Chapter Six

Color Models

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 Color Models
 Any method for explaining the properties or behavior of color
within some particular context is called a color model
 No single model can explain all aspects of color, so we make

use of different models to help describing different color

characteristics
 When we combine the light from two or more sources with

different dominant frequency, we can vary the amount

(intensity) of Light from each source to generate, a range of
additiona1colors
 Typically, color models that are used to describe combinations

of light in terms of dominant frequency (hue) use three colors

to obtain a reasonably wide range of colors, called the color
gamut for that model
 The two or three colors used to produce other colors in such a

color model are referred to as primary colors

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 Properties of Light
 What we perceive as 'light", or different colors, is a narrow
frequency band within the electromagnetic spectrum.
 A few of the other frequency bands within this spectrum are
called radio waves, microwaves, infrared waves, and X-rays.

 Each frequency value within the visible band

corresponds to a distinct color
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 Properties of Light … Con
 At the low-frequency end is a red color (4.3 X 1014 hertz), and
the highest frequency we can see is a violet color (7.5 X 1014
hertz).
 We perceive EM radiation with in the 400-700 nm range, the

tiny piece of spectrum between infra-red and ultraviolet

 The human eye is sensitive to some frequencies into the

infrared and ultraviolet bands

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 Properties of Light … Con
 Based on the tristimulus theory of vision, our eyes perceive
color through the stimulation of three visual pigments in the
cones of the retina
 These visual pigments have a peak sensitivity at wavelengths

of about 630nm (red), 530nm (green), and 450nm (blue)

 By comparing intensities in a light source, we perceive the

color of the light.

 This theory of vision is the basis for displaying color output on

a video monitor using the three primary colors, red, green, and
blue, referred to as the RGB color model

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 The purpose of a color model
 It is to facilitate the specification of colors in some standard
generally accepted way
 In essence, a color model is a specification of a 3D coordinate

system and a subspace within that system where each color is

represented by a single point
 Each industry that uses color employs the most suitable color

model
 For example, the RGB color model is used in computer

graphics, YUV/YIQ (stands for "luma") are used in video

systems and so on.
 YUV - which is brightness, or lightness, and black and white TVs

 Transferring color information from one industry to another

requires transformation from one set of values to another.

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 RGB Color Model
 In the RGB model, each color appears as a combination of
red, green, and blue.
 This model is called additive, and the colors are called primary
colors.
 The primary colors can be added to produce the secondary
colors of light (see Figure below "Primary and Secondary
Colors for RGB and CMYK Models") - magenta (red plus blue),
cyan (green plus blue), and yellow (red plus green).
 The combination of red, green, and blue at full intensities
makes white

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 RGB Color Model…Con
 The color subspace of interest is a cube (RGB values are
normalized to 0..1), in which RGB values are at three corners;
cyan, magenta, and yellow are the three other corners, black
is at their origin; and white is at the corner farthest from the
origin.

 The colors are the points on or inside the cube, defined by

vectors extending from the origin.

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 RGB Color Model…Con
 The gray scale extends from black to white along the diagonal
joining these two points
 Thus, images in the RGB color model consist of three
independent image planes, one for each primary color.
 The importance of the RGB color model is that it relates very
closely to the way that the human eye perceives color.
 RGB is a basic color model for computer graphics because
color displays use red, green, and blue to create the desired
color.
 Therefore, the choice of the RGB color space simplifies the
architecture and design of the system.

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 RGB Color Model…Con
 Besides, a system that is designed using the RGB color space
can take advantage of a large number of existing software
routines, because this color space has been around for a
number of years.
 However, RGB is not very efficient when dealing with real-
world images.
 To generate any color within the RGB color cube, all three
RGB components need to be of equal pixel depth and display
resolution.
 Also, any modification of the image requires modification of all
three planes.

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 CMYK Color Model
 The CMYK color model is a subset of the RGB model and is
primarily used in color print production
 CMYK is an acronym for cyan, magenta, and yellow along with
black (noted as K)
 The CMYK color space is subtractive, meaning that cyan,
magenta, yellow and black pigments or inks are applied to a
white surface to subtract some color from white surface to
create the final color
 For example cyan is white minus red, magenta is white
minus green, and yellow is white minus blue
 Subtracting all colors by combining the CMY at full saturation
should, in theory, render black
 However, impurities in the existing CMY inks make full and
equal saturation impossible, and some RGB light does filter
through, rendering a muddy brown color

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 CMYK Color Model…Con
 Therefore, the black ink is added to CMY. The CMY cube is
shown which CMY values are at three corners;
 red, green, and blue are the three other corners, white is at
the origin; and black is at the corner farthest from the origin.
 Assumption: ink printed on pure white paper

CMY = White – RGB

C = 1 – R, M = 1 – G, Y = 1 – B
CMYK from CMY (K is black ink):
K = min(C, M, Y)
C = C – K, M = M – K, Y = Y - K

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 YIQ Color Model
 The YIQ color model is the basic color model used in analogue
color TV broadcasting
 Initially YIQ is the re-coding of RGB for transmission

efficiency (minimizing bandwidth) and for downward

compatibility with black-and white television
 The YIQ color space is “derived” from the RGB space.
 It comprises the luminance (Y) and two color difference (I, Q)

components
 The luminance can be computed as a weighted sum of red,
green and blue components
 And the color difference, or chrominance, components are
formed by subtracting luminance from blue and from red

 The principal advantage of the YIQ model in image processing

is decoupling of luminance and color information

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 YIQ Color Model…Con
 The importance of this decoupling is that the luminance
component of an image can be processed without affecting its
color component
 For example, the histogram equalization of the color image
in the YUV format may be performed simply by applying
histogram equalization to its Y component.

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 HSV and HLS Color Models
 The HLS (hue, lightness, saturation) and HSV (hue,
saturation, value) color models were developed to be more
“intuitive” in manipulating with color and were designed to
approximate the way humans perceive and interpret color
 Hue defines the color itself:

The values for the hue axis vary from 0 to 360 beginning and
ending with red and running through green, blue and all
intermediary colors
 Saturation indicates the degree to which the hue differs from a

neutral gray.
The values run from 0, which means no color saturation, to 1,
which is the fullest saturation of a given hue at a given
illumination.

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 HSV and HLS Color Models…Con
 Intensity component - lightness (HLS) or value (HSV),
indicates the illumination level
 Both vary from 0 (black, no light) to 1 (white, full
illumination).
 The difference between the two is that maximum saturation of
hue (S=1) is at value V=1 (full illumination) in the HSV color
model, and at lightness L=0.5 in the HLS color model
 The HSV color space is essentially a cylinder, but usually it is
represented as a cone or hexagonal cone (hexcone)
 This because, the hexcone defines the subset of the HSV
space with valid RGB values

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 HSV and HLS Color Models…Con
 The value V is the vertical axis, and the vertex V=0
corresponds to black color

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 HSV and HLS Color Models…Con
 Similarly, a color solid, or 3D-representation, of the HLS
model is a double hexcone with lightness as the axis, and the
vertex of the second hexcone corresponding to white

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 End of Chapter Six!!!
THANK YOU!!!
See You in Next Class!

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