Light : Color and

Reflection
Unit 11 Physics

Lecture 3
Target 1: I can identify and state colors

observed when mixing colored light, colors

observed when mixing colored pigments
and what color an object or filter will appear
in any color light.
Terms: Color Spectrum, White Light, Additive

Primary Colors, Complementary Colors,

Subtractive Primary Colors

Intro to Color
To physicists, the colors of things are not in the

substances of the things themselves

Color is in the eye of the beholder and is

determined by the frequencies of the light

emitted or reflected by things
The perception of color depends upon our eye-

brain system
Example: we see a red rose when the frequency

of red light reaches our eyes

Colored Light
Visible light is only a small portion of a broad

spectrum of electromagnetic waves.

Color Light
Color of the light is

determined by its
wave frequency
Longest wavelength,

lowest frequency is
red
Shortest wavelength,

highest frequency is
violet.

Colored Light
White light
White is not a color at all
White is the presence of the entire spectrum of

visible light (ROYGBIV)

Colored Light
Black light
Black is not a color at

all
Black is the absence
of all light frequencies
Objects appear black
when the object
absorbs all visible
light frequencies

Color Addition
Colored light can

be mixed
Mixing color light is

called color
addition because
the combined
colors are formed
by adding light
from two or more
light sources

Color Addition
There are 3 additive

primary colors:
Red
Blue
Green

When all three colors are

added together, they

create white light

Color Addition
There are 3 additive

secondary colors:
Yellow (green + red)
Magenta (blue + red)
Cyan (green + blue)

These colors are made by

overlapping 2 of the
primary additive colors
(green, red, or blue)

Color Addition
Complimentary colors

are two colors that add

together to produce white
light
Remember that red,

green, and blue produce

white light
Blue & yellow (red + green)
Red & cyan (green + blue)
Green & magenta (red + blue)

Check your Understanding

Suppose that light from a

magenta spotlight and

light from a yellow
spotlight are mixed
together, will white light
be produced? Explain.

Check your Understanding

NO!

Magenta spotlight =red and

blue light

Yellow spotlight= red and green

light

Observe the double abundance

of red. Combining the light from
the magenta and yellow
spotlights will produce a whitishred color - that is, pink.

Filters
Filters are transparent to and appear the color(s)

of light that they will allow to pass through.

A red filter will only allow red light to pass through

Check your understanding

If a magenta filter is held in front of yellow light,

what color light will pass through? Explain.

What colors of light will a magenta filter allow to

pass through?

magenta

red

blue

What colors of light are present in yellow light?

red

green

The filter will only let the red light through so red
light will pass through.

Color Subtraction

Just as colored light can be

mixed, colored pigment can
also be mixed

Mixing colored pigments

(paint, dyes) is an entirely
different process from
mixing colored light

Mixing red, green, and blue

paint together does not
produce white; it produces a
murky grey or muddy brown.

Color Subtraction

Paints and dyes are made of tiny

particles called pigments.

Pigments produce their colors by

absorbing light of certain
frequencies and reflecting the light
of other frequencies.

Mixing colored pigments is a called

color subtraction because certain
colors are absorbed (subtracted) by
the pigment and all other color are
reflected and different colors of
light.

We can only see the reflected color.

Color Subtraction

Color Subtraction
There are 3 subtractive

primary colors:
Magenta
Yellow
Cyan

When all three colors are

added together, they

create black light

Color Subtraction
There are 3 subtractive

secondary colors:
Red
Blue
Green

These colors are made by

mixing 2 of the subtractive

primary colors (magenta,
yellow, or cyan)

Check your understanding.

Check your understanding

Check your understanding

Why is an apple red?
Apples are red because they

contain red pigments which

reflects red light (and absorb
light of other colors).

What will happen if you

shine white light (R+G+B)
on an apple?
The red is reflected, and
the green and blue are
absorbed.

Check your understanding

What will happen if you shine blue light or yellow light on an apple?
An apple under yellow light

The apple appears

red, because red
light is still
reflected!

An apple under blue light

The apple appears

black, because no
light is reflected!

Check your understanding

How will a banana
appear under cyan
light?
Things to consider:

A banana under cyan light

-What colors make up cyan

light?
-What colors of light will a
banana absorb?
-What colors of light will a
banana reflect?

