Amber vs Red

The colour spectrum is a compilation of all shades of colour. Each colour has a place in a section on the colour wheel. A colour wheel is basically a circle of different colour hues. It is important to note that a colour can only be placed in one of three groups; primary colour, secondary colour or complimentary colour.

The colour Red is classed as a primary colour, the other two primary colours being blue and yellow. A primary colour is impossible to replicate if mixing colours. In fact, it is the mixing of primary colours which provide us with secondary colours. The human eye identifies colour by distinguishing the different wave frequencies. Red has the lowest of all frequencies that are identified by the naked eye. The lowest of all wave lengths is called an infrared light. The wavelength of a light that is coloured red is 700nm.

Red is a colour that is used throughout the world to mean many different things. In China, the colour red is seen as a lucky colour; their entire culture is moulded around the colour red. During a time of celebration, children are given red envelopes containing money, and on a wedding day it is traditional for the wedding party to dress in red. As well as good things, the colour red can also denote the bad. Red ink is often used when symbolizing a persons or companies debt; or red can be seen as the colour of anger. Often the colour red is used in traffic management. A red light is the universal sign to stop.

Amber is a slightly more complicated colour to define. It’s based on the colour wheel halfway between Yellow and Orange. Amber is a secondary colour and is of an orange-yellow shade. The precise mix to achieve this colour is seventy five percent primary yellow and twenty five percent primary red. This precise mixture means that the colour Amber is seen as a technically defined colour.

It is often thought that the yellowy orange colour is derived from the actual material substance but it is hard to say exactly. The mineral substance of amber can present itself in many, many different shades of the yellow and red mix. The colour wheel gives us a more precise colour definition. Amber is often used in traffic signalling; it is used to prepare you for either stopping or going. Amber is also used in the signals of moving vehicles.

Summary

1. All colours are defined by three categories shown on the colour wheel; Primary Colours, Secondary Colours and Complimentary Colours.
2. The colour red is a primary colour while the colour amber is classed as a secondary colour.
3. Amber is a combination of 75% Yellow and 25% red.
4. Both Red and Amber are universally used in traffic signalling.
5. Because of its primary status, the colour red can not be replicated by mixing colours.
6. Amber also refers to a resin that is found in rock formations.

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