MY CARTAbout Color Modes and Color Models in Photoshop: Video Lesson
This video lesson, titled “Learn about Color Modes and Color Models in Adobe Photoshop: A Training Tutorial,” shows you the different color modes in Photoshop you can use to describe color within different color models. This video lesson is from our complete Photoshop tutorial, titled “Mastering Photoshop Made Easy.”
Color Modes and Color Models in Photoshop:
Before discussing color in Photoshop, you must first learn there are many ways of describing, or measuring, colors. Each one of these is described in a color model. The most used color models are HSB, RGB, and CMYK, although there are several others that can also be used.
The HSB color model uses the concepts of hue, saturation, and brightness to describe color in terms of the human perception of color. You can use the HSB color model to pick a color in Photoshop using the color tools available, but there is no HSB Color mode for creating or editing images.
Color modes in Photoshop set the number of colors used in an image, the number of channels in an image, and its file size. A channel stores information about color in an image file. The default number of color channels in an image is tied to its color mode and the number of colors in an image, although you can add more channels manually, if needed, (up to 56) to an image.
For example, in the RGB Color mode, there are three color channels for red, blue, and green. There is also a composite channel for editing the image. In CMYK, there are four color channels for cyan, magenta, yellow, and black. There is also a composite channel for editing the image. If you are familiar with commercial plate printing, it may be helpful to think of channels as a plate used to apply a single color in that process.
A picture of a user changing the color mode in Photoshop within the “Properties” panel.
The RGB Color Mode in Photoshop:
The most common model for representing color is the RGB color model. The RGB color model uses various combinations of red, green, and blue light to create the different colors. Because you can combine red, green, and blue light to create white, these are also called additive colors. Many displays, like televisions and computer monitors, use RGB color to display color.
Photoshop uses an RGB Color mode for new Photoshop documents, by default. While RGB is a standard color model, the exact colors used can vary by electronic display. Photoshop uses an RGB Color mode that varies according to the working space setting you set in the “Color Settings” dialog box.
The CMYK Color Mode in Photoshop:
Another common color model is the CMYK color model. This model is based on the light-absorbing effect of ink when printed on paper. As various types of ink absorb white light, the ink absorbs some of the wavelengths, while it reflects others. Theoretically, you should be able to combine pure cyan, magenta, and yellow to absorb all light and create a true black. We often call these colors subtractive colors because they create color by absorbing, or removing, color. Also, because there are no pure inks, you must also include black ink to produce a true black color. We call the process of combining these inks four-color process printing. We also often call the RGB colors and CMYK colors complimentary colors because when you combine any two subtractive colors, you get an additive color, and vice versa.
Photoshop also supports CMYK color with its CMYK Color mode, which you use if designing an image for commercial printing using a four-color print plate process. However, if starting with an RGB image, it’s best to edit the image using the RGB color mode and then switch to the CMYK Color mode at the end of the editing process to create the color separation. Also, since all monitors display color using RGB color models, this also means that Photoshop converts colors when editing in CMYK Color mode to RGB for onscreen display.
The Lab Color Mode in Photoshop:
The Lab color model describes color in terms in human perception, which makes it a device-independent color model. Photoshop supports a Lab Color mode that describes color using lightness (L), a red-green axis (a), and a blue-yellow axis (b). Lab color references help color management systems transform colors between color spaces.
Specialized Color Modes in Photoshop:
All color models support different gamuts, or possible spectrums, of color possibilities. The RGB color model also has more potential colors than the CMYK color model, but there are some colors that the CMYK color model produces that the RGB color model cannot display. There are also other Color modes in Photoshop: grayscale, bitmap, duotone, indexed color, and multichannel. The typical Photoshop user does not often use these specialized color modes, but they do offer additional flexibility for the professional graphic designer, if needed.
