Like many industries, the color printing and commercial printing world has its fair share of acronyms or industry lingo that sound normal to print shop professionals who see, use, and work with them daily. However, these acronyms can confuse uninitiated business owners or advertisers. Two common acronyms you are likely to hear when it comes to printed and digital files are RGB and CMYK. These terms describe two distinct color representation models, and understanding the difference dramatically affects how your printed projects work will turn out.
At the end of the day, our team at Brumley Printing wants our clients to feel empowered while working with us. Sure, you rely on us to handle all your commercial printing needs, but it feels good knowing how and when to provide the correct files to your print shop. Let’s take a closer look at these terms.
Do Professional Commercial Printers Use RGB?
No. Print shops always use CMYK color printing for any project design that will be physically printed. CMYK stands for the colors cyan, yellow, magenta, and black. Why “k” for black? There are two generally accepted reasons. In four-color printing, the cyan, magenta, and yellow printing plates are “keyed” or aligned with the black printing plate. It has also been suggested that the “K” in CYMK refers to the last letter of the word “black” and is used because the letter “B” is used to describe the color blue. Regardless, the CMYK color mode provides more accurate results for various printed materials and unique requirements. This includes many of the items we work with daily.
- Business cards
- Signs and billboards
- Flyers and brochures
- Custom packaging
- Promotional materials that are not screen printed (dye sub shirts, hats, mugs, etc.)
RGB stands for the primary colors of light (red, green, and blue). In varying intensities, these three colors create all the other colors in an image. Oddly, red, green, and blue create white when combined in equal intensities. As you can imagine, RGB is equally important in color printing—albeit for distinctly different reasons since it cannot be used for printed materials expertly managed by your favorite print shop. Digital cameras, scanners, computer monitors, television screens, phone displays, and even smartwatches rely heavily on this color model.
Simply put, use CMYK for printed materials. Use RGB if your design project is for digital purposes. For instance:
- Web and app designs
- Digital graphics
- Online logos and advertisements
- Social media
How Do I Convert RGB To CMYK Without Losing Quality?
While converting from RGB to CMYK is possible, doing so can be challenging without some quality loss. Neither method can precisely represent the boundless colors observed in nature. That said, they take fundamentally different approaches to rendering colors in the most precise way possible and would churn out different results for the same project if converted in any way. RGB is an additive color model because the three colors are combined in varying intensities to create all the other colors that make up an image. Meanwhile, CMYK is a subtractive model.
RGB and CMYK also use very different file formats to improve results. CMYK typically comes in Adobe Illustrator and PDF, while the best file formats for RGB and screen-based applications are JPG, PNG, GIF, and PSD.
When you convert an RGB image to CMYK, certain colors cannot be replicated in CMYK, leading to dull images. Therefore, it is important to design your print marketing in CMYK color mode first—not RGB. If you use RGB and then convert to CMYK before printing, the colors will change, and you may not like or be prepared for the end result.
When you convert an RGB image to CMYK, certain colors cannot be replicated in CMYK, leading to dull images. Therefore, it is important to design your print marketing in CMYK color mode first—not RGB.
5 Tips for Minimizing Quality Loss With Your Printing Projects
- Start with CMYK if your project is meant to be printed — Doing so ensures you avoid conversion issues and do not give the wrong file to your print shop. How do you start with CMYK from the beginning? Proceed to Step No. 2.
- Use professional software and high-quality files — Programs like Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Illustrator and Adobe InDesign allow you to choose CMYK as your default color mode before you even start designing a commercial printing project. When finished, double-check by saving and exporting your file in the compatible format.
- Adjust colors post-conversion — If you must convert from RGB to CMYK or vice versa, ensure your RGB files are at least 300 DPI before conversion. Then, it is important to manually tweak the colors in the software to regain as much color trueness and vibrancy as possible.
- Calibrate your monitor — To piggyback on the previous tip, an uncalibrated monitor can misrepresent colors and make it more challenging to predict how they’ll look in RGB or CMYK.
- Work with a reliable print shop — Your commercial printer knows the difference between RGB and CMYK and will ask questions if they aren’t receiving the correct files from the outset. Your print shop also utilizes specialized equipment and color settings to optimize all files for the best results.
Brumley Printing Will Advise You on the Right Files
We hope this article helps you understand these commonly used printing acronyms. That said, you may still feel apprehensive about the differences between RGB and CMYK and if you truly are turning in the correct files to your commercial print shop. If this is you, do not worry. Brumley Printing is committed to ensuring your next commercial printing job is a success. We work with our customers to understand their unique ideas and needs. We ask the right questions and pride ourselves on pointing out potential obstacles in advance. This collaborative effort provides invaluable peace of mind every step of the way.
Ready to make your next printing project a success? Brumley Printing’s experts can assist you in selecting the best specifications and paper materials. We provide high quality services at affordable prices and a range of methods to meet your project’s unique needs and demands. Brumley Printing has been helping Fort Worth businesses with their printing and promotional product needs for over 30 years.
If you would like to learn more about our custom printing services and how it can improve your business, call Brumley Printing today at (817) 336-5551 or contact us.