CMYK: Difference between revisions
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CMYK, or process color, is the term for the inks used to add multiple colors to books. Books that use these inks are called four-color books because they use a combination of four | [[File:CMYK Diagram.webp|thumb|359x359px|A visual representation of the different ways in how colors can be arranged in a CMYK system.<ref name=":0">Rivera, A., Stephenson, S.R. & Tingstad, A. Visualizing Convergent Pressures on Arctic Development. ''J geovis spat anal'' '''8''', 36 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s41651-024-00197-x</ref>]] | ||
CMYK, or process color,<ref>Berne, Debbie. The Design of Books: An Explainer for Authors, Editors, Agents, and Other Curious Readers. University of Chicago Press, 2024.</ref> is the term for the inks used to add multiple colors to books. Books that use these inks are called four-color books because they use a combination of four colors—cyan, magenta, yellow, and black—to create a design's desired color. In a CMYK color scheme, each color is linked with a variable that can be combined with other variables to create an array of colors.<ref name=":0" /> The variables for each color can be seen in the diagram displayed at right. Books containing color photography or colorful art will use CMYK when printing. Solid inks can be used in tandem with CMYK to make the color stand out. | |||
== Four-color vs two-color == | == Four-color vs two-color == | ||
As opposed to the versatility of four-color books, two-color books will not use CMYK and will instead only use black and another solid ink color. These solid ink colors are most commonly Pantone inks. Unfortunately, digital printers do not support Pantone inks, so two-color books cannot be printed using a digital printer. The only ink options for digital printing are CMYK and black. | As opposed to the versatility of four-color books, two-color books will not use CMYK and will instead only use black and another solid ink color. These solid ink colors are most commonly Pantone inks. Unfortunately, digital printers do not support Pantone inks, so two-color books cannot be printed using a digital printer. The only ink options for [[digital printing]] are CMYK and black. | ||
Four-color printing is also fully automated, as opposed to the manual process of two-color printing, and therefore is much quicker to produce. However, two-color printing can be used on a variety of different materials; four-color printing only works on paper.<ref>Nag, Shawn. “Tip – 2 Color Offset Printing vs 4 Color Digital Printing.” PrintPapa Blog, 27 Dec. 2017, https://blog.printpapa.com/tip-2-color-offset-printing-vs-4-color-digital-printing/. Accessed 30 September 2024. | |||
</ref> It fully depends on the project which method of printing is preferable. | |||
== Citations == | |||
[[Category: Glossary]] | [[Category: Glossary]] | ||
Latest revision as of 07:49, 7 November 2025
CMYK, or process color,[2] is the term for the inks used to add multiple colors to books. Books that use these inks are called four-color books because they use a combination of four colors—cyan, magenta, yellow, and black—to create a design's desired color. In a CMYK color scheme, each color is linked with a variable that can be combined with other variables to create an array of colors.[1] The variables for each color can be seen in the diagram displayed at right. Books containing color photography or colorful art will use CMYK when printing. Solid inks can be used in tandem with CMYK to make the color stand out.
Four-color vs two-color
As opposed to the versatility of four-color books, two-color books will not use CMYK and will instead only use black and another solid ink color. These solid ink colors are most commonly Pantone inks. Unfortunately, digital printers do not support Pantone inks, so two-color books cannot be printed using a digital printer. The only ink options for digital printing are CMYK and black.
Four-color printing is also fully automated, as opposed to the manual process of two-color printing, and therefore is much quicker to produce. However, two-color printing can be used on a variety of different materials; four-color printing only works on paper.[3] It fully depends on the project which method of printing is preferable.
Citations
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Rivera, A., Stephenson, S.R. & Tingstad, A. Visualizing Convergent Pressures on Arctic Development. J geovis spat anal 8, 36 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s41651-024-00197-x
- ↑ Berne, Debbie. The Design of Books: An Explainer for Authors, Editors, Agents, and Other Curious Readers. University of Chicago Press, 2024.
- ↑ Nag, Shawn. “Tip – 2 Color Offset Printing vs 4 Color Digital Printing.” PrintPapa Blog, 27 Dec. 2017, https://blog.printpapa.com/tip-2-color-offset-printing-vs-4-color-digital-printing/. Accessed 30 September 2024.