The banana
appears green!
Blue light is
absorbed and green
is reflected.

Lecture 3
Target 2: I can identify and state the reasons for

the color of the sky and sun due to different

conditions or different times of day.
Terms to know: scattering

Why is the sky blue?

at
e
h
T

ere
h
p
s
mo

rth
a
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e to
m
o
c
Wel

Blue light interacts with

nitrogen in the atmosphere
causing
scatter in all
The lightitistoscattered
directions before reaching your
eye, so theAfter
sky appears
blue
blue is scattered,
red and green light
remain. This makes the
sun appear yellow,
because blue is missing
from the white light.

hy is the sunset red?

at
e
h
T

During a sunset the sun is low on

the horizon, so light has more
atmosphere to travel through.

ere
h
p
s
mo

Red light remains for a

beautiful sunset!

rth
a
E
e to
m
o
c
Wel

Since there is so much

atmosphere to travel
through, next green
light also gets
scattered!

First blue
light is
scattered

Lecture #4
Target 3

I can accurately measure and draw angles of incidence

and reflection and use ray diagrams to predict the
path light takes when reflected.

What is reflection?
When a wave reaches a boundary between two

media, usually some or all of the wave bounces

back into the first medium.

Law of Reflection
angle of incidence =

angle of reflection
The angle is ALWAYS

measured between the

ray and the normal
Label each term on

your diagram as
shown in the animation

Test your knowledge #1

Light from a

flashlight shines on a
mirror and
illuminates one of
the cards. Draw the
reflected beam to
indicate the
illuminated card.

Test your knowledge #2

A periscope has a

pair of mirrors in it.

Draw the light path
from the object O to
the eye of the
observer.

What is a virtual image?

Discover! Where is your Mirror Image?
Light always seems to travel from straight ahead

of us.
Therefore we PERCEIVE objects to be located

behind the mirror.

A virtual image is an image that appears to be in

a location where light does not really reach.

Plane Mirrors
Plane mirrors (flat mirrors) only

produce virtual images.

Test your knowledge #3

The ray diagram below shows the

extension of one of the reflected rays
from the plane mirror.

Complete the diagram by (1) carefully

drawing the three other reflected rays,
and (2) extending them behind the
mirror to locate the image of the flame.
(Assume the candle and image are
viewed by an observer on the left.)

Test your knowledge #4

Here we have eight

students in front of a
small plane mirror. Their
positions are shown in
the diagram below.
Make appropriate ray
diagrams to answer the
following:

Test your
knowledge #5

Harry Hotshot views himself in a full-length

mirror (right). Construct straight lines from
Harrys eyes to the image of his feet and
to the top of his head. Mark the mirror to
indicate the minimum area Harry uses to
see a full view of himself.

Test your
knowledge #5

Does it matter

how far away

he stands?

Lecture #5
Target 4 : I can identify an describe the image

seen in a plane, convex and concave mirror.

Plane mirrors produce virtual

images.
A virtual image is an image that
appears to be in a location where
light does not really reach.

Plane Mirror Images

Plane mirror images always

appear
Right Side Up (RSU)
The same size as the object
The same distance away from
the mirror as the object

Concave Mirrors (Converging)

In a concave mirror as

the light comes in it

will reflect and
converge.
Where the light comes

together, an image will

form, this can happen
in front of or behind
the mirror.

Concave Mirrors - Images

If the object is before the focal point: (#7-9)

Upright

Virtual Bigger

Concave Mirrors - Images

If the object is at the focal point: (#6)

NO IMAGE

Concave Mirrors - Images

If the object is beyond the focal point:

Inverted/ Upside Down (USD)

Real (can shine on a screen)

Between C and F BIGGER (4-5), At C SAME SIZE (3), Beyond C

SMALL (1-2)

Convex Mirrors
A convex mirror curves outward.
- Light that hits the mirror from a single source
will come in and reflect the light in directions
that spread away from each other..

Diverging

Mirror

Convex Mirrors
(Continued)
The image:
Since the light rays

diverge, they will never

meet in front of the
mirror, this creates a
virtual image behind
the mirror.
Upright
Reduced in Size

(Smaller than the

original object)

Which Mirror Did It?