A method for fabricating microcapsules with gel-immobilized colloidal crystal shells using microfluidics is reported. The diffraction color or photonic wavelength of the gel-immobilized colloidal crystal shells can be adjusted by varying the particle concentration before gelation and tuned by external stimuli after preparation. The gel-immobilized colloidal crystal shell has a higher sensitivity and wider range in the stop band wavelength than that displayed by a bulk gel.