Quantity contrast

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Quantity contrast refers to the proportions of color areas and their luminosity. When we combine color areas of equal size, some colors, like yellow, stand out while others, like violet, fade into the background. We must apply two criteria when determining color quantities: A) the luminosity and B) the size of the color areas. It was Goethe who determined the color weights. They are still valid today and can be used as a rule of thumb for the size comparison. And they can be explained by the different sensitivities of the cone receptors. 

Yellow = 9, Orange = 8, Red = 6, Violet = 3, Blue = 4, Green = 6

To perceive a color combination as balanced and harmonious, their proportions should align with the inverse brightness ratio. For example, violet and green represent 3 and 6, and therefore the quantity proportions of these colors should be in the ratio 6:3. The image should contain twice as much violet as green so that it appears balanced. If this is the case, we call the quantity contrast harmonic. Conversely, when the ratios significantly diverge, we refer to it as excessive quantity contrast. This is a useful way to add tension and drama to an image. However, if you selectively use an intense color where it’s important, we call this a signal effect. When you sum up the values of complementary color pairs, you consistently obtain the value 12.

Orange + Violet-Blue = 3 + 9 =12
Orange-red + cyan = 4 + 8 = 12
Magenta + Green = 6 + 6 = 12

Next Light also has a temperature

Main Lightness and Color

Previous Quality contrast

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