Spot Color vs Full Color

Process color printing, also known at four-color process printing, is a method that reproduces finished full-color artwork and photographs. The four colors used are C-cyan (process blue), M-magenta (process red), Y-process yellow, and K-black. These inks are translucent and are used to simulate different colors, for example, green can be created using cyan and yellow. The black ink is used primarily to create fine detail and strong shadows. Artwork and photos are reproduced when the colors in the artwork are separated, then halftoned (converted to dots). Process colors are reproduced by overlapping and printing halftones to simulate a large number of colors. These overlapping dots essentially trick the human eye to see a multitude of different colors.

Spot Colors (PMS) If you need to match a particular color, perhaps a logo color, then spot color is often the best choice. Spot colors are printed with premixed inks on a printing press or screen printer. Each spot color is reproduced using a single printing plate or screen.
To ensure that a printer uses the exact color that the designer intends, the Pantone Matching System (PMS) is used. Each PMS number references a unique spot color and these colors can be found on a swatch chart. By using this type of numbering system, people can convey the exact colors for a printed piece to each other without actually looking at the same samples.
It's important to remember that spot colors may not actually translate to matching process colors. Unlike process printing, which prints dots of overlapping colors, a spot color is printed separately. Various shades or tints of the spot color can be created by printing smaller dots of the spot color.

Spot color printing has some advantages over full color printing...
1) Cost- Particularly on shorter runs, spot color printing can cost significantly less than full color printing.
2) Vibrancy and availability of colors. Because of the way spot colors are mixed, there are many colors that can be created with spot color inks that can't be duplicated accurately in process color printing.
3) Consistency of color.


When to use spot color?
You want to assure consistent color for corporate logos, etc.
You want amazing BRIGHT colors which exceed the capability of CMYK Process Colors.
You need three or fewer colors and you will not be reproducing full color photographs.
You want clarity in text and crisp lines.

Sometimes customers don't realize that black is actually a color, but it is. So if you have a graphic that just uses blue and black, for instance, it's considered a two color job. A graphic with blue, red, and black is a three color job. You can create the illusion of more colors in a job by using shades of your PMS colors: these are know as screens, shades, or tints.
Tints are created by using only a percentage of the full color, with 10% being very light and 90% being very dark. Before digital prepress, tints were created by laying a negative with dots over the film used to shoot your artwork (this is where the term screen comes from: the negative with the dots was called a screen).


How to Pick Spot Colors
In the United States, the most popular spot color system is the Pantone Matching System (or PMS). You choose PMS colors from a Pantone Swatchbook. Pantone Swatchbooks look something like the paint chips you get from hardware stores:
Pantone Swatch Book
At our office you can pick a PMS color by looking through the swatch book until you see a color you like. Then you use the number. Please note: You need to be careful, because the colors are printed on both uncoated and coated paper. Make sure you're looking at the type of paper your final project will be printed on.
Uncoated PMS colors will have a U after the number; coated PMS colors will have a C after the number.
In your software program, you can pick the PMS color by displaying Pantone colors in your color picker or pallettes, then just clicking on the same number that you've chosen from the Swatch book.
It's important to choose the colors from the PMS swatch book, and not from your monitor. Because any two computer monitors are rarely color calibrated exactly the same, the color on screen may look very different than the actual printed color. Trust the Pantone swatch books. Even then, the printed color can vary from what you see in the swatch book, due to differences in paper, press operators, etc.
Printing Proofs
A proof printed on an inkjet or laser printer will not give a true representation of the PMS colors. Computer printers use CMYK or RGB inks, not actual PMS colors. It is best to refer to the Pantone Swatch Book to select a PMS Color. If color is critical, you can request a Press Proof, at added cost. For a Press Proof, we will schedule a day and time when your job will be on press. We then call you when we have it set-up and ready to run, then stop the press until you arrive to view and approve the Press Proof.

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Please email me if you have been printing Spot color printing and are paying too much. Or if your paying full color pricing when you could be printing only 1 or 2 color.
You can send me your file and I can give you a quote to redraw your project so it is able to be printed for less. anna@hibiscusgraphix.com

RGB vs CMYK conversion

CMYK versus RGB in Printing

Important information regarding RGB and CMYK! Applicable when printing in full colour(CMYK).

