Color Picker

Helpful tool for finding the rights colors

Have a site in mind whose colors you adore?

Use a color picker to find out their colors of choice.

I recommended three color pickers. One is fairly basic, the other two offer a few more additional features.

The first, Quick HTML Color Picker, is a simple executable file that does not require installation into the OS. Simply click it and it opens. It works as described above. Hovering the eye dropper over a color reveals the HEX value. This value can be copied to the clipboard and then pasted into an HTML document. I keep this color picker on my USB stick so I can easily take it with me wherever I go.

The second, Absolute Color Picker, works similarly but uses a cross hair over a zoomed-in pixilated mini-screen to pick the color. It is necessary to install it onto your machine. Absolute Color Picker offers the following advanced features:

• keeps history of colors chosen – up to 12
• converts RGB to HEX and vice versa
• customizable color models – there are 8 tabs that display colors in various formats (brightness, radial, hue, 3D, Sphere, Hue 2, Pens, Hexagons). Users can view the color against other colors in each model and adjust it accordingly.
• adjust hue, saturation and brightness
• 17 color palettes

For Windows 7 users, take a look at Pixeur. Pixeur has most, if not all of the same features as Absolute Color Picker. Unfortunately, as of this writing, ACP does not run on Windows 7.

Beginners struggle to find the right color(s) for their website. With an unlimited palette, the amount of colors is overwhelming. It it hard to pick one let alone a collective scheme. For some, an uncertain eye about web design may make them reluctant to choose the right color.

A color picker tool maybe the solution to finding the right color.

How does a color picker work?

Typically, users maneuver an eye dropper tool over a color they see on the screen. This color could be part of the desktop, part of an application or more often, part of a website. Hovering the eye dropper over the color will reveal its RGB or Hex value.

Review other resources at our graphic design tools page.