MS Paint Working with Colors

Colour is one of the most powerful elements of any drawing or image. MS Paint provides a full colour system that lets the user choose from a preset palette, pick colours directly from the canvas, and create completely custom colours. Understanding how MS Paint handles colour makes every drawing more precise and more visually appealing.

The Colors Group in the Ribbon

The Colors group sits on the right side of the Home tab in the ribbon. It contains three key elements:

• Color 1 box – the foreground colour (used with the left mouse button)
• Color 2 box – the background colour (used with the right mouse button)
• Color palette – a row of 28 preset colour swatches

Color 1 and Color 2 Explained

MS Paint uses two active colours at all times. Understanding their roles is essential.

Color 1 (Foreground Color)

Color 1 is the main drawing colour. Every time the left mouse button is used to draw, paint, or fill, MS Paint uses Color 1. To change Color 1, left-click any colour swatch in the palette.

Color 2 (Background Color)

Color 2 is the secondary colour. When the right mouse button is used to draw, it draws with Color 2. Color 2 also acts as the background when using the Eraser tool. To change Color 2, right-click any colour swatch in the palette.

Example: Set Color 1 to red and Color 2 to white. Draw with the left mouse button to get red lines. Draw with the right mouse button to get white lines. Using the Eraser with Color 2 set to white restores the canvas to its original white background.

Choosing a Colour from the Palette

The default colour palette shows 28 colour swatches arranged in a row. These cover the most commonly used colours including black, white, red, green, blue, yellow, orange, purple, and more.

To pick a colour:

1. Left-click a swatch to set it as Color 1
2. Right-click a swatch to set it as Color 2

Creating a Custom Colour

The preset palette does not always include the exact shade needed. MS Paint provides a full custom colour picker for this purpose.

How to Open the Custom Colour Picker

1. Click the Edit Colors button in the Colors group
2. The Edit Colors dialog box opens
3. The left side shows the 48 basic colours
4. The right side shows a large colour spectrum box and a vertical brightness slider

Selecting a Custom Colour

1. Click anywhere inside the large colour spectrum box to pick a hue and saturation
2. Drag the vertical slider on the right to adjust brightness (darker or lighter)
3. The selected colour preview appears in the Color|Solid box at the bottom
4. Alternatively, type specific values in the Hue, Sat, and Lum fields for precise colour selection
5. Or type a value in the Red, Green, and Blue fields using the RGB colour system
6. Click Add to Custom Colors to save the custom colour in one of the 16 custom colour slots
7. Click OK to apply the colour as Color 1

Understanding RGB Colours

RGB stands for Red, Green, Blue. Every colour on a computer screen is made by combining different amounts of red, green, and blue light. Each value ranges from 0 to 255.

Entering these RGB values in the Edit Colors dialog creates any specific colour accurately.

The Color Picker (Eyedropper) Tool

The Color Picker tool, also called the Eyedropper, picks a colour directly from the canvas. This is useful when a colour already present in a drawing needs to be reused without guessing its exact shade.

How to Use the Color Picker

1. Click the Color Picker icon in the Tools group (it looks like an eyedropper)
2. Move the mouse over any colour on the canvas
3. Left-click to set that colour as Color 1
4. Right-click to set that colour as Color 2

Example: A drawing contains a specific shade of blue in the sky. To draw more elements in that same blue, use the Color Picker, click on the sky area, and the exact blue shade becomes the active Color 1 instantly.

Swapping Color 1 and Color 2

There is no single button in MS Paint to swap Color 1 and Color 2. To swap them manually, note the current colours, then left-click the current Color 2 swatch to set it as Color 1, and right-click the original Color 1 swatch to set it as Color 2.

Saving Custom Colours for the Session

MS Paint saves custom colours created during a session in the custom colour slots in the Edit Colors dialog. These custom colours stay available until MS Paint is closed. They do not save permanently between sessions, so note down important RGB values for future use.

Practical Exercise

1. Open MS Paint
2. Set Color 1 to red (left-click the red swatch)
3. Set Color 2 to blue (right-click the blue swatch)
4. Draw some lines with the left mouse button (red lines appear)
5. Draw some lines with the right mouse button (blue lines appear)
6. Open Edit Colors and create a custom orange using RGB values: Red 255, Green 165, Blue 0
7. Draw a shape using the custom orange colour
8. Use the Color Picker to click on any colour already in the drawing and reuse it