
A monochrome or monochromatic image, object or
palette is composed of one color (or
values
In ethics and social sciences, value denotes the degree of importance of some thing or action, with the aim of determining which actions are best to do or what way is best to live ( normative ethics), or to describe the significance of different a ...
of one color). Images using only
shades of grey are called
grayscale
In digital photography, computer-generated imagery, and colorimetry, a greyscale (more common in Commonwealth English) or grayscale (more common in American English) image is one in which the value of each pixel is a single sample (signal), s ...
(typically digital) or
black-and-white (typically analog). In physics,
monochromatic light refers to
electromagnetic radiation
In physics, electromagnetic radiation (EMR) is a self-propagating wave of the electromagnetic field that carries momentum and radiant energy through space. It encompasses a broad spectrum, classified by frequency or its inverse, wavelength ...
that contains a narrow band of wavelengths, which is a distinct concept.
Application
Of an
image
An image or picture is a visual representation. An image can be Two-dimensional space, two-dimensional, such as a drawing, painting, or photograph, or Three-dimensional space, three-dimensional, such as a carving or sculpture. Images may be di ...
, the term monochrome is usually taken to mean the same as black and white or, more likely,
grayscale
In digital photography, computer-generated imagery, and colorimetry, a greyscale (more common in Commonwealth English) or grayscale (more common in American English) image is one in which the value of each pixel is a single sample (signal), s ...
, but may also be used to refer to other combinations containing only tones of a single color, such as
green
Green is the color between cyan and yellow on the visible spectrum. It is evoked by light which has a dominant wavelength of roughly 495570 nm. In subtractive color systems, used in painting and color printing, it is created by a com ...
-and-white or green-and-red. It may also refer to
sepia displaying tones from light tan to dark brown or
cyanotype
The cyanotype (from , and , ) is a slow-reacting, photographic printing formulation sensitive to a limited near-ultraviolet and blue light spectrum, the range 300 nm to 400 nm known as UVA radiation. It produces a monochrome, blu ...
("blueprint") images, and early photographic methods such as
daguerreotype
Daguerreotype was the first publicly available photography, photographic process, widely used during the 1840s and 1850s. "Daguerreotype" also refers to an image created through this process.
Invented by Louis Daguerre and introduced worldwid ...
s,
ambrotypes, and
tintype
A tintype, also known as a melanotype or ferrotype, is a photograph made by creating a direct positive on a thin sheet of metal, colloquially called 'tin' (though not actually tinplate, tin-coated), coated with a dark lacquer or Enamel paint, ...
s, each of which may be used to produce a monochromatic image.
In computing, monochrome has two meanings:
* it may mean having only one color which is either on or off (also known as a
binary image
A binary image is a digital image that consists of pixels that can have one of exactly two colors, usually black and white. Each pixel is stored as a single bit — i.e. either a 0 or 1.
A binary image can be stored in memory as a bitmap: a p ...
),
* allowing shades of that color.
A
monochrome computer display is able to display only a single color, often green,
amber
Amber is fossilized tree resin. Examples of it have been appreciated for its color and natural beauty since the Neolithic times, and worked as a gemstone since antiquity."Amber" (2004). In Maxine N. Lurie and Marc Mappen (eds.) ''Encyclopedia ...
, red or white, and often also shades of that color.
In film photography, monochrome is typically the use of black-and-white
film
A film, also known as a movie or motion picture, is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, emotions, or atmosphere through the use of moving images that are generally, sinc ...
. Originally, all photography was done
in monochrome. Although
color photography
Color photography (also spelled as colour photography in English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth English) is photography that uses media capable of capturing and reproducing colors. By contrast, black-and-white or gray-monochrome ...
was possible even in the late 19th century, easily used color films, such as
Kodachrome
Kodachrome is the brand name for a color reversal film introduced by Eastman Kodak in 1935. It was one of the first successful color materials and was used for both cinematography and still photography. For many years, Kodachrome was widely used ...
, were not available until the mid-1930s.
In
digital photography
Digital photography uses cameras containing arrays of electronic photodetectors interfaced to an analog-to-digital converter (ADC) to produce images focused by a lens, as opposed to an exposure on photographic film. The digitized image is ...
, monochrome is the capture of only shades of black by the sensor, or by post-processing a color image to present only the perceived brightness by combining the values of multiple channels (usually red, blue, and green). The weighting of individual channels may be selected to achieve a desired artistic effect; if only the red channel is selected by the weighting then the effect will be similar to that of using a red filter on
panchromatic film
A panchromatic emulsion is a type of photographic emulsion that is sensitive to all wavelengths of visible light, and produces a monochrome photograph—typically black and white. Most modern commercially available film is panchromatic, and the ...
. If the red channel is eliminated and the green and blue combined then the effect will be similar to that of
orthochromatic film or the use of a cyan filter on panchromatic film. The selection of weighting so provides a wide variety of artistic expression in the final monochrome image.
