A color negative is a type of photographic film that captures images in inverted colors. When exposed to light, the film records the colors of the scene as their complementary hues. For example, red appears as cyan, green as magenta, and blue as yellow. This inversion is essential for the development process, where the negative is transformed into a positive image. To view the original colors, the color negative must be printed onto photographic paper or scanned digitally. This process allows photographers to produce vibrant images that closely resemble the original scene. Color negatives are commonly used in traditional film photography and are a key component of the photographic process.