Lab color space

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The CIE 1976 (L*, a*, b*) color space (CIELAB), showing only colors that fit within the sRGB gamut (and can therefore
be displayed on a typical computer display). Each axis of each square ranges from -128 to 128.

A Lab color space is a color-opponent space with dimension L for lightness and a and b for the color-
opponent dimensions, based on nonlinearly compressed CIE XYZ color space coordinates.
The coordinates of the Hunter 1948 L, a, b color space are L, a, and b.[1][2] However, Lab is now more
often used as an informal abbreviation for the CIE 1976 (L*, a*, b*) color space (also called CIELAB,
whose coordinates are actually L*, a*, and b*). Thus the initials Lab by themselves are somewhat
ambiguous. The color spaces are related in purpose, but differ in implementation.

Both spaces are derived from the "master" space CIE 1931 XYZ color space, which can predict
which spectral power distributions will be perceived as the same color (see metamerism), but which is not
particularly perceptually uniform.[3] Strongly influenced by the Munsell color system, the intention of both
“Lab” color spaces is to create a space which can be computed via simple formulas from the XYZ space,
but is more perceptually uniform than XYZ.[4] Perceptually uniform means that a change of the same
amount in a color value should produce a change of about the same visual importance. When storing
colors in limited precision values, this can improve the reproduction of tones. Both Lab spaces are relative
to the white point of the XYZ data they were converted from. Lab values do not define absolute colors
unless the white point is also specified. Often, in practice, the white point is assumed to follow a standard
and is not explicitly stated (e.g., for "absolute colorimetric" rendering intent ICC L*a*b* values are relative
to CIE standard illuminant D50, while they are relative to the unprinted substrate for other rendering
intents).[5]

The lightness correlate in CIELAB is calculated using the cube root of the relative luminance.

Contents
[hide]

• 1 Advantages of Lab

• 2 Which "Lab"?

• 3 CIE 1976 (L*, a*, b*) color space (CIELAB)

o 3.1 Measuring differences

o 3.2 RGB and CMYK conversions

o 3.3 Range of L*a*b* coordinates

o 3.4 CIE XYZ to CIE L*a*b* (CIELAB) and CIELAB to CIE XYZ

conversions

 3.4.1 The forward transformation

 3.4.2 The reverse transformation

• 4 Hunter Lab Color Space

o 4.1 Approximate formulas for Ka and Kb

o 4.2 The Hunter Lab Color Space as an Adams chromatic valence

space

• 5 References

• 6 External links
[edit]Advantages of Lab
Unlike the RGB and CMYK color models, Lab color is designed to approximate human vision. It aspires to
perceptual uniformity, and its Lcomponent closely matches human perception of lightness. It can thus be
used to make accurate color balance corrections by modifying output curves in the a and b components, or
to adjust the lightness contrast using the L component. In RGB or CMYK spaces, which model the output of
physical devices rather than human visual perception, these transformations can only be done with the help
of appropriate blend modes in the editing application.

Because Lab space is much larger than the gamut of computer displays, printers, or even human vision, a
bitmap image represented as Lab requires more data per pixel to obtain the same precision as an RGB or
CMYK bitmap. In the 1990s, when computer hardware and software was mostly limited to storing and
manipulating 8 bit/channel bitmaps, converting an RGB image to Lab and back was a lossy operation. With
16 bit/channel support now common, this is no longer such a problem.

Additionally, many of the “colors” within Lab space fall outside the gamut of human vision, and are
therefore purely imaginary; these “colors” cannot be reproduced in the physical world. Though color
management software, such as that built in to image editing applications, will pick the closest in-gamut
approximation, changing lightness, colorfulness, and sometimes hue in the process, author Dan
Margulis claims that this access to imaginary colors is useful, going between several steps in the
manipulation of a picture.[6]

[edit]Which "Lab"?
Some specific uses of the abbreviation in software, literature etc.

 In Adobe Photoshop, image editing using "Lab mode" is CIELAB D50.[6][7]

 In ICC profiles, the "Lab color space" used as a profile connection space is CIELAB D50.[5]

 In TIFF files, the CIELAB color space may be used.[8]

 In PDF documents, the "Lab color space" is CIELAB.[9][10]

[edit]CIE 1976 (L*, a*, b*) color space (CIELAB)

CIE L*a*b* (CIELAB) is the most complete[citation needed] color space specified by the International Commission
on Illumination (Commission Internationale d'Eclairage, hence its CIEinitialism). It describes all the colors
visible to the human eye and was created to serve as a device independent model to be used as a
reference.

The three coordinates of CIELAB represent the lightness of the color (L* = 0 yields black and L* = 100
indicates diffuse white; specular white may be higher), its position between red/magenta and green (a*,
negative values indicate green while positive values indicate magenta) and its position between yellow and
blue (b*, negative values indicate blue and positive values indicate yellow). The asterisk (*)
after L, a and b are part of the full name, since they represent L*, a* and b*, to distinguish them from
Hunter's L, a and b, described below.

Since the L*a*b* model is a three-dimensional model, it can only be represented properly in a three-
dimensional space.[11] Two-dimensional depictions are chromaticity diagrams: sections of the color
solid with a fixed lightness. It is crucial to realize that the visual representations of the full gamut of colors in
this model are never accurate; they are there just to help in understanding the concept.

Because the red/green and yellow/blue opponent channels are computed as differences of lightness
transformations of (putative) cone responses, CIELAB is a chromatic value color space.

A related color space, the CIE 1976 (L*, u*, v*) color space, preserves the same L* as L*a*b* but has a
different representation of the chromaticity components. CIELUV can also be expressed in cylindrical form
(CIELCH), with the chromaticity components replaced by correlates of chroma and hue.

