Billmeyer and Saltzman's Principles of Color Technology [Hardcover]

There are many books written on color, some of the classic being the ones by Judd and Wyszecki, Wyszecki and Styles, Durrett and others. The book is exceptional. It provides a visceral understanding of the elements of color by dealing with the fundamentals by example. Each example builds upon the previous ones and as they do so one gains insights that surpass any other text. In many ways it reads like a novel, the wording is smooth and flawless and the inserts of wisdom resonate with the theme being developed.

Chapter 1 defines color. The approach is graphical and not mathematical, yet the mathematics flow immediately from the approach taken. Rather than providing details in equations the authors provide details in very well done graphics. The example used to describe color is brilliant. It uses the metaphor of colored stones and their classification. From that the complex issues and ideas of hue, lightness and chroma are immediately evident and do not require the reader to do anything except follow the colored stones. The shortest and best explanation ever!

Chapter 2 describes color using the red, blue and green models. The authors simply walk through the evolution and issues so that when one arrives at the CIE chart all makes sense. Then of course on page 61 they rip the chart to shreds, metaphorically to state that it is only a cross section of what is required; it forgets brightness!

Chapter 3 is about measurements. The approach is a great balance of ideas, constructs, implementations, and does not fall into the trap of over description or of simplifying too much. The reader is never put in the position of missing the dots in between. There is never "it I left as an exercise for the student" approach that many academic authors take. On p. 83 there is a good summary of all the key instruments and then details.

Chapters 4, 5, and 6 continue to look at measuring color, colorants (dyes versus pigments) and then producing colors. What I found interesting is that plants are said to have pigments, but to the authors pigments generally are non-organic compounds having metals.

What is missing? Well that will depend on each reviewer's favorite topic. Mine are twofold. First, what is color, namely what is the effect of absorption on light and why? For example in plant anthocyanins there are slight changes in the molecule of say cyanidin that change it from red to blue, because one absorbs blue, thus becoming red and one red thus becoming blue. This discussion would have helped. Then there is the issue of plant color in general. How would one estimate concentrations of separate anthocyanins from total reflected light knowing the underlying profiles. This would be applying signals and estimation to the overall problem. But that is just my preference, the book as it is currently done is perfect, I would just have wished that they kept going on, since what they had done was so well presented.

Excelent book, with excelent graphs, explanations that require a medium level in physics, I recommend it highly to painters that want to go deeper in the Color World

The latest edition of Billmeyer and Saltzman's Principles of Color Technology is a complete rewrite. The author's use of in-text examples and "back to principles" appendix facilitate understanding of the concepts. The range of color science conepts (from basic colorimetry to an end-to-end color imaging system) make it a must-have for the color science student to the experienced color professional.

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