Automatically find a given number of colors which match to each other

Question

Given a number n, what is the best way to find n colors which match to each other in an harmonic way? My current approach is as follows:

• In the HSV model I start with a color color1 = (h1,s1,v1).
• For assigning the next colour (i=2, ... n) I choose: colori = ((360/n)(i/2)+180(i%2), s1, v1)

So, I divide the hue circle into n segments and select for each of the segments the color. When grouping the colors in the list I pair two colors which are located opposite in the hue circle with each other.

Is there any algorithm offering a better (i.e., more harmonic) choice?

Answer 1

I think you're looking for "color palette generation algorithm". The first result googling that is a good intro: http://devmag.org.za/2012/07/29/how-to-choose-colours-procedurally-algorithms/, but there are zillions of ways to do it, depending on what you're looking for.