Since CIELAB and CIELUV, the CIE has been incorporating an increasing number of color appearance
phenomena into their models, to better model color vision. These color appearance models, of which
CIELAB, although not designed as [12] can be seen as a simple example,[13] culminated with CIECAM02.

[edit]Measuring differences
Main article: Color difference

The nonlinear relations for L*, a*, and b* are intended to mimic the nonlinear response of the eye.
Furthermore, uniform changes of components in the L*a*b* color space aim to correspond to uniform
changes in perceived color, so the relative perceptual differences between any two colors in L*a*b* can be
approximated by treating each color as a point in a three dimensional space (with three
components: L*, a*, b*) and taking the Euclidean distance between them.[14]

[edit]RGB and CMYK conversions

There are no simple formulas for conversion between RGB or CMYK values and L*a*b*, because the RGB
and CMYK color models are device dependent. The RGB or CMYK values first need to be transformed to a
specific absolute color space, such as sRGB or Adobe RGB. This adjustment will be device dependent, but
the resulting data from the transform will be device independent, allowing data to be transformed to the CIE
1931 color space and then transformed into L*a*b*.

[edit]Range of L*a*b* coordinates

As mentioned previously, the L* coordinate ranges from 0 to 100. The possible range of a* and b*
coordinates depends on the color space that one is converting from.

[edit]CIE XYZ to CIE L*a*b* (CIELAB) and CIELAB to CIE XYZ conversions
[edit]The forward transformation
where

Here Xn, Yn and Zn are the CIE XYZ tristimulus values of the reference white point (the subscript
n suggests "normalized").

The division of the f(t) function into two domains was done to prevent an infinite slope at t =
0. f(t) was assumed to be linear below some t = t0, and was assumed to match the t1/3 part of the
function at t0 in both value and slope. In other words:

The slope was chosen to be b = 16/116 = 4/29. The above two equations can be solved
for a and t0:

where δ = 6/29.[15] Note that the slope at the join is b = 4/29 = 2δ/3.

[edit]The reverse transformation

The reverse transformation is most easily expressed using the inverse of the
function f above:

where

[edit]Hunter Lab Color Space

L is a correlate of lightness, and is computed from the Y tristimulus value
using Priest's approximation to Munsell value:

where Yn is the Y tristimulus value of a specified white object. For

surface-color applications, the specified white object is usually
(though not always) a hypothetical material with unit reflectance
and which follows Lambert's law. The resulting L will be scaled
between 0 (black) and 100 (white); roughly ten times
the Munsell value. Note that a medium lightness of 50 is produced

by a luminance of 25, since

a and b are termed opponent color axes. a represents, roughly,

Redness (positive) versus Greenness (negative). It is computed as:

where Ka is a coefficient which depends upon the illuminant

(for D65, Ka is 172.30; see approximate formula below)
and Xn is the X tristimulus value of the specified white object.

The other opponent color axis, b, is positive for yellow colors

and negative for blue colors. It is computed as:

where Kb is a coefficient which depends upon the

illuminant (for D65, Kb is 67.20; see approximate
formula below) and Zn is the Z tristimulus value of the
specified white object.[16]

Both a and b will be zero for objects which have the

same chromaticity coordinates as the specified white
objects (i.e., achromatic, grey, objects).

[edit]Approximate formulas
for Ka and Kb
In the previous version of the Hunter Lab color
space, Ka was 175 and Kb was 70. Apparently, Hunter
Associates Lab discovered that better agreement could
be obtained with other color difference metrics, such as
CIELAB (see above) by allowing these coefficients to
depend upon the illuminants. Approximate formulæ are:

which result in the original values for

Illuminant C, the original illuminant with
which the Lab color space was used.

[edit]The
Hunter Lab Color
Space as an Adams
chromatic valence space
Adams chromatic valence color spaces are
based on two elements: a (relatively)
uniform lightness scale, and a (relatively)
uniform chromaticity scale.[17] If we take as
the uniform lightness scale Priest's
approximation to the Munsell Value scale,
which would be written in modern notation:

and, as the uniform chromaticity

coordinates:

where ke is a tuning
coefficient, we obtain the
two chromatic axes:

and
which is
identical to the
Hunter Lab for
mulae given
above if we
select K = Ka/1
00 and ke = Kb/
Ka. Therefore,
the Hunter Lab
color space is
an Adams
chromatic
valence color
space.

[edit]Refere
nces

1.
^ Hunt

er,

Richar

Sewall

(July

1948).

"Photo

electric

Color-

Differe

nce

Meter".

JOSA

38(7):

661. (

Procee
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of the

Winter

Meetin

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the

Optical

Societ

y of

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2.
^ Hunt

er,

Richar

Sewall

(Dece

mber

1948).

"Accur

acy,

Precisi

on,
and

Stabilit

y of

New

Photo-

electric

Color-

Differe

nce

Meter".

JOSA

38 (12)

1094. (
Procee

dings

of the

Thirty-

Third

Annual

Meetin

g of

the

Optical

Societ

y of

Americ

a)

3.
^A

discus

sion

and

propos

ed

improv

ement,

Bruce
Lindbl

oom

4.
^ Expl

anatio

n of

this

history

, Bruce

MacEv

oy

5.
^ a b Int

ernatio
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Color

Conso

rtium,

Specifi

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ICC.1:

2004-

10

(Profil

versio

4.2.0.0

Image

techno

logy

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manag

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Archit

ecture,

profile

format

, and

data

structu

re,

(2006).

6.
^abM

argulis

, Dan

(2006).

Photo

shop
Lab

Color:

The

Canyo

Conun

drum

and

Other

Adven

tures

in the

Most

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Berkel

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7.
^ The

Lab

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31083

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^ TIFF

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