I love the idea of traveling to unknown places and exploring them. I love visiting a new city or country, trying new foods and meeting new people. And I really enjoy learning about people’s experiences with color blindness—the way they process the world in their daily lives, and how they handle challenges related to their condition. In this blog post, I’ll show you some of my favorite examples of color blindness in action: what people with different types experience on a day-to-day basis (both good and bad), as well as tools that can help them see more clearly!
Types of color blindness
There are three main types of color blindness:
- Protanopia. People with this form of color deficiency have trouble distinguishing reds, greens and yellows.
- Deuteranopia. This condition affects greens and blues more than other colors. Red is also difficult for those with deuteranopia to distinguish from black or white, although it’s less problematic than the other two colors mentioned above.
- Tritanopia (also known as blue-yellow colorblindness). This type affects blues and yellows; for example, someone with tritanopia may see purple where you see blue or green–or vice versa! In addition to these three primary types of color blindness there is also Achromatopsia which means total lack of vision due to damage at the retina level so that no light reaches photoreceptors at all
Red-Green color blindness (Protanopia and Deuteranopia)
Red-green color blindness is the most common form of color blindness, affecting about 8% of men and 0.5% of women worldwide. Red-green colorblindness occurs when your cones don’t work properly, making it difficult to distinguish between reds and greens.
Red-green colorblindness is inherited from either parent and can be passed down through generations without being noticed until later in life when someone begins noticing that they have trouble seeing certain colors like reds or greens (which are some of the most common colors confused by people with this condition).
The first thing someone notices when they’re experiencing this kind of vision problem is that they can’t tell whether things are green or red–it’s not always easy for us non-colorblind folk to imagine what that means!
It’s also important not just because these two colors look similar but because they’re both used so often in everyday life: traffic lights use green/red lights; stop signs have black outlines around them while yield signs have white outlines around them;
Traffic lights usually use yellow lights as well–there are lots of reasons why distinguishing between these two hues matters!
Blue-Yellow color blindness (Tritanopia)
Blue-yellow color blindness (Tritanopia) is a rare form of color blindness. It’s caused by a deficiency of the cone cells in your retina. This deficiency makes it difficult to distinguish between red and green, as well as blue and yellow. The symptoms of tritanopia are similar to those of deuteranopia; however, instead of being unable to tell apart greens and yellows, people with this type of color blindness may have trouble distinguishing blues from reds or violets from purples.
Blue-yellow color blindness occurs at an estimated frequency rate of 1:20000 people worldwide.[1] Because males tend to inherit this trait from their mothers more often than females do, it tends to affect men more frequently than women. It’s also common among children who haven’t yet reached puberty–although most cases disappear by adulthood.
Total color blindness (Achromatopsia)
Total color blindness (achromatopsia) is a rare condition that affects about one in every 30,000 people. People with total color blindness cannot see any colors at all, and they have difficulty recognizing faces and telling things apart. They also often have dark spots in their vision because the cones that help us distinguish between different colors do not work properly.
People who have total color blindness can’t tell the difference between reds and greens, or blues and yellows; it’s like having a black-and-white TV instead of one that shows all the colors of the rainbow–except even worse than that! For example, here’s how someone might describe seeing something orange: “It looks like a yellowish brown.” Or maybe: “It looks like what I think an apple would look like if it had been painted over with black paint.”
How color blind people see colors
People with color blindness see colors differently than people with normal vision. This can be confusing to those who have never had the experience of being color blind, so let’s start from the beginning.
In a nutshell: Colorblind people are unable to distinguish between certain colors that appear different to everyone else. They may also see some colors as more muted or dull than normal people do–but other times, they might be able to pick up on shades and tones that others miss entirely!
The degree of severity varies from person to person: Some people only have difficulty telling reds apart (which is called “red-green color blindness”), while others struggle with all sorts of hues including blues, yellows, oranges and greens (this type is known as tritanopia).
Narrowed color perception
Color-blind people see the world differently from other people. They have trouble distinguishing between certain colors, and they see fewer colors than those with normal vision.
This is because their retina contains fewer photoreceptors that are sensitive to red or green light. Their eyes may also be less responsive to these colors, which can make them appear duller than they actually are.
Because of this narrowed color perception, color blind individuals often describe objects as having a “grayish” appearance when compared to what others see–even if they’re not actually gray at all!
Confusion between certain colors
People with color blindness often confuse certain colors. For example, a person who is red-green colorblind may have trouble distinguishing between red and green. They might also confuse blue and yellow or green and brown.
Another common confusion is between red and orange, yellow and orange, green and purple (mauve), blue/purple (violet), red/brown or green/black.
Examples of color perception in different types of color blindness
- If you’re red/green colorblind, the world can look very different from what you’re used to. The primary colors that are most difficult for people with this type of vision impairment are reds and greens–and those that are easiest for them to distinguish include blues and yellows.
- If you’re blue/yellow colorblind, there are some differences in how your brain processes information compared with someone who has normal vision. However, many people who have this type of color blindness don’t even know until they take an eye test!
It’s important to remember that every person experiences their own version of reality based on their own personal experiences; while some may perceive things differently than others do (including those who have been diagnosed with some form(s) of color blindness), everyone has something unique about them which makes them special!
