Cleaning up your Swatches + Layers for Print // Illustrator + InDesign // Print Ready Files Series

[@loomonda18]

This was so helpful!! Thank you so much!!

[@LaurinLight888]

This helped clear up my pixelated print issue in AI… thank you!!!

[@PrintDesignAcademy]

So glad this helped! Thanks for check out out channel!

[@rakibmhamud2327]

Helpful video Thank you❤️

[@NwoRun]

Thank you

[@PrintDesignAcademy]

Glad you found it helpful!

[@frnc2461]

Hi, what is the difference between the lab and pantone + solid coated. What will be the best settings for print with blue as the dominant color in a magazine say for example. I am currently making my first magazine project and the differences between the color spaces confuses me lol

[@PrintDesignAcademy]

Great question! We'll do our best here for ya. Pantone is the guide that tells printers the specific codes/ levels of each pre-defined ink formula so the printers can manually mix to match your color swatch. In digital form, because Pantone is not created using layers of CMYK (cyan, magenta, yellow, black) it needs another measuring system to let the printers know what color it is etc. LAB is a color space that represents colors based on human perception. It stands for L (Lightness), A (Green to Red), and B (Blue to Yellow). Unlike other color modes like RGB or CMYK, LAB doesn't rely on specific devices (such as monitors or printers) and is designed to be more consistent across different platforms. Printers have all sorts of technical systems to make colors appear as accurate as possible. When we say ‘color space’ it’ll refer to RGB (screen only), CMYK (all general printing), or LAB (which is used for custom inks) So LAB is the way to communicate Pantone coated, uncoated, etc. Coated just means the ink is formulated to be used on coated paper and then uncoated Pantone, for uncoated paper. It’s important to use the right swatches for the right paper too. Blue is a color that does pretty well with CMYK and can keep consistently matched throughout a magazine. You would just need to let your printer know that it’s throughout so they can keep an eye on adjusting throughout the print job if needed. It’ll also depend on the shade you’re looking for though, if you do want something more vibrant a Pantone could be an option, also creates added consistency, but will cost a bit more overall.

[@frnc2461]

@@PrintDesignAcademy Oh wow I didn't think I would get a free lesson today! This information is really helpful. Thank you so much and I would definitely take this advice and apply it to my work.

[@user-ci1wh8wb4s]

Hey, I'm little confused in spot colours. So I have a label design client and its my first, the label is quite simple with texts, logo, symbols and icon. So I wanna ask, bseides CMYK, that should I use spot colours or process for the colour palette I created for her logo?. The colours are neutral brown and green and also grayish black.

[@loomonda18]

Typically CMYK, but if the client asked for a specific Pantone colour to be used (ex. a certain brand colour, ex. the Tiffany company only uses their signature Tiffany Blue colour (which would be a Pantone), then you could include it. But if not, then CMYK would be fine!

[@PrintDesignAcademy]

So sorry for the late reply on this. 🙈 Hope the project went well! CMYK is great for most projects and covers all the needs. Using spot colors in your design are best when CMYK can't quite get the brightness you're looking for and great for brand consistency. Certain colors in CMYK just aren't achievable or feel a bit off or muted: like neons, some oranges, browns, occasionally greys and a few others. Sometimes using a Pantone can help with that, but note that Pantones often can up the cost of a project and is why most people use CMYK if Pantone isn't fully necessary. As a part of designing a brand though, it's a great practice to include what the closest Pantone would be in a brand guide, but you'd want to do this looking at a Pantone book rather than picking one through the screen since screen won't look the same as in person at all.

[@Danafinland]

Great, so I'm just vectorizing my pen and ink drawings. So would I need to work with the pantone at all since it will only be printing my black? It's for a coloring book.

[@PrintDesignAcademy]

You won't need Pantones for your book since it would be all black ink. No need to worry about that! It also brings the cost of a print job up when you use Pantones, so best to use them when a color you need is out of the range of CMYK.