Traditional Blue vs Pigeon
Where Traditional Blue belongs to Behr's range, Pigeon is a Farrow & Ball color. Traditional Blue reads as blue, while Pigeon reads as grey — two distinct hue families, not close cousins. Pigeon (LRV 51) reflects noticeably more light than Traditional Blue (LRV 9), a difference of 41 points that becomes especially apparent in rooms with limited natural light. Traditional Blue runs blue while Pigeon is decidedly neutral, which means they'll respond very differently to warm vs cool light sources. With a ΔE of 44.0, the contrast is hard to miss. These aren't variations on a theme — they're two different answers to the same question. Below you'll find 5 real-room photo comparisons where both colors appear side by side, plus 5 simulated room previews.
Traditional Blue vs Pigeon in Real Spaces
5 real rooms side by side. Seeing Traditional Blue and Pigeon in actual rooms makes the difference concrete; browse the spaces below to get a feel for how each color lives on a wall.
Living Room
In a living room, color works across both daylight and evening light — the same wall can read very differently at noon and at 8pm. The LRV gap is large enough that Pigeon will make the room feel meaningfully brighter than Traditional Blue would.
Bedroom
The context that matters most in a bedroom is how a color reads under a bedside lamp at night, not under noon daylight. Pigeon reflects noticeably more light off the walls, making the space read more open than Traditional Blue.
Bathroom
Bathrooms are one of the few spaces where you're genuinely enclosed by the paint color, which makes the choice between these two more consequential. Pigeon reflects noticeably more light off the walls, making the space read more open than Traditional Blue.
House
Seen across an entire facade, subtle tonal differences become pronounced. What reads as nearly the same on a chip often reads as clearly different at scale. Pigeon reflects noticeably more light off the walls, making the space read more open than Traditional Blue.
Kitchen Cabinets
Kitchen cabinets are constantly compared against adjacent materials, which means subtle differences between these two become much more visible. Pigeon reflects noticeably more light off the walls, making the space read more open than Traditional Blue.
Color Details
Traditional Blue vs Pigeon Simulated Comparison
5 simulated room previews — drag the slider on each to see Traditional Blue on one side and Pigeon on the other.
Digital color is approximate. These simulations are generated from the manufacturer's hex values and overlaid on grayscale room photos — your screen's calibration, brightness, and viewing angle all affect how they render. Before committing to either color, test physical samples in your own space under the light you actually live with.
More Traditional Blue comparisons
See how Traditional Blue stacks up against other well-photographed colors across different brands and tones.
At LRV 69 vs 9, Ammonite is decisively the brighter choice.
White Dove reflects far more light (LRV 83 vs 9), opening up a space where Traditional Blue encloses it.
Traditional Blue reads slightly lighter (LRV 9 vs 6), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
At LRV 52 vs 9, Purbeck Stone is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 30 vs 9, Evergreen Fog is decisively the brighter choice.
Mizzle reflects far more light (LRV 52 vs 9), opening up a space where Traditional Blue encloses it.
At LRV 60 vs 9, Agreeable Gray is decisively the brighter choice.
Accessible Beige reflects far more light (LRV 58 vs 9), opening up a space where Traditional Blue encloses it.
Denim Drift reflects far more light (LRV 27 vs 9), opening up a space where Traditional Blue encloses it.
At LRV 43 vs 9, French Gray is decisively the brighter choice.
A 5-point LRV gap (9 vs 4) makes Traditional Blue the marginally brighter of the two.
Tranquil Dawn reflects far more light (LRV 55 vs 9), opening up a space where Traditional Blue encloses it.
Bancha reads slightly lighter (LRV 13 vs 9), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
Hardwick White reflects far more light (LRV 44 vs 9), opening up a space where Traditional Blue encloses it.
At LRV 84 vs 9, Pure White is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 21 vs 9, Artichoke is decisively the brighter choice.
Balboa Mist reflects far more light (LRV 66 vs 9), opening up a space where Traditional Blue encloses it.
Shoji White reflects far more light (LRV 74 vs 9), opening up a space where Traditional Blue encloses it.
Snowbound reflects far more light (LRV 83 vs 9), opening up a space where Traditional Blue encloses it.
With LRVs of 12 and 9, the two reflect almost the same amount of light.
With LRVs of 9 and 8, the two reflect almost the same amount of light.
Skimming Stone reflects far more light (LRV 68 vs 9), opening up a space where Traditional Blue encloses it.
At LRV 41 vs 9, Dix Blue is decisively the brighter choice.
With LRVs of 12 and 9, the two reflect almost the same amount of light.
Saybrook Sage reflects far more light (LRV 45 vs 9), opening up a space where Traditional Blue encloses it.
At LRV 31 vs 9, Pale Green is decisively the brighter choice.
Their light reflectance is nearly identical (LRV 9 vs 7), so neither reads brighter in a room.