Signage Education | Color Management Part 1, Introduction

In digital printing, the topic of color management is a very deep pool. As such, adequate coverage requires a basis upon which to build prior to diving in the deep end.

In the coming weeks, we will be publishing a series of articles about color management. In doing so, we hope to answer the following:

• What is Color Management
• Why would I care about accurate color
• What factors affect the representation and perception of color
• How can I accurately and consistently produce color images
• What tools are used to manage color
• What industry standards exist
• What is a “profile”

To appeal to a wider audience, topics may be generalized, possibly sacrificing absolute technical accuracy. For the purists, bear in mind the intended audience.

What is Color Management?

In digital imaging, there are a number of devices used, and a number of means of representing color depending on the device. These devices might include a scanner, monitor, printer and others. Any number of devices may be used in the design and production of color images.

By way of example, when viewing printed output, your perception of color is from light reflected off the image. On a monitor, your perception of color is from emitted light.

The goal of color management is to obtain a good match of color representation across a variety of different devices that may be used in a typical production work flow. A proper color management work flow guarantees yields the greatest accuracy in color reproduction. Color output is both consistent and predictable.

Each device may have a unique method of representing color. LCD monitors for example, use a color space referred to as “RGB”. The letters in the name of this color space can be thought of as the base / constituent colors “Red”, “Green” and “Blue”. A monitor can be thought of as a matrix of thousands of little red, green and blue light bulbs, each with their own dimmer switch to control density. The range of colors, or “gamut” that can be displayed are dependent on the three colors used, and their intensity.

In comparison, a digital printer commonly uses a color space referred to as “CMYK”. The letters in this color space refer to the 4 colors of ink used in the printer: Cyan, Magenta, Yellow and Black. The range of colors, or “gamut” that be produced are dependent on these base colors.

Since there are a number of devices with a number of means of representing color, each with its own gamut, a proper color management work flow must accurately map colors from one color space to another when moving a digital image between devices. This process will be explored further in subsequent articles.

If you’ve ever been disappointed with the color output from your sign company, we invite you to stop by our shop to see what differentiates Spectrum Signs from most other sign companies.

For more information, contact:

Spectrum Signs
23382 Madero Suite L
Mission Viejo, CA 92691
(949) 297-3800

Spectrum Signs