# Do we really see the same colors?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-we-really-see-the-same-colors/345647>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [February 22, 2006, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-we-really-see-the-same-colors/345647 "2006-02-22T17:03:09Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 1\
**Page:** 2

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\
**Post date:** [February 24, 2006, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-we-really-see-the-same-colors/345647/21 "2006-02-24T17:29:00Z")

</div>

> [@XaMcQ](#):
>
> Grr… I can’t find any information to back it up online, but I read it as one of those short articles in some magazine several years back. I remember it because my husband is a painter and we discussed it. I don’t know if we are seeing the same color when hubby and I both look at a paint chip, but I do know he is able to see all the colors that go into it and I am not. I may see what looks like a light purple, but he can tell you that it’s this red, that blue, a certain amount of white.

But that just seems like practice, not that his brain has developed anything new. I am used to looking at colors like that to decide their value or tone (reddish or bluish for purple, blue or yellowish for green, etc.) so that fabrics will coordinate, but I think it’s just because I do it enough times over the years.

[Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-we-really-see-the-same-colors/345647.md?page=1)