Question One

Adobe Illustrator, or equivalent, is used here to create colors. Open Adobe Illustrator. You will be creating a new file to be named Primary Colors (File, Save As...Primary Colors) Open the Window, Show Colors box and become familiar with the various options for creating color. You will be creating your additive and subtractive primaries within the CMYK option for color mixing (select the upper right arrow and go to CMYK). Colors are mixed by typing in the percentages of cyan, magenta, yellow and black, or by moving the small triangle along the appropriate color line.

Individual Primaries

a. Create 6 circles, all the same size, each containing a different primary color, thus the 3 additive and 3 subtractive primaries (3 marks).

To create circles:
1. Select the oval tool and click once on the drawing page. A dialog box will appear.
2. Set the width and height to the same value (example, 1.5 inches), then OK. This will draw a circle of the specified diameter.
3. Copy and Paste the circle 5 times (select the circle using the left arrow tool, then Edit Copy, Edit, Paste), and move the circles to a nice arrangement on the page.
4. Select and fill each circle appropriately.
Note that you will need to mix combinations of the subtractive primaries to create the 3 additive primaries (with the exception of blue (100% cyan + 50% magenta) use 100% for full strength colors, e.g., 100% magenta and 100% yellow = ?). 100% of each subtractive primary alone can fill the other 3 circles.

b. Label the circles (text tool, and type options)

c. Answer question one (3 marks):
1. What mix of subtractive primaries did you use to create each of the three additive primaries?

Color Mixing

a. Create a rainbow rectangle using the Rainbow gradient pattern fill inside of a rectangle (square tool; Window, Swatch Libraries, Default, select Rainbow gradient fill) (2 marks).
Use Linear for Type. For fun, experiment with the angle of the gradient. Notice the angle when negative numbers are used. Notice also the transitions between colors.

b. Answer question two a and b regarding the rainbow:
2a. Name the colors of the rainbow (3 marks).

2b. What are the wavelengths that define each color in the rainbow? (3 marks)

c. Use the Gradient option to create a series of gradient shapes (rectangles or ovals) illustrating the primary colors as placed in the following order (6 marks):

cyan - magenta - yellow
yellow - cyan - magenta
red - blue - green
blue - red - green

Method (using Adobe Illustrator 7.0):
1. Create new gradients using the Window, Show Gradient option. Be sure the Show, Colors, CMYK option is selected as well.
2. For the first gradient, select the gradient colors bar (long, narrow rectangle with color).
3. Start by setting up your color boxes along the lower edge of the gradient color bar. There should be a small box at the left end. Place the cursor about half way across the color bar and click along the lower edge of the bar. Another box will appear. Repeat this at the end of the color bar to create a third box. These boxes will be used to set your 3 gradient colors (create more boxes for more colors; only 3 colors are needed here).
4. Click on the first box and select a color from the Show, Colors, CMYK box (e.g., 100% Cyan)
5. Now click on the second gradient color box and select the second color (100% Magenta)
6. Click on the third box and select the third color (100% Yellow). You now have the first gradient box with the first 3 color combinations from above.
7. Notice the diamonds along the top of the gradient color bar. You can select and move these diamonds to change the length of each color, or the gradation of a color from light to dark (provided a light and a dark version of the color were selected for the color boxes).
8. On your Adobe Illustrator page, create a rectangle and fill it with the gradient you just created (select the Fill option from the toolbar then click on the small gradient square which will contain a short version of the gradient you created in the longer gradient color bar). Your first gradient is now complete.
9. Repeat steps 1-8 above to create the other 3 gradients.

d. Notice the transitions between colors. Primary colors are created by the combination of other primaries as is shown somewhat in the transitions between gradient primaries. Some of the colors are difficult to interpret thus you may need to zoom in on the gradients as well as to refer to your Robinson textbook, Color figures 19.2 and 20.1.

e. Answer question three (4 marks):
3. Look at the transitions between primary colors in each shape. Indicate which primary color is being created by the combination of two other primaries, e.g., what primary color is created by combining yellow and magenta, etc.?

Due Date:

To Be Submitted: Primary Colors File and Answers to Questions 1-3 (questions submitted on-line).

Assessment for Exercise 1:

Primary Color Circles - 3 marks
Gradients - 10 marks
Question One - 3 marks
Question Two-a - 3 marks
Question Two-b - 3 marks
Question Three - 6 marks

Total Possible 28 marks 

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