Is That Dress White and Gold or Blue and Black?

Our perception of color depends on interpreting the amount of light in a room or scene. When cues about the ambient light are missing, people may perceive the same color in different ways. Related Article

The Dress in Question

A photograph of a dress on Tumblr prompted an Internet discussion: What color is it?

Some people see a white and gold dress in dark shadow.

Some people see a blue and black dress washed out in bright light.

Some people see one interpretation and then switch to the other.

Let's Take Some Averages

The striped dress takes up most of the frame in this photo. If we take two pieces of the dress and average the colors in Photoshop, we get a flat pattern of color:

The basic pattern

of the dress

How Do We Interpret Those Colors?

Our eyes are able to assign fixed colors to objects under widely different lighting conditions. This ability is called color constancy. But the photograph doesn't give many clues about the ambient light in the room. Is the background bright and the dress in shadow? Or is the whole room bright and all the colors are washed out? Different people may pick up on different visual cues in the image, which can change how they interpret and name the colors.

IS THE DRESS IN SHADOW?

THE DRESS IN THE PHOTO

IS THE DRESS IN BRIGHT LIGHT?

If you think the dress is in shadow, your brain may remove the blue cast and perceive the dress as being white and gold.

If the photograph showed more of the room, or if skin tones were visible, there might have been more clues about the ambient light.

If you think the dress is being washed out by bright light, your brain may perceive the dress as a darker blue and black.

What's the Answer?

Other photographs show that the dress is actually blue and black. In this second photograph, the white wedding dress, dark curtains, visible skin tones and body shadows help us accurately judge the amount of ambient light in the room.

The Dress in Question

A photograph of a dress on Tumblr prompted an Internet discussion: What color is it?

Some people see a white and gold dress in dark shadow.

Some people see a blue and black dress washed out in bright light.

Some people see one interpretation and then switch to the other.

Let's Take Some Averages

The striped dress takes up most of the frame in this photo. If we take two pieces of the dress and average the colors in Photoshop, we get a flat pattern of color:

The basic pattern

of the dress

How Do We Interpret Those Colors?

Our eyes are able to assign fixed colors to objects under widely different lighting conditions. This ability is called color constancy. But the photograph doesn't give many clues about the ambient light in the room. Is the background bright and the dress in shadow? Or is the whole room bright and all the colors are washed out? Different people may pick up on different visual cues in the image, which can change how they interpret and name the colors.

IS THE DRESS IN SHADOW?

If you think the dress is in shadow, your brain may remove the blue cast and perceive the dress as being white and gold.

THE DRESS IN THE PHOTO

If the photograph showed more of the room, or if skin tones were visible, there might have been more clues about the ambient light.

IS THE DRESS IN BRIGHT LIGHT?

If you think the dress is being washed out by bright light, your brain may perceive the dress as a darker blue and black.

What's the Answer?

Other photographs show that the dress is actually blue and black. In this second photograph, the white wedding dress, dark curtains, visible skin tones and body shadows help us accurately judge the amount of ambient light in the room.