive colour mixing: when coloured lights add their dominant colour to the mixture.