Nordic Noir as a scale
Eleven steps from #003344, built by moving lightness in OKLCh and keeping the hue where it is. Every step is gamut-mapped by giving up chroma, never by clipping channels — clipping is what turns a light blue purple.
| Stop | Hex | OKLCh L | Chroma | On white | On black | APCA on white | ΔE00 from the step above |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 50 | #e9f8ff | 97.0% | 0.019 ·capped | 1.09:1 | 19.33:1 | 0 | — |
| 100 | #d1f0ff | 93.8% | 0.039 ·capped | 1.19:1 | 17.66:1 | 9 | 5.9 |
| 200 | #aedef3 | 87.4% | 0.058 | 1.44:1 | 14.55:1 | 21 | 6.1 |
| 300 | #9ac9de | 81.0% | 0.058 | 1.78:1 | 11.79:1 | 33 | 5.0 |
| 400 | #86b5c9 | 74.6% | 0.058 | 2.22:1 | 9.44:1 | 44 | 5.5 |
| 500 | #72a1b5 | 68.2% | 0.058 | 2.82:1 | 7.46:1 | 54 | 6.0 |
| 600 | #5f8da1 | 61.8% | 0.058 | 3.61:1 | 5.81:1 | 64 | 6.6 |
| 700 | #4d7a8d | 55.4% | 0.058 | 4.69:1 | 4.48:1 | 73 | 7.3 |
| 800 | #3a677a | 49.0% | 0.058 | 6.16:1 | 3.41:1 | 81 | 7.0 |
| 900 | #0e3e4f | 34.0% | 0.058 | 11.59:1 | 1.81:1 | 96 | 13.9 |
| 950 | #00141d | 18.0% | 0.035 ·capped | 18.73:1 | 1.12:1 | 105 | 13.7 |
What is true of this ramp
- 10 of the 10 adjacent pairs differ by ΔE00 2 or more. Every step here is a step a reader can see.
- The tightest pair is 200 to300, at ΔE00 5.0.
- 3 steps had to give up chroma to stay inside sRGB — 50, 100, 950. A wider display would show them more vividly.
- 4 steps clear 4.5:1 on white (700, 800, 900, 950), and 7 on black (50, 100, 200, 300, 400, 500, 600).
Harmonies from Nordic Noir
complement
the hue directly opposite, at the same lightness. #452412 (+180°)
analogous
the two neighbours 30° either side. #003536 (+-30°), #1a2e4a (+30°) — chroma capped by sRGB.
split complement
the two hues either side of the opposite, 30° apart from it. #462123 (+150°), #3e2905 (+210°)
triad
the circle divided in three. #422133 (+120°), #312f07 (+240°)
tetrad
the circle divided in four. #392441 (+90°), #452412 (+180°), #1f3416 (+270°)
The ramp as CSS
:root {
--nordic-noir-50: #e9f8ff;
--nordic-noir-100: #d1f0ff;
--nordic-noir-200: #aedef3;
--nordic-noir-300: #9ac9de;
--nordic-noir-400: #86b5c9;
--nordic-noir-500: #72a1b5;
--nordic-noir-600: #5f8da1;
--nordic-noir-700: #4d7a8d;
--nordic-noir-800: #3a677a;
--nordic-noir-900: #0e3e4f;
--nordic-noir-950: #00141d;
}