EVERYTHING YOU NEVER WANTED TO KNOW ABOUT SPOT • What a spot is • How spot colors have been specified • How spot color libraries saved/accessed • How spot colors are defined • The management and QC of spot colors • Goals, challenges or limitations What a spot color is Spot colors are individual – mix up a batch of any color you want and pour it into the press Not a process color (CMYK) Generally used with traditional equipment – offset, flexo, screen print, and gravure. Not all spot colors can be achieved using digital printing machines (dye sublimation and DTG) that have fixed ink sets (CMYK only) – just because you can specify any spot color in design, doesn’t mean that color can be reproduced in print. Achieving a color match depends on printer, ink and substrate combo What a spot color is Every combination of printer, ink and substrate has different capabilities in terms of reproducing any spot color So… choosing a desired color is all fine and dandy – but knowing the capabilities of the printer, ink and paper combination that will be used to reproduce that desired color is CRITICAL When you consider all of the various ways your files are printed, you quickly understand why expectations aren’t being met Once colors are defined the expectation is not a hope but a fact known ahead of time – one that can be verified with Let’s look at a couple of examples of Reflex …

HP Latex 3500 – CMYK – 3M IJ180 Durst Rho 1012 – CMYKOB – Foamcore

Closer color match with 4 colors Worse color match with 6 colors Comparison of all 2,161 colors from the Pantone v4 Solid Coated library vs. GRACoL2013 Comparison of all 2,161 colors from the Pantone v4 Solid Coated library vs. Epson P7570 with CMYK+OGV How spot colors have been specified In general, spot colors have been specified by ink manufacturers like Archroma, CSI, and Pantone Swatch books, chip cards & fan guides are produced on particular fabrics/substrates and used as visual reference Libraries of these colors are then licensed to software developers Some of these companies sell the spectral definitions Some large brand companies are specifying their colors themselves. How spot colors have been specified Cotton, Polyester, Nylon, etc…

You could certainly measure these swatches with a spectrophotometer but most people are simply using them for visual reference.

Some companies will also sell the spectral data, most commonly in QTX format but also CxF format. How spot colors have been specified Swatch books, chip cards & fan guides are ONLY a guide – for design inspiration – NOT the gospel NOT completely accurate from day 1 Degrade over time due to handling, fading, improper storage, and exposure, to among other factors. Recommended to be replaced every 12-18 months How are spot color libraries accessed Thru applications like Adobe CC as well as colorway/design like software from AVA and Ned Graphics Via several different PANTONE software programs Included in PANTONE licensed RIP/DFE software Pre-installed on some measurement devices (spectrophotometer) But there are many new ways of accessing current libraries, too... How are spot color libraries accessed Automatically included in the past but not all libs Formerly provided in .ACB (Adobe Color Book) format, which was replaced with .ASE (Adobe Swatch Exchange) format. Pantone Connect Ext. required to access v4 How are spot color libraries accessed The latest libraries can ONLY be accessed in Adobe CC via the Pantone Connect extension. *Subscription required eventually but FREE for now! Search, sort, and filter all Pantone libraries Works within , Illustrator, and InDesign View in 2D and 3D (Beta) Download from Adobe Exchange Marketplace How are spot color libraries accessed Pantone Connect app - Android and iOS Search, sort, and filter all Pantone libraries Extract colors from images Lookup L*a*b* target values Build palettes Measure color with phone camera With Pantone Color Match Card SKU: PCNCT-CARD View in 2D and 3D (Beta) How are spot color libraries accessed Connect.pantone.com Similar to mobile app Search, sort, and filter all Pantone libraries Extract colors from images Lookup L*a*b* target values Build palettes View in 2D and 3D How are spot color libraries accessed Pantone Color Manager – Mac/PC Allows calculation and comparison using ICC profiles Shows visual side-by-side but no DeltaE Connects to i1 device to enable direct color measurement Automatically finds the closest match to measured color ICC Profile How are spot color libraries accessed PantoneLIVE Visualizer Simulate Conditions Build PDF Style Guides Cross reference colors Calculate DeltaE and see visual difference with ICC See spectral curve, tints Connect X-Rite eXact and take color measurement How are spot color libraries accessed PantoneLIVE - accessible from enabled software via cloud server Each library has spectral color data for both the solid (full strength) and tints. Measured with M0 mode CIELAB values calculated using illuminant D50 and the CIE 1931 2° Standard Observer Thousands of generic defintions https://www.pantone.com/services /pantonelive/library-specifications Included* in PANTONE licensed RIP/DFE Caldera GrandRIP CGS Oris ColorTUNER EFI Fiery & Fiery XF GMG ColorProof/PrintFactory ONYX PosterShop & Thrive SAI FlexiSIGN Remote Director Link to complete list How spot colors are defined Master definitions are spectral curves – one for each measurement mode You know this color by the name “Reflex Blue” but this is the real color L*a*b* values are calculated from the spectral definitions Notice the Lab values are different based on M Mode How spot colors are defined Once spectral data is defined – then CIE color values can be derived – as well as device dependent RGB, hex & CMYK values How spot colors are defined Now you know each color has different Lab target values for each measurement mode Which libraries/definitions are your applications using? Adobe has always used M2 definitions – ONLY Inquire with your RIP vendor as to which library versions and what measurement mode definitions they include Keep RIP/DFE upgraded for most current libraries – keep in mind v4 libraries were released in Sept 2019 Pay particular attention to the target values your RIP is using How spot colors are defined Prior to 2000, definitions were solid color (100%) ONLY and saved as ASCII/CGATS text format – and many companies are still doing it this way CxF was developed by Gretag-Macbeth in around 2002 and CxF was incorporated into ISO standards in 2005 Color Exchange Format (CxF) Non-proprietary format to exchange spectral data ISO-15930 allows CxF Spectral data in PDF/X format in 2012 CxF/X-3 (ISO 17972-3:2017) and CxF/X-4 (ISO 17972-4:2018) become standards CxF/X-4 supports spot color characterization data that can include tints, opacity, substrate definition, and meta data – see versions of CxF/X-4 next slide QTX format is popular but proprietary (read spec) How spot colors are defined • Multiple ways to define different conformance levels CxF/X-4b Solid ink printed on substate (only) CxF/X-4a Solid + tints on substrate (3 minimum, 11 recommended) CxF/X-4 Solid + tints on substrate + over (3 minimum, 11 recommended). This is referred to as a “complete characterization” How spot colors are defined • Programs that can generate CxF CGS ORIS CxF Toolbox ChromaChecker ColorLogic ColorAnt Coraye Color Table

