Graphic design relies heavily on the effective use of color and contrast to create visual interest and convey meaning. One important concept within color theory and graphic design is the use of tints, tones and shades. But what exactly constitutes a shade, and how do graphic designers leverage shades to enhance their work? Here we’ll explore the definition of a shade and its role in graphic design.
The Definition of a Shade
In color theory, a shade refers to a color that has been mixed with black to make it darker. When white is added to a color to lighten it, the resulting tone is called a tint. And a tone is produced when gray is added to a color, creating a muted version of the original hue.
So in summary:
– Shade: Color + black
– Tint: Color + white
– Tone: Color + gray
Shades are darker versions of a base hue. Adding black to a color reduces brightness and intensity, creating a darkened variant of the original color. For example, navy blue is a shade of blue, and burgundy is a shade of red.
Creating Shades by Changing Color Properties
Colors in digital design are defined by hue, saturation and brightness (HSB), or sometimes hue, saturation and lightness (HSL). To make a shade, the most direct approach is to reduce brightness and/or saturation while keeping the base hue constant.
For example, to make a shade of orange:
1. Start with a base orange hue
2. Reduce brightness from 100% to 50%
3. Reduce saturation from 100% to 75%
The resulting color is a darker, muted version of orange – an orange shade. This demonstrates how digital tools allow designers to finely control color properties like brightness and saturation to generate shades.
Shades in Graphic Design
Shades serve several key functions in graphic design:
Adding visual interest
Shades create variation, adding nuance and visual interest through stepped color changes. Subtle gradations from light to dark shades can create the illusion of shape, light and depth.
Directing focus
Darker shades visually recede, making them useful for downplaying or backgrounding certain elements. Lighter shades come forward, so strategically placed shades can direct the viewer’s focus.
Conveying meaning
In branding and UI design, color associations help shades convey implied meaning. Dark shades can communicate qualities like sophistication, exclusivity and mystery. Light shades express purity, illumination and tranquility.
Enhancing legibility
Careful use of dark and light shades improves readability of text content by optimizing contrast between text and background colors.
Common Types of Shades
Some typical categories of shades used in design include:
Tints
Adding small amounts of white to a color produces soft, pale tints. Tints lighten a shade and reduce its intensity. For example, adding white to navy blue yields a powder blue tint.
Tones
Mixing gray with a color generates quiet, muted tones. Like tints, tones have lower saturation than the original shade. An example is olive green, which is a grayish tone of pure green.
Dark shades
These are shades with black added to produce deep, dark color variants. Dark shades can be dramatic accents when used sparingly. Burgundy, forest green and navy are all dark shades.
Soft shades
Moderate amounts of black produce soft shades that aren’t intensely dark. Examples include teal, lavender and soft purple. These shades lower brightness while retaining some vibrancy.
Using Shades in Graphic Design Projects
Experienced graphic designers mix and match shades strategically to craft color schemes tailored to specific design objectives. Here are some examples of effective uses of shades:
Branding
A brand’s primary colors are often lightened and darkened to create a suite of branded shades. These shades comprise a flexible palette for use across branding touchpoints. Instagram, for example, uses soft tints and shades of its purple and orange brand colors.
Information design
Alternating shades can clearly delineate sections, categories and relationships within charts, diagrams and data visualizations. Shades add contrast and visual hierarchy without introducing vibrant colors that could overwhelm.
Editorial design
Subtle tints of a single base color can form a cohesive, unobtrusive palette for body copy and layout elements. A darker shade defines headlines for easy scanning without clashing against text.
App UI
Soft shades paired with white space often define app interfaces, backgrounds, buttons and banners. Tints provide sufficient contrast from black text, while shades differentiate UI elements.
Posters
Vibrant base colors contrast with black typography on posters and other graphic-centric designs. Shades of the bright colors then pull together background and graphic elements.
Best Practices for Using Shades
To leverage shades most effectively, keep these guidelines in mind:
– Use 2-3 base colors, and build out a family of shades for each
– Dark shades are bold accents – use them sparingly
– Add shades gradually in 10-15% increments for cohesive color flow
– Watch text legibility. Shades can work with black text, but tints often require darker fonts.
– Use shades to visually push certain elements backwards, and tints to pull other elements forward
When balancing and coordinating shades, also pay attention to factors like relative warmth/coolness and contrast ratios between adjacent shades.
Conclusion
A shade refers to any darker version of a base color, produced by adding black or gray. Graphic designers mix shades to craft nuanced color schemes that enhance visual contrast, reinforce meaning, direct focus and improve legibility. When strategically combining shades from a few base colors, it’s possible to build evocative, information-rich designs that still maintain a cohesive visual system. So an understanding of shades is a vital addition to any graphic designer’s toolkit for working with color.
| Base Color | 10% Shade | 30% Shade | 60% Shade |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yellow | Dark yellow | Mustard | Brown |
| Blue | Slate blue | Denim blue | Navy blue |
