Articles

Short, practical reads on color for the web — the formats, the maths behind the contrast thresholds, and the reasons things look wrong on screen.

• HEX, RGB or HSL: Which Color Format to Use

  The three formats every CSS file uses describe the same colors in different languages. A practical guide to which one to reach for, and why HSL is the one you should be editing in.

• How WCAG Contrast Ratios Actually Work

  What 4.5:1 means, where the number comes from, why 'large text' gets an easier target, and the common ways a passing ratio still produces unreadable text.

• Color Harmony: Complementary, Analogous and Triadic, Explained

  The classic color schemes are just three rules about hue spacing. What each one does, what it is good for, and why holding saturation and lightness constant is what actually makes a palette look deliberate.

• Why Your Gradient Goes Grey in the Middle

  Blue to yellow should not pass through mud, but in sRGB it does. What causes the dead zone in the middle of a two-stop gradient and four reliable ways to get rid of it.