Section 3 | Page 4

Television screens and computer monitors are examples of systems that use additive color. A mosaic of thousands of red, green, and blue phosphor dots make up the images on video monitors. The phosphor dots emit light when activated electronically. It is the combination of different intensities of red, green and blue light that produces all the colors on a video monitor. Because the dots are so small and close together, we do not see them individually, but see the colors formed by the mixture of light. Colors often vary from one monitor to another. This is not new information to anyone who has visited an electronics store with various brands of televisions on display. Also, color on monitors changes over time. Currently, there are no color standards for phosphors used in manufacturing monitors for the graphic arts industry.

Television screens and computer monitors are examples of the use of additive color. The combination of different intensities of light from red, green and blue phosphor dots produce all the colors on a monitor.