What Color Does Red and Blue Make? – Color Mixing Guide

When it comes to colors and mixing them, the course of action might not be as easy as you think. There are certain things you need to think through if you are looking to mix the perfect color. For example, what color does red and blue make? Is it the same color when mixing paints as it is when creating a webpage? Let us see if we can make a bit more sense of these questions as we find out more about the combination of red and blue.

What Color Does Red and Blue Make With Light?

It is amazing how many colors we can see, which is possible when the light reflects off surfaces and reaches our eyes. Every color has differing wavelengths, which is then seen as a particular color. What are known as cones and rods in our eyes are what help us see these colors. The combination of red and blue light results in the color magenta.

Light is energy and falls into the category of electromagnetic radiation. Now there are various forms of electromagnetic radiation from ultraviolet rays, infrared, and radio waves to X-rays and microwaves. Each of these has a different wavelength and somewhere in the middle of all of this, you will find visible light. 

Therefore, the primary colors for light are red, blue, and then green. Maybe you have seen the RGB color codes used when designing computer graphics, also known as an additive color model. All other colors are mixtures of these colors. So, your secondary colors will be yellow, cyan, and magenta. This is how red, and blue makes magenta, which you can say is more of a shade of purple.

What Color Does Red and Blue Make With Paint Pigments?

As we have learned, light is a combination of colors and objects reflect and absorb these colors. So, when you are looking at a certain paint color, the color comes from certain wavelengths that are reflected, while other wavelengths are absorbed. This whole process is known as subtractive coloring and is how dyes and pigments are made.

At school, most of us were taught the basics of mixing paint colors. We learned that there are primary and secondary hues. For example, blue, red, and yellow, which cannot be created are primary colors, while mixing these create purple, orange, and green, and are the secondary colors. From there you can create the many shades and tints of all the colors in between. This is also called an RYB (red, yellow, blue) color system.

So, what colors do red and blue make? As we have mentioned, red and blue form part of the primary colors, so a combination of red and blue will give you the secondary color of purple. This is a simple explanation.