Hues Of The Website

Hues Of The Website

‘First impressions,’ if hold true then website colors are the defining element in a web site. The colors of the website should be the prime concern of web designers while designing a website. This is because it is what either attracts or distracts the viewers at the first glance. The colors used in a website can make it look either monotonously plain that bores the visitors or so contrastingly chaotic that scares them away altogether.

The web browsers can only recognize 256 colors, out of which only 216 colors are shared commonly by all the browsers. Thus, while designing the key elements of a website, the designers should strictly restrict themselves within the 216-color pallet.
If one ventures outside this said limit, then the colors that are used would not even exist within that browser. The browser has to mix the non-existing colors. For the colors to get displayed, the browser will need to borrow tiny dots from the colors native to form the approximate color. This is known as ‘dithering.’ Some displays distort the tiny dots to the point where the image is becomes so speckled that it fails to appear as a solid color. And if the text is placed over the dithered color, it becomes extremely hard to read. This is why only browser safe colors should be used when using solid color as a design element. But even some of the browser safe colors require caution.

The eye muscles tire out after prolonged exposure to bright colors. The back of the eye contains a thin layer of tissue, on which are placed millions of tiny light sensing nerve cells called rods and cones. The cone triggers off response mechanisms to different light wavelengths. When the eye is made to concentrate on bright colors continuously, the cones become tired and fatigued. Then the opposite cones start to function and cause illusionary visibility of coloration. And prolonged concentration causes the eye muscles to strain and tire out.
Even caution signs are usually painted in yellow. It is because pure yellow strains human eyes the most in comparison to any other color. And thus, it is the first color that catches the eye even in a chaotic set up.

Thus, bright colors like yellow and red should be used very sparingly and judiciously on the websites. An overdose of these colors would just irritate visitors and makes them leave. They should only be induced in areas that need special attention! If there is a particular area which requires more focus than the rest of the page, then that are could be highlighted using these bright colors.