Most color print projects use either spot colors or process colors
It’s quite general knowledge that a couple of spot colors cost different than four-color process color printing. Still, when you are inclined to use full-color photos, the only option you can have is that of process colors…Meanwhile, some full color printing projects need to use both process colors and spot colors to finish the print job successfully. Do you know how to identify when to use spot colors or process colors? Or when to use both?
It is ideal to use spot colors, (PMS) colors when:
- Your printing job has no full-color photographs involved and requires only one or two colors.
- Your printing needs a color or colors that can’t be accurately reproduced using CMYK inks. This may be the color matching for your corporate or logo color.
- The printing project needs more vibrant colors than what CMYK inks produce.
- There is a need for special effects like metallic or fluorescent spot inks.
It is preferable to use process colors or CMYK when:
- full-color photographs shall be used
- Your publication has multi-color graphics that would require many ink colors to reproduce with spot colors
- The printing job needs more than two spot colors.
- Actually, if you check with your printer, you might find that process color printing would be less expensive than using three or more spot colors.
You might use both spot colors and process colors when:
Your publication has full-color photographs that must also incorporate specific spot colors from the PMS and cannot be created with CMYK inks (e.g. logo color) or there is a need to improve or increase intensity of a specific process color by adding spot color ink. This 5th plate from the spot color to used as addition to CMYK is called a bump plate. Some of the full color publication is coated with clear varnish, varnish being specified as a spot color. With this safely learned, you wouldn’t fall to the blunder of having full color printing disasters and save time and budget during the entire process, too!
Source: ArticlesFactory.com | Kay Zetkin