Recently, I had a lesson about color management and what exactly it was. We then had to write up a quick paragraph. Well, why not share it with you all then? It makes for a great blog post! 😉

Color management is the idea that no matter what device or monitor is used, the colors will all match. The three main machines that need to match are monitors, proofing device, and printing press. Monitors are things like a mac laptop or desktop. While two people may have different monitors, using color management should allow them to have the same color. The proofing device is when a hard or soft proof is created to mail to the client. A hard proof will be mailed the old fashioned way, showing the exact colors that will match throughout. What the client sees is what they will get. However, if the client is sent a soft proof, they will only see what appears on their computer. Since they may not be using the same color management system, the colors will be different. A hard proof will follow guidelines better than a soft proof. Finally, the printing press is when everything is checked off and the product is printed off in full. However big the job is, 100 brochures vs. 10000 brochures, each one should have the same color that was seen on the monitor and the proofing device.

There are a couple of steps to ensure correct color management. Calibration is when the color is adjusting to match a standard color. These changes can be different depending on what machine is being used. The characterization is making an ICC profile, or a style sheet that contains all of the changes that is necessary to match the standard. This can be stored and loaded on several devices to match the colors. Finally, stabilization is when the printing units consistently provide the same results every time. In each step of the printing process, from design to conception, the color should be consistent throughout, aka they should be stable.