Color plays an integral part on how we see the world around us. It is intriguing how color is perceived differently by various people. One person may interpret red more intensively than someone else. Several factors influence our perception like ambient light, age, eye receptors and color memory.
Here, technology can aid us. It allows objective measurement of the colors around us. Accurate color measurement is important for many professionals like artists, designers, photographers and material engineers. They use sophisticated tools like spectrometers to identify and match colors as correctly as possible. For everyday color reading needs of non-professionals, there are some general-purpose choices available to help them choose paint colors.
Smartphone color apps to measure color
There are times when non-professionals might need to read colors. This typically happens when they must identify and pick colors for their homes. For them, there are smartphone apps available for download and use as an overall guide to help with their color decisions.
The smartphone’s camera identifies colors when pointing towards objects real-time or to photos. The apps return color values depending on the formats they use which aid in color matching.
Benefits of Color Apps
Color apps have some benefits. First and foremost, most of them are free. So, there is no harm in downloading a few and testing them out to see which works best for you. They have good speeds and usually get you the results in seconds.
They also serve as a quick measurement tool to help guide your color decisions and decrease some of the common color mistakes faced during paint selection. When guided by a professional, they serve as decent color measuring tools that will work for most common purposes.
Limits of Color Apps
Keep in mind, color measurement apps are not perfect and have their limits. Hence the reason they are more of a “general-purpose” alternative. Since they analyze color with the smartphone’s camera, which are not spectrometers, the results they yield are not perfect.
The following reasons influence the limits of colors detection by cameras. Difficulty in capturing ambient light, chromaticity, background effects and the color gamut spectrum covered by the device. All these reasons may shift the colors appearance slightly compared with what your eyes sense.
Many color apps are available on both iOS and Android. However, only a handful of them that are worth your time. These are our picks for the top 5-color apps to help you choose paint color.
1. Color Snap
Color Snap is by the popular paint company, Sherwin-Williams. You can take a new photo or upload an existing photo containing the color you would like to identify. Color Snap automatically detects the colors in your photo and provides you with representative color names. RGB values are available for the colors detected which you can save or share with other people. It’s free for iOS and Android users.
2. Color Smart
Color Smart is made by another popular paint company, Behr. It’s easy to use and allows users to identify specific colors in a photo. The identified colors can be previewed in select room vignettes. This app is also free for iOS and Android devices.
3. Color Grab
Color Grab has a slight advantage over the other apps. It identifies colors in real-time using the camera’s viewfinder. It gives color values for other color profiles such as Hex, RGB, CMYK, LAB and LUV. You can save these values or share them with other people. This free app is only available for Android users.
4. Color Capture
Color Capture is the sleekest app on the list. The user-interface is spot on and it quickly allows you to identify colors on the fly. Like the other color apps, you save and share the colors that have been identified. The app is free and available for iOS and Android devices.
5. Project Color
Project Color is provided by Home Depot and lets you match colors by clicking or uploading a photo. It pulls color information from the multiple brands of paints sold at Home Depot to make color matching easier. You can even view a specific color on your wall in real-time, using your phone’s camera. This app is also free and available on both iOS and Android.
Still Unsure What Color Is Right for You? Contact A Color Professional
Sometimes these color apps may not be enough, and you need more help and expertise to help you find the perfect color. There are bound to be some differences between the colors you see on the app and what you get from the paint store.
So, if you are still unsure about the whole process, it is best to reach out to a color professional. With their experience, knowledge and specialized tools, they are better suited to help you with all your color needs.
