Colour Theory

Colour theory is used to show which colours match well together (otherwise known as complementary). Colour theory is also useful for showing emotion or to represent a certain theme within a product. For example orange may be used to show warmth whereas light blue may be used to represent winter.

One example of this method being used in production is the iPhone box (as shown below). The box is black because black represents the unknown and mystery, it makes the buyer / audience feel curious and want to buy the product. Another reason why it is black is because it represents power. This suggests that the iPhone is a very powerful phone.

Colour theory is used in a very wide range of areas. These include:

Adverts
Film Production - Trailers
Product Design
Packaging
Signs
Logos and Icons
Photos

There are many different types of terms used in colour theory. Here are the key ones:

Analogous - Colours next to each other (orange & red)
Complementary - Opposite colours (red & green)
Split Complementary - Two colours close to each other and one at the other side of the colour wheel
Triad - Colours that join in a triangle in the colour wheel
Tetradic - Two pairs of colours arranged into two complementary pairs
Monochromatic - Just one colour, different shades