We’ve all heard and used the phrase, “What you see is what you get.” I like it. It’s a common industry phrase that is simple, but at the same time extremely deceptive. Unfortunately for those shops that are not using open color management, "what you see" might not be "what you get". Color management has received more and more attention in recent years but it’s a subject that is relatively hard to fully understand. Within these few paragraphs, I hope to simplify color management by looking at it - not from the broad perspective, but from that of the publisher. By doing so I hope to alleviate some of the mystery and esoteric aspects perceived to be associated with color management and provide a map to assist in getting your own operation up and running with "real" color.

The down and dirty basics... Color is perception!

OK... first the not so exciting basics... "What is color?" Simply put, color is the eye’s perception of light reflecting from an object. I say perception because color is influenced by many internal and external elements. If one has poor color vision the color perceived would be different than that perceived by another. Elements in the general area, let’s say an open window with a leafy green tree nearby, will affect the light and thereby influence the color perceived. To say the least, color is subjective in nature so we as an industry have developed systems to not only assist with harnessing in the subjective elements of color, but to standardize how we produce color. This, in turn, assists with reining in our own perceptions so "what we see" really is "what we get".

Perception or press?

Many simply attempt pleasing color. Pleasing color is literally what you make of it. Images are brought into a digital workflow, incorporated into layouts on uncalibrated monitors, proofed on uncalibrated systems with no characterization, and sent to a printer. There, the files are output and, God help us all, let the press checking games begin. When working with pleasing color, one is literally color managing in reverse.

This process takes something that is not reality and then forces the press to match the color. This can result in long makeready runs ($$$), long press checks ($$$), and, possibly worst of all, not even achieving what was originally intended. Some presses might literally not be capable of producing the color desired.

The basics of color management... a few terms

Let’s look at a few basic terms before we proceed.

- Color Space: A color model with a specific gamut or range of colors. Color spaces have boundaries that limit the total number of colors they can perceive or reproduce.

- Gamut: The total number of colors capable for reproduction within a given color space. Device: Any object used to view or reproduce color.

- Calibration: The process by which a device is set to interpret color based on known color conditions. This is achieved through software and, in the case of monitors, a device called a colorimeter.

- ICC Profile: A file that describes how a particular device interprets and reproduces color.

Color management downstream

Simply put, an open color managed system’s goal is to look downstream to the press; determine what the press is capable of; and try and trick out monitors and proofers to produce what the press is capable of. Each device, be it a monitor, proofing system, or press, produces "device dependent" color. Each interprets color differently, so we need to get them all on the same sheet of music, so to speak.

As we know, monitors are RGB and some proofing systems are also RGB. But most high end ones are CMYK. Presses represent the colors needed, but like monitors and proofing systems, then can only produce colors within their specific and unique (to that press) color gamut.

So how do we trick these devices into producing what we can achieve on press and save us time and money at the 11th hour? We calibrate them and produce ICC Profiles that enable the devices to mimic the environment on press. At Paizo, with the help of the good folks at Chromix, we came up with the concept of not truly mimicking our printers’ presses. There are many presses and we don’t know exactly which one will be used for our job. Remember, presses produce device dependent color. So we mimick our printers’ proofing devices taking us 98% there. And with a good press operator, it will get us 100% there with shorter makeready times and less money spent.

So what can we do to achieve color management?

At Paizo we have achieved open color management. First, all our internal devices, monitors and proofers were calibrated. Once we achieved this, a test patch of images and colors was output on our proofer. This was measured so as to map the gamut of our specific proofer. The file was also output at our printer and their device was characterized in the same way.

Using software, ICC profiles were produced for both our monitors and our proofer to enable them to display and output what was capable at our printers. At the base of this is the gamut. Steve Upton of Chromix likes to use the phrase, "The incredible shrinking gamut". This is a great way to visualize what is exactly taking place in this process. Let’s begin upstream with our eyes. The human eye can distinguish millions of colors so our gamut is very large. Monitors that try to reproduce color have a smaller gamut, so fewer colors can be seen. Proofers have even smaller gamuts, and presses smaller yet. What this means to us is that we need to in some way make devices with larger gamuts produce colors that are within a smaller range. This is termed "gamut clipping". Your ICC profile assesses both the devices possible colors and the destination’s possible reproducible colors and determines what is and is not out of gamut. It will them push colors that can be reproduced by your device, let’s say your monitor, into the gamut capable by your printer’s devices. This enables you to view on your calibrated monitor "true" color, and not, what I term, "junk" color. The same can be said for your proofers.

The basics

So this process incorporates calibrated devices. (Calibrating your devices needs to be done monthly at the very least.) The process uses ICC profiles when converting from RGB to CMYK or other color captured digitally for monitors. And then there is the use of ICC profiles when outputting proofs, and a process of constant assessment, as your devices may need to be re-characterized and new profiles produced as they age.

Remember to always look downstream to the press because that’s reality... not your monitor or proofing system. The color you see might look good, but "what you see" might not always be "what you get"!

Until next time, all the best and happy holidays!