Misconception: Magenta is not a ‘real’ colour

Concept Corrected: All colours are perceptions (including magenta!)

Magenta is not perceived as part of the spectrum, and so some people say that magenta is ‘not real’ and is a colour that is ‘made up’ by our brains. The hue magenta is ‘made up’ by our brains, but so are all the hues that seem to exist in the spectrum.

What we see as colours in our world are perceptions. Any perceived colour results from the way our eye and brain decode the relative amounts or the balance of light from different parts of the spectrum, including magenta.

So how do we perceive the colour magenta if it is not part of the spectrum? When we see a vivid magenta source, a lot of light from both ends of the spectrum enters our eyes at the same time.

Magentas, along with purples and red-purples are examples of non-spectral hues.