Tone, Colour And Contrast In Web Design

Web design relies upon the skilful use of colour in order to, firstly, delight the eye, and secondly, draw attention to certain areas of the page. The overall use of colour must be balanced or the design will feel off kilter, with clashes or nauseating combinations sending visitors scurrying away from the site.

Mastering the use of colour is not enough on its own to make a web design succeed, though, as the elements of tone and contrast are perhaps even more important in making the finished look work. For the colour blind, a page that makes sense without relying on colour to indicate that, say, a certain phrase is a link, or that a particular link has been visited, is much easier to use.

Ensuring a page works for everyone means making it work first in greyscale, perhaps using variations in tone to indicate page elements such as links, or basic styles such as underlines. Viewing a site with colour turned off also gives a feel for the contrast and how readable all the text will be for every visitor, not just for those who are colour blind.

If a page works in greys, whites and blacks, it will be much more likely to succeed than one which does not, even though the colours might be beautiful. This is because the emphasis is always on ease of use and readability. At internet marketing company Click Consult we know the differences between tone, colour and contrast and understand how to use them on the pages of your website.