For production of an
anaglyph image the original color
stereogram source may first be reduced to monochrome in order to simplify the rendering of the image. This is sometimes required in cases where a color image would render in a confusing manner given the colors and patterns present in the source image and the selection filters used (typically
red and its
complement,
cyan
Cyan () is the color between blue and green on the visible spectrum of light. It is evoked by light with a predominant wavelength between 500 and 520 nm, between the wavelengths of green and blue.
In the subtractive color system, or CMYK c ...
).
Color scheme

A monochromatic color scheme comprises (
tones, tints, and shades) of a single
hue. Tints are achieved by adding white, thereby increasing
lightness; Shades are achieved by adding black, thereby decreasing lightness; Tones are achieved by adding gray, thereby decreasing
colorfulness
Colorfulness, chroma and saturation are attributes of perceived color relating to chromatic intensity. As defined formally by the International Commission on Illumination (CIE) they respectively describe three different aspects of chromatic ...
.
Monochromatic color schemes provide opportunities in art and visual communications design as they allow for a greater range of contrasting tones that can be used to attract attention, create focus and support legibility.
The use of a monochromatic color provides a strong sense of visual cohesion and can help support communication objectives through the use of connotative color. The relative absence of hue contrast can be offset by variations in tone and the addition of texture.
Monochromatic in science means consisting of a single wavelength of light or other radiation (lasers, for example, usually produce monochromatic light), or having or appearing to have only one color (in comparison to polychromatic). That means according to science the true monochromatic images can be strictly created only of shades of one color fading to black.
However, monochromatic also has another meaning similar to “boring” or “colorless” which sometimes leads to creating a design composed from true monochromatic color shades (one hue fading to black), and the colors created from the one hue but faded to all wavelengths (to white). This is not monochromatic in the strictly scientific meaning of the word. In fact, monochrome in the art world can be as complicated or even more complicated than other polychromatic art.
In physics
In physics,
monochromatic light is
electromagnetic radiation
In physics, electromagnetic radiation (EMR) is a self-propagating wave of the electromagnetic field that carries momentum and radiant energy through space. It encompasses a broad spectrum, classified by frequency or its inverse, wavelength ...
of a single
wavelength
In physics and mathematics, wavelength or spatial period of a wave or periodic function is the distance over which the wave's shape repeats.
In other words, it is the distance between consecutive corresponding points of the same ''phase (waves ...
. While no source of electromagnetic radiation is purely monochromatic, in practice, it is usually used to describe very narrowband sources such as
monochromated or
laser
A laser is a device that emits light through a process of optical amplification based on the stimulated emission of electromagnetic radiation. The word ''laser'' originated as an acronym for light amplification by stimulated emission of radi ...
light. The degree of monochromaticity can be defined by the
spectral linewidth). A device which isolates a narrow band of light from a broadband source is called a
monochromator
A monochromator is an optics, optical device that transmits a mechanically selectable narrow band of wavelengths of light or other radiation chosen from a wider range of wavelengths available at the input. The name is .
Uses
A device that can ...
.
See also
*
Duotone, the use of two ink colors in printing
*
Halftone
Halftone is the reprographic technique that simulates continuous tone, continuous-tone imagery through the use of dots, varying either in size or in spacing, thus generating a gradient-like effect.Campbell, Alastair. ''The Designer's Lexicon''. ...
, the use of black and white in a pattern that is
perceived as shades of grey (may be extended also to color images)
*
Monochromacy
Monochromacy (from Greek ''mono'', meaning "one" and ''chromo'', meaning "color") is the ability of organisms to perceive only light intensity without respect to spectral composition. Organisms with monochromacy lack color vision and can only ...
, a type of
color vision deficiency
Color blindness, color vision deficiency (CVD) or color deficiency is the decreased ability to color vision, see color or differences in color. The severity of color blindness ranges from mostly unnoticeable to full absence of color percept ...
*
Monochromatic color
*
Monochrome monitor
A monochrome monitor is a type of computer monitor in which computer text and images are displayed in varying tones of only one color, as opposed to a color monitor that can display text and images in multiple colors. They were very common in t ...
, used with computers
*
Monochrome photography
Monochrome photography is photography where each position on an image can record and show a different ''amount'' of light (Value (color), value), but not a different color (hue). The majority of monochrome photographs produced today are black- ...
, also known as black-and-white photography
*
Monochrome painting
Monochromatic painting has played a significant role in Modernism, modern and Contemporary art, contemporary Western world, Western visual art, originating with the early 20th-century European avant-gardes. Artists have explored the non-represent ...
, a style of painting that uses a single color (excluding shades thereof)
*
Monochrome printmaking, printing styles that generate black-and-white images
*
Polychrome
Polychrome is the "practice of decorating architectural elements, sculpture, etc., in a variety of colors." The term is used to refer to certain styles of architecture, pottery, or sculpture in multiple colors.
When looking at artworks and ...
, of multiple colors, the opposite of monochrome
References
External links
*
{{color topics
Color
Color depths