A multi-color system for optically inspecting a surface of a specimen includes a multi-wavelength led array to illuminate the specimen with a multi-color light pattern including simultaneously emitted spatial intensity color image patterns, each of which has first areas in which light is emitted with a first light intensity and second areas in which the light is emitted with a second light intensity, the first light intensity being higher than the second light intensity, and corresponding first and second areas in each of the simultaneously emitted spatial intensity color image patterns being phase-shifted relative to each other. A multi-color sensor captures each of the simultaneously emitted spatial intensity color image patterns reflected from the surface of the specimen in a single wavelength-multiplexed sensor image, and a data processing apparatus in communication with the multi-color sensor determines properties of the surface based on an evaluation of the single wavelength-multiplexed sensor image.