Cite as:
Pos O d, Pretto P, Masin S C, 1999, "The components of chromatic and achromatic colours" Perception 28 ECVP Abstract Supplement

The components of chromatic and achromatic colours

O da Pos, P Pretto, S C Masin

Quantitative relations between perceived lightness, whiteness, and blackness of greys; and between lightness, whiteness, blackness, and chromaticness of the four unique hues were studied. In two experiments, observers evaluated on a 0 - 100 scale the lightness, whiteness, and blackness of 4 greys, and of 10 yellow and 10 red nuances. On the same scale, the same subjects also evaluated the greyness of the greys and the yellowness and redness of each yellow and red nuance, respectively. In agreement with previous findings (Masin, 1987 Revista Latinoamericana de Psicologia 19 393 - 399), the results show that rated lightness of greys was a weighted average of rated whiteness and blackness. For yellow and red nuances, lightness also depended on hue. Some colour attribute seemed to increase the rating of some other colour attribute as the sum of the ratings of whiteness, blackness, and chromaticness almost always exceeded 100. In comparison with the corresponding NCS values, normalised chromaticness was systematically underestimated, and normalised whiteness and blackness overestimated. In the third experiment, different observers evaluated on a 0 - 100 scale the lightness, whiteness, and blackness of greys; and the lightness, whiteness, blackness, and chromaticness of blue and green.

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