Colour: Or How I Learned to CMYK my RGBs

When working with digital printing as an illustrator, it is important to know the difference between the two main colour modes - RGB and CMYK. Computer screens use RGB to present colour, while printed materials like newspapers work with CMYK - this can be a problem when working across both traditional and digital mediums. To avoid unwanted colour shifts when printing from a digital device, creatives will work to the colour of the print and not what is presented on the screen.

RGB

CMYK

RGB encompasses how other colours can be made by using red, green and blue LEDs on a screen. CMYK uses more specified printable colours by using cyan, magenta, yellow and black. As black is the colour 'key,' it is represented with a 'K.' A good illustrator can balance colours according to both these colour modes when it is appropriate for their work.


While artwork can be printed in either of the two main colour modes, there is a set of colours that cannot be reproduced when printed from a digital image to a traditional medium. These fluorescent colours are too bright for modern printers to replicate, and so it is encouraged not to use them in an illustrator's digital work. This is because these colours exist outside of the visible colour spectrum, and can only be presented on backlit screens of most digital devices.

Fluorescent colours

These colour modes are important for any creative working with colour to know about, and by learning the differences between them (and when and where to use each one) an artist should be able to reproduce their work without hassle. With modern technology, someone can easily proof any image even before sending it to print, meaning there will be no crying over spilt fluorescents.