When supplying digital files for full colour printing, it is important you supply images and graphics in the correct mode or colour space. Many software programs give you the choice to work in either the RGB or CMYK mode..

RGB stands for Red, Green and Blue which are the primary colours of light. Scanners and digital cameras generally create images using combinations of the three RGB colours. When you save a scanned picture, or image taken with your digital camera, it normally will be saved in RGB mode unless otherwise specified. In addition, computers display images on the computer screen as RGB colours.

Printing presses print full color pictures using a different set of colors than RGB. Generally, full colour images are created using the primary colors of pigment: Cyan (blue), Magenta (red), Yellow and Black - otherwise known as "CMYK printing" or "4 colour process". By combining different percentages of the 4 CMYK inks, the illusion of continuous tone in images is created.

At some stage in the design process, your images must be converted from RGB to CMYK in order to print them on a printing press. Unfortunately not all colours in the RGB spectrum can be replicated in CMYK. Such colours are said to be "out of the CMYK color gamut". When converting from RGB mode to CMYK mode, software programs get as close to original colour as possible. Some colours convert very well whereas others do not. Below is an example of colours that do not convert well from RGB to CMYK.

RGB Image	CMYK Image

Do not be alarmed by the example above, as most photographic images usually convert quite well. Below is an example of converting a photograph. You can hardly see a change in colour. Generally, it is in extremely rich and vibrant colours where you may see the most colour shift.

RGB Image	CMYK Image

Please convert all images and graphics to CMYK prior to sending your files to us. You will have more control over the appearance of your printed piece as you will see how the images look once they are converted. If need be, you can always adjust the image slightly after conversion to more closely achieve the desired colour. If we receive RGB images from you, we will do a standard conversion to CMYK, however our results may vary from yours.

For best results, we recommend working in CMYK mode whenever possible. Some applications like Photoshop and Illustrator actually allow you to work in different modes so be sure to choose the correct one!

Thanks to I.P. Impressions In Print Ltd. Vancouver, British Columbia Canada for the info.

What if Starbucks Crowdsources for its Logo? - DesignTAXI.com

What if Starbucks Crowdsources for its Logo? - DesignTAXI.com

Read before you start a business

Do You Look Cheap?

Many clients buy the least expensive Web site, newsletter, or brochure they can find because they don't see direct results from it. That's bad thinking. If the impression you make on people relative to your competitors is unfavorable, you could be losing business. For instance, If I was online shopping on the Web for cutters for my electric shaver. One site I went to didn't have pictures of the products and the site was ugly graphically--just a bunch of text thrown on a page without any planning or regard to aesthetics. The other site I went to was slick. It had pictures of all the products and was better organized. Its prices were about the same. Guess which company got my order? The one that made the better impression. And that's when I'm buying new shaver blades. People are going to be a lot more careful when they check you out on the Web looking for a financial advisor. Looks do matter. Sure, that sounds shallow, but making a good impression is critical. You can refuse to believe that people evaluate you that way. If so, you're just fooling yourself.

Don't Hire Cousin Vinny

In the Hollywood version of life, "My Cousin Vinny" showed Karate Kid Ralph Macchio being defended successfully by Joe Pesci on charges of murder. Vinny, played by Pesci, had never tried a case. He was not even a lawyer. But that's the movies. In real life, clients rely on a brother-in-law, spouse, or cousin to design marketing materials. But just because your cousin dabbles in graphic design does not mean he or she can do a credible job of creating your marketing materials. Even if your relative is a full-time marketing pro, she probably doesn't know anything about the financial advice business. Even if she does, she probably won't spend enough time on getting the job done right.

Me! Me! Me!

Probably the most common mistake clients make is to fill their brochures and Web sites with self-centered copy. It's as if you think that telling people about your technical skills will convince them to do business with you. Good marketing copy addresses the reader. It's about the benefits your clients get from working with you. Instead of telling people about what you do, tell them about the benefits of working with you. Tell them how you can help them.

Talk to Your Mom
Avoiding jargon in marketing copy or when you're talking to people helps them understand what you're talking about. If you speak in clear terms, it helps you to be perceived as an expert. Try to speak and write in language that would be understood by someone who doesn't work in the industry. Ask yourself: "Would my mom understand what I'm talking about?" It is all about education - educate your clients.

