Recently I was making some buttons in Photoshop to use in a Flash movie. I was having trouble getting the colors right when importing them, so I started asking around. My very smart friend, Ben, had a few things to tell me about color settings.
Most designers are well versed with setting up the color mode when creating documents – using either RGB or CMYK depending on the output. In photoshop, it’s [Image > Mode > RGB or CMYK]. In Illustrator, it’s [File > Document Color Mode]. However, to get a better idea of what the final output will look like,* you can make several adjustments in your settings.
*Please note, you will never get an absolutely accurate reading of the final color. There is always deviation. Print is especially difficult, but even with the web, where the end product is pixels, there are still deviations of color from different screens.
Proof Setup
In Photoshop, [View > Proof Setup] will yield choices to view the artwork in either a plate preview (for printing) or you can choose to view what the document will look like on a Mac vurses a PC. Use Control – Y (Apple – Y) to toggle between the view of Macintosh RGB and Windows RGB. Use Shift – Control – Y to see if there are any gamut warnings – meaning that the color on the screen may not be printable.
Color Settings
Most likely, you want to be designing in sRGB IEC61966-2.1, as opposed to RGB 1998 or another option. Sean McHugh explains, “sRGB is a RGB color space proposed by HP and Microsoft because it approximates the color gamut of the most common computer display devices.” This setting is also most accurate to most printer gamuts. To access these settings in Photoshop or Illustrator, go to [Edit > Color Settings]. In Photoshop, it is also available in the Advanced Settings when you create the document.
These two basic settings can make work easier for you, your production artist, and your printer. I hope this was helpful. I will try to explain more about color management in the future. Thanks!
