The literal meaning of “Gamut” is “the complete range or scope of something”. The word Gamut can be used along with anything that has a wide scope, be it color, music, etc. Let us understand the different kinds of Color Gamuts available in the digital world today.
What is the meaning of Color Gamut in the Digital World?
Understanding the color gamut is essential for anyone working with digital visuals. By considering the gamut of your devices, you can ensure your colors are displayed and captured as accurately as possible. Let us understand with an example-
For example, in the above picture, you might or might not be able to see the actual color or the flowers as it is seen with naked human eyes. It will be visible differently on differently abled devices, e.g. this picture is sRGB compatible so a device that doesn’t support 99% or 100% sRGB would not be able to depict the same color science this picture will depict on a device that supports 100% sRGB. I hope it is clear now, in simple words if you see the same picture on a basic monitor, you might not be able to view the yellows and purple similar to what you can be able to view in a high-end monitor like LG or even MacBook.
Let us understand the different types of color gamuts available in the digital world today
sRGB (Standard red, green, blue)
As mentioned earlier, this is a widely used color space that represents a good portion of the colors the human eye can see. It’s the standard color space for the web and most common electronic devices.
Adobe RGB
This color space is designed for professional photography and printing. It can represent a wider range of colors than sRGB, especially greens and blues.
DCI-P3 (Digital Cinema Initiatives – P3)
This color space is used in digital cinema projection. It can represent a wider range of colors than sRGB, but not as wide as Adobe RGB.
Rec. 2020
This is a new color standard that is designed for Ultra High Definition (UHD) television. It has the potential to represent a much wider range of colors than any other color space currently in use. However, there are currently very few devices that can display the full Rec. 2020 color gamut.
CMYK (Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Key Black):
While not strictly a color gamut for displays, CMYK is the color space used in printing. It’s important to consider CMYK gamuts when designing for print media, as some colors that can be displayed on a screen cannot be reproduced accurately in print.
Conclusion
From the above list of available color gamut and their usage, you must have understood by now about the color gamut and its importance. Now, whenever you plan to buy any new device like a smartphone, monitor, printer, laptop, etc, always check the right color gamut you require for your work purpose and then make the RIGHT BUYING DECISION!! 🙂
Feel free to share your thoughts on this topic in the comments section below 👇 We would be happy to hear and discuss the same 🙂
