Additive & Subtractive Color
Two fundamentally different color systems — additive mixes light (RGB, screens) while subtractive mixes pigment (CMYK, print).
What it means
Additive color starts with black (no light) and adds wavelengths. Red + Green + Blue light at full intensity produces white. This is how screens work — every pixel is a combination of RGB sub-pixels emitting light. More light means brighter, lighter colors.
Subtractive color starts with white (full light, like white paper) and removes wavelengths through pigment absorption. Cyan + Magenta + Yellow pigments at full strength theoretically produce black (in practice, a muddy brown, which is why CMYK adds a Key/black channel). More pigment means darker, deeper colors.
Why it matters in palette design
Understanding the additive/subtractive divide explains why screen colors and print colors behave differently. A vivid RGB blue may look dull in CMYK because the blue gamut in print is narrower. PerfectPalette's Color Modes article covers both systems. If you export palettes for print (CMYK), expect some colors to shift — especially saturated blues and greens.
Common confusion
Additive primaries (RGB) vs. subtractive primaries (CMY): Red is a primary in additive but a secondary in subtractive. The traditional art-class primaries (red, yellow, blue) are a simplified and technically inaccurate version of the subtractive system — modern subtractive primaries are cyan, magenta, and yellow.
Example
A brand designer picks a vivid electric blue (#0066FF) on screen. When sent to a printer, the CMYK conversion produces a noticeably duller blue because that hue sits near the edge of the CMYK gamut. The screen (additive) can produce more saturated blues than ink on paper (subtractive).
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Apply this to your palette
Open PerfectPalette and put these concepts into practice with your own colors.