Daily life challenges for color blind individuals
Everyday life can be challenging for color blind individuals, especially when it comes to distinguishing between colors. This can be a problem for activities such as driving and choosing clothes, which rely on the ability to visually identify different shades of red, green and blue.
In addition to having difficulty differentiating between certain colors in daily life situations, people with color blindness may also have trouble interpreting graphs and charts that contain information about those same colors–such as bar graphs or pie charts.
To help with these challenges there are tools available that make it easier for those with color vision deficiency (CVD) conditions to see things as others see them by altering how light is reflected off of surfaces across the visible spectrum through filters that match what someone with normal vision would see when looking at those same surfaces under similar lighting conditions.”
Difficulty in distinguishing traffic lights
Determining the color of traffic lights is a challenge for people with color blindness. They can’t tell if the light is red or green, so they have to rely on other cues like shape, size and position of the lights.
A common misconception about colorblind people is that they can’t tell if something is blinking or flashing–but this isn’t true! While some types of flashes may become invisible to them (such as neon signs), others will not (such as blinking lights on cars).
Challenges in choosing clothes and matching colors
Color blind people have a hard time telling colors apart. This can be a challenge when it comes to choosing clothes, as the shades of the same color may appear to be different to you.
For example, if you’re wearing a navy blue shirt and your friend has on an almost identical one in black–but not quite–it might not look like they match at first glance because they don’t appear exactly alike to your eyesight. The same goes for matching colors that complement each other or even looking good together (think: red and green). It can also be difficult knowing which colors are trending at any given time since this requires being able to tell what’s “in” or “out” based on their saturation level (how vivid or deep) versus brightness (how light).
Issues with interpreting graphs and charts
- If you have color blindness, you may find it difficult to distinguish between shades of red and green. For example, if someone handed you a graph that showed sales for two products over time and asked which one sold better, it would be hard for you to tell just by looking at the graph alone.
- Similarly, if there were no labels on the axes of this graph (the horizontal lines), then it would be impossible to tell whether they were labeled “units sold” or “sales revenue.” You could only make an educated guess based on context clues like what kind of products were being sold or whether there were any other graphs nearby showing additional information about those same products’ sales trends over time.
Tools and technology to assist color blind people
There are a number of tools and technology that can help color blind people. Colorblind glasses, for example, allow you to see the world through a different lens by filtering out certain wavelengths of light. These lenses have been successfully used by many people who have red/green color blindness.
Colorblind contacts also exist for those who suffer from severe forms of red-green color blindness that cannot be corrected with glasses alone. They tend to be less effective than glasses but can provide some relief if worn all day long (it’s recommended that you don’t wear them while driving).
Smartphone apps are another option for those who want to see their surroundings in more detail or get an idea of what colors look like before buying something new at home or work!
Color blind glasses and Contacts
Color blind glasses and contacts can improve color perception, but they’re not a cure for the condition. In fact, these tools are not available in all countries and they have limitations. For example, they only work well with certain colors of light–you might be able to see reds better than greens or blues with these devices on your eyes. Color blind glasses and contacts also tend to be expensive because they require specialized processing from manufacturers before being sold (which means there’s less competition).
Smartphone apps for color identification
If you’re interested in learning more about the world of color blindness and what it’s like to see in different ways, there are a number of apps available for iOS and Android that can help.
- Colorblind Pro: This app allows users with normal vision to simulate various types of color blindness by turning their phone into an eye doctor’s toolkit. The app simulates protanopia, deuteranopia and tritanopia conditions by filtering out certain wavelengths of light. For example, if you want to know what red looks like through the eyes of someone who is red-green color blind (protanope), just select “red” from a list of colors then tap on “Protanopia.” From here you’ll see a black-and-white version of your screen–this is how people with this type of deficiency perceive things like traffic lights or stop signs.
- Color Blindness Test: This free app includes tests for various forms such as dichromacy (the most common form), monochromacy (which affects less than one percent), rod monochromacy (a rare condition where rods are missing) as well as anomalous trichromacy (where cones fail to respond properly). Each test takes less than two minutes to complete so it’s easy enough for anyone curious about how their brain perceives color!
Accessibility options in digital devices
There are a few ways to help color blind people get the most out of your app or website. The first is to ensure that there are accessibility options available, which can be found by tapping the settings icon on your phone and then navigating to General > Accessibility.
In addition to offering an option that lets you change the text size, this menu will allow you to turn on color blind mode if it’s available in your device’s operating system (iOS 12+, Android 9+, Windows 10). Color blindness mode changes all colors used throughout the interface so they’re easier for those with limited vision capabilities–and in some cases, even provides additional functionality like enlarged text or contrast adjustments between objects such as buttons and background elements within apps’ interfaces so everything is easy for everyone else too!
Conclusion
We hope that this article has given you a better understanding of how people with color blindness perceive the world around them. We also believe that by learning about some of the daily challenges faced by people with this condition, you may be able to help them out in ways that others wouldn’t even think of. For example, if someone tells you they can’t tell the difference between red and green traffic lights at night because they’re both just dark colors, there’s no reason why you couldn’t lend them your flashlight!
