Color Palettes
Build palettes by hue, temperature, and proportion, from Tint/Shade/Tone and Hue Shifting to the Warm Meets Cool palette. Adjust each generator, find combinations you like, and copy the full palette to use in your own work.
Tint / Shade / Tone
Darker isn't duller. Add black and a color darkens but stays vivid. Add white and it lightens but softens — pastels are gentler, not weaker. Add gray and it goes dull at the very same brightness it started at. Same hue, three different moods.
Random Offset
Generative palettes build a color set from one base using small random shifts. RGB offset nudges each channel independently for varied hues. Value offset shifts brightness only — like the same color in sunlight versus shadow.
The 60/30/10 Formula
A simple formula for color balance: 60% fills backgrounds and large environment surfaces, 30% covers supporting elements and mid-ground objects, and 10% is the accent — the pop of color that draws the eye.
Hue Shifting
Flat shading darkens toward black and lightens toward white — the same hue at every step. Hue-shifted shading changes the hue as it darkens or lightens, so shadows and highlights each take on a different color.
Warm Meets Cool
Every color leans warm or cool, and great palettes build on the tension between the two. Choose one color from each side and see how their combination shapes the mood of a scene and the four swatches it produces.
Color in Film
Directors and colorists use color the way composers use music — to set a mood before a single word is spoken. Click a film below to see five colors that defined its look.
Color Through the Decades
Color trends aren't random — they track technology, economics, and mood. Click a decade below to see the five colors that defined it.
Color and Atmosphere
Color transforms the emotional quality of a landscape. The same mountains, meadow, and wildflowers tell an entirely different story depending on the palette — select one to feel the shift in atmosphere.