The Doctors uniform colour
- Thread starter Listerlad
- Start date
I have definitely noticed two shades of those blue uniforms. I think it's the lighting or the color grading because I cannot think of any examples of them next to each other. VOY and DS9.
There are two different shades of the gold uniforms though. They can be seen next to each other in Caretaker when they first arrive on the farm. Looks like they borrowed some extras from DS9. Almost an orange color
There are two different shades of the gold uniforms though. They can be seen next to each other in Caretaker when they first arrive on the farm. Looks like they borrowed some extras from DS9. Almost an orange color
There's a TNG example that shows the difference between the two shades, when Beverly is walking with Dalen Quaice...
http://tng.trekcore.com/gallery/albums/s4/4x05/remember012.jpg
Wow thanks- so not our imagination!
It's supposed to be blue but sometimes it can look green due to a combination of lighting and/or faded colours due to repeated washing.
Perhaps Beverly should switch to a different detergent or use a slightly lower water temperature.
… it's a pity they probably are 'too evolved' by that time for detergent commercials, she could have made some nice extra money with them.. ("As senior physician on the Enterprise-D, I have a demanding job, so I have little time to care for my uniform…. imagine my shock when I met this fellow medical officer who I hadn't seen for several years… his uniform looked much nicer even though it must be older than mine …. he told me he simply trusts in Zenobulan X, the most color-true and fiber-friendly detergent in the galaxy ...")
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To answer to the question, this is what I just found:
Meaning of uniform (Standard Duty Uniform) in Star Trek Voyager -> three division colors used
- Tom Paris,officially the ship's helmsman (thus wearing a red uniform), but is also considered an expert in the subjects of aerodynamics & warp field theory.
- Kathryn Janeway wears red because of her role as Captain, yet the majority of her experience is that of a physicist and scientist. In fact, prior to become a Captain, she was the ship's Science Officer.
Color Inconsistency (Blue vs. Green):
Lastly, when discussing the difference in TNG-era costumes, it's important to note that the actual shades used in the uniforms on-screen are inconsistent. Although Sciences blue is generally depicted as a deep blue, it is also sometimes seen as more of a teal color. The image below compares the two side-by-side. This is most likely due to minor differences in the fabric/dye used for the costume, but individuals with blue-yellow tritanopia may have difficulty with the two different shades of blue. It doesn't help that darker lighting in certain scenes can make the teal version appear greener than it actually is.
Meaning of uniform (Standard Duty Uniform) in Star Trek Voyager -> three division colors used
- Red/Maroon - this denotes the COMMAND division. Examples are anyone on the command track, including helmsmen, administrators, and commanding officers.
- Yellow/Gold - this denotes the OPERATIONS division. Examples are anyone responsible for the daily operation of a starship or base, including engineers, security officers, tactical officers, and non-Engineering support personnel.
- Blue/Teal - this denotes the SCIENCES division. Examples are scientists/researchers, medical staff, and non-Operations technical specialists.
- Tom Paris,officially the ship's helmsman (thus wearing a red uniform), but is also considered an expert in the subjects of aerodynamics & warp field theory.
- Kathryn Janeway wears red because of her role as Captain, yet the majority of her experience is that of a physicist and scientist. In fact, prior to become a Captain, she was the ship's Science Officer.
Color Inconsistency (Blue vs. Green):
Lastly, when discussing the difference in TNG-era costumes, it's important to note that the actual shades used in the uniforms on-screen are inconsistent. Although Sciences blue is generally depicted as a deep blue, it is also sometimes seen as more of a teal color. The image below compares the two side-by-side. This is most likely due to minor differences in the fabric/dye used for the costume, but individuals with blue-yellow tritanopia may have difficulty with the two different shades of blue. It doesn't help that darker lighting in certain scenes can make the teal version appear greener than it actually is.
Some “offhand” comments some Voyager and DS9 characters made hinted that they recycled the uniforms via replicator after wearing. Based on Voyager of course that option uses a lot of energy so don’t wouldnt be a daily occurrence. Early shows like Enterprise talk about new crew members reporting to the quartermaster for updated unis.
There’s also the issue with the SD masters of TNG, DS9 & Voyager being edited in NTSC Composite even after they had switched TNG to D2 Composite Digital in Season 4, and continued using D2 upto “Endgame” in 2001. A lot of times the NTSC (jokingly called “Never The Same Color”) signal would cause a color drift, so it might look blood red on film, but by the time you got to the final master the red would be a purplish-maroon. And in PAL/SECAM regions they were using NTSC-derived copies, so the superior color retention of PAL/SECAM would’ve been ineffective.
Which is exactly why I chose a shot where the two uniforms can be seen side by side in the same shot.
For a hologram so detail oriented and in need of recognition and legitimacy, I wonder why the Doctor never thought to program the 3 black pips of Lt Commander going with his function during the 7 years where he acted as the crew's medical officer... , while when he played Captain during an episode, his sudden transformation included the red Starfleet uniform meaning the command and the 4 pips. 
The Doctor had no rank, why would he wear ranks pips for the most part?
But also...three black pips? Lt Commander is two gold, one black, no?
About the number of pips for the rank of Lt Commander, of course you are right. It is 2 gold and 1 black.
About the fact the Doctor not having a rank, I'd wask why this preferential treatment? Although a hologram*, he remained a Starfleet officer with the same rights & obligations than any other officers but with a clear function on board ( in his case, the one of medical officer after the death of the current holder ), an uniform
according with its scope (here, it was blue/tear that he wore religiously during 7 years) and a rank (
strangely absent)
The most curious was that since Janeway wanted to maintain a semblance of protocol on board, she imposed to every members of the crew - Neelix, Kes and later Seven (although beging the Heard of Astronomy Dpt, she would have to wear one blue/tear too but for good practical reasons, it was easier for her to wear special suits) -, including the members of the Maquis, to wear a Starfleet uniform according to the Dpt where each had to work and pips corresponding to a rank to remain the hierarchy of positions (as a way to stand, the ex-Maquis choosed to wear a specific symbol in order to avoid being associated with Starfleet but the mention of the rank appeared well on the symbol) So again, why not the Doctor?!
It's meant to be teal, like all science/medical uniforms of the era, but repeated wearing and washing take their toll.
Production wise, wear and tear, dry cleaning and recoloring faded fabrics. The costumes were largely wool and spandex.
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