Color Reproduction

the reproduction of the colors of an original (or an object) on a picture, photograph, motion-picture screen, or television screen. Color distortions that arise during the process of reproduction are unavoidable; the nature of such distortions depends on the particular features of the process.

There are three methods of evaluating the fidelity of color reproduction: physical, physiological, and psychological. Physical fidelity is characterized by the degree to which the reproduction of a given point or small section on the image approximates the spectral composition of the radiation emanating from the corresponding point or section on the original. Physiological fidelity is characterized by the degree to which the visual sensations evoked by a small area of the image approximate those evoked by the corresponding area of the original. A considerable degree of psychological fidelity can be attained if the color distortion in any area of the image is counterbalanced by specific distortions in other areas of the image. It is only the psychological fidelity that is of practical importance for the color reproduction of multicolored images.