Why do some people say that black or white arent colors?

Answer 1

Yeah... I dont get that either. They are colors.

What is a color? Its just the mental interpretation of what we perceive through the eyes. Color doesnt actually exist tangibly. It exists mentally and conceptually.

By that logic, black and white are colors along with all other colors of the rainbow.

I believe that their logic when they say that is simply that white consists of all visible light frequencies and isnt a specific range... and therefore not a specific "color". Or a combination of colors as in the case of pigments and whatnot.

Likewise, black is the absence of all visible light... and therefore no frequency ranges exist whatnoever to trigger "color"

But those themselves are still colors. Regardless what enters the eye or doesnt enter the eye, the mind perceives color.

Answer 2

Color, an electromagnetic wave phenomenon, is a sensation produced through the excitation of the retina of the eye by rays of light. The colors of the spectrum may be produced by viewing a light beam refracted by passage through a prism, which breaks the light into its wavelengths.
The color sensation of black is due to complete lack of stimulation of the retina, that of white to complete stimulation. This means that black reflects no color, absorbs no color and is therefore a null color. White, on the other hand, reflects all color, refracts into all colors and is therefore composed of all colors.
Black:
Adjective: Color. Being of the color black, producing or reflecting comparatively little light and having no predominant hue.
White:
Noun: Color. The achromatic color of maximum lightness; the color of objects that reflect nearly all light of all visible wavelengths; the complement or antagonist of black, the other extreme of the neutral gray series. Although typically a response to maximum stimulation of the retina, the perception of white appears always to depend
All the above is taken directly from the link below. It relates, to all mediums used for color. Dyes, paints, etc., despite what is used to make them, reflect wavelengths to the eyes, which then interpets these wavelngths according to a lot of real technical data that I really don't understand. However, it doesn't make it nonsense. The eye "sees" black, even though it is an absence of any stimulation in the eye, as a color. The same as white.
Some people relate to color only as pigment, or light, or whatever, so they define color differently.

Answer 3

What you see as red is the LACK of red where all the other colors exist. Same with blue or pink or whatever. White is ALL the colors in equal parts, black is ALL the colors MISSING in equal parts.

Answer 4

There are two main types of light collectors in the eyes. One type mainly defines light and dark, and is used in night vision, and is seen as greyscale or "black and white" vision. This is likely an earlier evolutionary development. Colour sight uses separate light sensors and possibly separate interpretive neural circuits. When we have more light as in high noon non greyscale colours are more prevalent. Thus we naturally have a distinction between the more colourful daylight vision and the more "black and white" images of night vision.

Answer 5

Color is caused by the emission of various frequencies of the visual spectrum. Black, which does not exist in nature, is a result of an object not emitting any frequencies in the visual spectrum. White is caused by an object emitting the whole of the spectrum. Light and heat work in similar ways. A black object will absorb heat and a white object will reflect heat. Hence we tend to wear dark clothes in winter and light colored clothes in summer.

Answer 6

Black and white are considered neutral colors

Answer 7

Because scientifically it has been established that white is the presence of all colors and black is the absence of all colors...... hence they are no specific color as such.

However, I would hate if someone called my black suit as colorless and my white shirt as colorful!!!

Answer 8

Because each is actually an accumulation of colors and a play of light white can be the absence of color while black is often the subjugation of color.

Peace.........................................