No Logo? No Clients

When you see the hood ornament on a Jaguar, you know it. When you see golden arches, you know you just passed a McDonald's. You, too, can create a strong brand. Everyone has a brand--moms, dads, doctors, barbers. We all put our distinct imprint on what we do. Your logo is a graphical device that stands for your brand. It is your seal of integrity and acts as an implicit promise from you when people look at it. It captures the quality of service your firm gives and the intelligence of the advice you provide. This simple graphic device helps spread the word about what you stand for. Your logo should grace all your marketing materials--the banner on your Web site, the masthead on your newsletter, your stationery, brochure, and the pens you give to clients. They should all feature the same colors. Themed materials support your brand, and a logo is a central part of the effort.

Have a Marketing Budget

The great irony about people who start up their own companies, when it comes to their own business, they don't plan. Do you have a marketing budget? Do you have 12-month marketing goals? Have you written a formal plan outlining who your ideal clients are? Do you know who your most profitable clients are and how you plan to get more clients like them? To make money on your business, you will need to set aside money to achieve your marketing goals.

Guts Equals Glory

If you want to get press, you need to have some guts. My advice: Read the newspaper. Know which reporters cover areas you care about and read all their coverage. Then, call them up and tell them what you like about their coverage and give them ideas about how to make it better. It's that simple. The dentist soon was being quoted in The Wall Street Journal on a regular basis. That was his local paper. Call a reporter. They don't bite, and you have the ideas they need.

Have an Elevator Speech

Can you explain your business in less than 20 seconds? You must be able to tell a stranger exactly who you are, what you do, and what's unique about you in one concise 20-second statement. Write it out and then practice it. While your elevator speech takes only 20 seconds, creating it could take years.

Do it With A Pro

Some clients think they can write their marketing copy. Some think they can produce their own newsletter. Some believe they can script their own seminars. But writing is a skill professionals spend years mastering. Creating your own marketing materials is the same. Write a first draft or spend an hour or two outlining ideas for your brochure. Then hand the draft to a pro. There is a good chance you wouldn't find the time to finish the job anyway.

Most of this info is from a smart -Editor-at-Large Andrew Gluck, a veteran personal finance reporter, is president of Advisor Products Inc. (www.advisorproducts.com), which creates client newsletters and Web sites for advisors. Advisor Products may compete or do business with companies mentioned in this column. He can be reached at agluck@advisorproducts.com.

Please watch this video as it will help you understand why your logo can't be designed in Adobe Photoshop - and why your logo can't be a photo. Maybe back in the day your logo could have been an image file, now in today's world imagine your logo moving and becoming an animated gif on your website. If this is something that interests you then you need Vector artwork.

CMYK COLORS - Great Link

http://www.december.com/html/spec/colorcmyk.html

Helping people understand CMYK Printing... More to come!

College & NFL Work

Before I ventured out on my own in early 2009. I worked for Conder Flag Company where I was laid off because of the down economy. Conder Flag works with a ton of sporting associations and very large format printing. Although it was sad to be laid off for the first time in my life, while I was there I got the chance to work with the ACC as we transformed the Time Warner Cable arena into the ACC 2008 Arena. Having the ACC Tournament and the Carolina Tarheels come to Charlotte was not only my brothers dream to get to attend the tournament by awesome to be able to create all graphics for the players and attendees to see. Not to meantion the exposure on TV. I went and took measurements of everything square inch of the arena and designed banners and layouts for the entire event all to scale. It was something that I will never forget.

I was also given the job to redesign the Carolina Panthers sidelines. How awesome is it to attend a game or watch a game on TV and see my designs on the sidelines. Check out the link below to see my pictures on Myspace. You don't have to sign up to see them. Really cool stuff.

Before I left the company I also got to work with the Charlotte (Lowes) Motor Speedway's new ZMAX drag strip. I designed the layout of the poles at the entrance and the flags that we printed for them. They were 5' x 20' giant printed flags using the Zmax graphics and colors.

Moving on now to new ventures. My next blog post will be about teaching!