TMO Quick Tip - Grabbing Colors with the Colors Pane

by , 7:30 AM EST, March 7th, 2008

Sometimes the color you want to work with just doesn't seem to be in Apple's Colors pane, but you can find it in a digital image you have. No problem. The Colors pane will let you grab a color from anything you see on your display.

Use the magnifying glass to select colors from your Desktop.

Here's how:

• Open the Colors pane. Most applications let you access it from a Format menu option. In Text Edit, for example, choose Format > Font > Show Colors.
• Click the magnifying glass next to the current color swatch at the top of the pane.

Position the magnifying glass over the color you want to sample.

• Move the magnifying glass over the color you want, and then click to select it. As long as the color is visible on your display you can select it.

The magnifying glass creates a new swatch from your color.

I use this trick when I want to select a specific color from an image for use in a different document, or to use as a complementary color in the project I plan on using the image in. It's also handy when you need to use a specific color, but don't know what the exact color values are.

Jeff Gamet is TMO's Morning Editor and Reviews Editor. He lectures, teaches and speaks on Mac OS X and design-related topics, and is the author of The Designer's Guide to Mac OS X from Peachpit Press.

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