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Color Index: Over 1100 Color Combinations, CMYK and RGB Formulas, for Print and Web Media
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Author: Jim Krause
List Price: $23.99
Our Price: Click to see the latest and low price
ISBN: 1581802366
Publisher: How Design Books (April, 2002)
Edition: Paperback
Sales Rank: 2,073
Average Customer Rating: 4.65 out of 5
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Customer ReviewsRating: 3 out of 5
Look at the pictures, but don't read the copy
This book provides a designer with a fabulous resource for generating color schemes/combinations quickly and easily. In that respect, it inspires. However, the author provides recipes (CMYK and RGB values) "checked for accuracy", never stating on what media those values may be valid. He then excuses himself by saying that "the potential for error exists". The implication that a set of CMYK values is in any way "accurate" beyond the inks and papers used for this particular publication is so, eh, mid-1990s. A true, but technically more challenging statement of the color values should have been made with device independent Lab values. Then anyone with Adobe Photoshop, for example, could reproduce the samples on his or her own media. This is, in fact, what Pantone does. And aspiring web designers beware! The author clearly has little but old and second-hand knowledge of the facts of color on the web. He describes the anachronistic "browser safe" colors as if most computer users still had old 8-bit (256 color) monitors, and as if there was ever color consistency across them. In those bad old days we fought dithering (the "speckles") in solid fills by choosing from amongst the 216 colors Macs and PC monitors had in common. Those days, except for some dusty intranets here and there, are gone. deceased. expired. However, neither then nor now could we count on consistency on our viewers' monitors--unless we can strongarm our audience into calibrating and profiling them. These particular rants aside (the writer sighs benignly), the color examples are truly wonderful, useful, and inspiring. In short, fabulous for samples, but not for accuracy of data.
Rating: 5 out of 5
a must have for anyone in design
i purchased all the books in the index series, and they are all helpful, but this one is by far the most useful of them all! it is easy to go through, i love how the color combinations are separated by effect. my favorite thing of all is that it's so durable. being hard on books like i am, i only wish that more people constructed their books this way. a must have for anyone who works with color!
Rating: 5 out of 5
Worth the money
Tasteful use of color can make or break a web or print design, and this book is an invaluable tool in that endeavor. At first glance it might seem overpriced for nothing but a collection of color combinations, but you'll find yourself turning to it again and again for inspiration.The color schemes are organized by category ("Quiet", "Natural", "Restrained Chic", etc.), and each is presented in three different ways - as a set of plain vertical bars, as a homogenous pattern, and used in a simple iconic design. Throughout the book are brief passages on different color techniques ("Unexpected Color", "Muting", etc.), which help stimulate brainstorming and experimentation. The book is well-made, too - it's printed on sturdy paper, conveniently sized, and thoughtfully bound in a waterproof vinyl cover. Stick it in your pocket or backpack and take it anywhere. A great practical purchase (or gift!) for any graphic designer.
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