One path entails printing out a color chart on the same media that the final will be produced on and walking the color chip or print up to the chart. The chart’s color value is recorded and replaced in the file for output. Very often, the time spent doing this is absorbed by the business. Path two has designs using PANTONE® colors that are designated as spot colors. When so designated, the spot color library in the RIP can provide a closer color match, depending on the media configuration in use. If the spot color needs adjusting, a color ring around (sample of printed colors that surround a target color) can be generated sometimes by the RIP and the value of the spot color amended for future use. Doing this saves time, so that when that color is referenced in the future, it’s ready for printing immediately—no reverse engineering is necessary. Can you provide any guidance on printers or printing technology that would be important for sign shops to consider? For the sign shop, some of the overlooked places where color issues hide are in three major areas. The first is in the media or substrate itself. We call this the “white point” of the material. Is it actually white? Or does it contain a color cast that changes the image’s overall look? Some plastics can be bluish white, while others can be neutral or have a warm hue. Laminates are another area, as they’re often thought to be optically clear. If you’ve profiled a critical color, printed it, and then laminated it only to see a color shift occur, you’ll know what I’m talking about here. Laminates will typically have a shift towards yellow, depending on the thickness and amount of UV inhibitors in the product. Finally consider the light source that the final product is viewed under. The only standard for viewing conditions currently is D50 as a graphic standard viewing condition—not shop light, not daylight, and not desk lamp. Standardized viewing conditions are very important when discussing color and images with multiple service providers or customers in diverse locations. For more information about achieving color accuracy, see “Shop Talk” on page 48. signshop.com
July 2014 // Sign Builder Illustrated
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