The eye is an amazing piece of work, both from an aesthetic and functional point of view. The way that it interprets color is one of the more fascinating things I’ve ever come across.The difference between what someone with normal vision would see and what someone who was color deficient would see while looking at the same website is striking and, I hope, gives us a greater appreciation of the colors we’re surrounded by (this link will allow you see any website like a color blind person would).

The way the human mind perceives color adds some interesting points of observation to the mix. Colors have cultural meaning, can cause a physical reaction, and are even of philosophical interest.

All of this to say that colors are important. They are ever present and are an integral part of our lives (unfortunately, they are also under-appreciated and very often overlooked).

If you want your website to be a smashing success, why don’t you pay attention to the colors of your website? If color can be used as a defense mechanism in animals and blue can suppress your appetite, what effect does the color of your website have on people?

Extra tip:
The Internet has a wide variety of resources on colors and the best ways to use them for the web. There are websites dedicated to the use of color in design, color theory and there’s even a tool that will blend a color. You can also generate a color scheme, convert a color to its web-safe alternative and experiment with the color wheel.

So stop feeling blue about your lack of an eye for colors and start seeing green by taking advantage of the numerous free tools and resources out there to help you in making better use of colors in your design and marketing pieces!

News Alert: 2008 Color of the Year Chosen By Pantone — can you incorporate this calming color of 2008?