22 total measurements - 11 on substrate and 11 over black How spot colors are defined Once the spectral data for each color is defined the CxF data can be embedded in PDFs, much like fonts or ICC profiles So, now, instead of trying to visually communicate the spot color, or simply refer to the color by name, the actual digital definition can be included with the artwork file. This can be used from design, thru ink formulation, , print production, and quality control throughout the entire supply chain How spot colors are defined For now, Adobe does NOT support the Color Exchange Format .cxf format, but rather their Adobe Swatch Exchange (.ase) format You can create ASE files, for use in Adobe CC We sell or can help you create custom spot color libraries, that are either predicted or measured colors So, designers can see exactly what your capabilities are This way their expectations will always be met How are spot colors defined or should be Software for defining and converting color tables Coraye Color Table Exports in many formats, including .ase and .cxf Very versatile and inexpensive tool The management and QC of spot colors Having the proper tools/platform for Quality Control is critical to verify color accuracy Solutions range from basic (cheap) to enterprise (not so cheap) Variable Spectro1 (with ChromaChecker) X-Rite eXact with ColorCert/PantoneLIVE Any tools that enable comparisons, provide DeltaE feedback, save data for analysis The management and QC of spot colors Historically, spot colors have been managed by measuring the solid ink value only, with no clear guidelines or methodology for measuring intermediate SCTVi (ISO 20654:2017) defines a metric for assessing intermediate tones of a spot ink. Already available in X-Rite eXact and Techkon SpectroDens models, as well as software like ColorCert, ChromaChecker, MeasureColor, etc Goals, challenges or limitations Create CxF/X-4 (complete characterizations) for all colors Realize not all applications can utilize the spectral data yet – but build properly now for the future Accurate monitor proofing using spectral data is only achievable with a very small list of products Proofing and printing using the spectral data is possible but only with a few key RIPs that are able to utilize and interpret the spectral data, today. Most software have/use LAB color engines or use the color engine from the Mac/Windows OS. We need applications with spectral blending engines in order for this to work properly. The operating system color engines probably won’t change. CxF solves almost all problems communicating spot colors but not all. Consider getting certified as a Digital Color Professional Printing United Alliance’s Digital Color Professional certification program Boot Camp trainings offered around the country (pre-COVID) and remotely now Two levels – Qualified and Certified Alder Color Solutions next class is Nov 3-5 Find out more and/or register HERE THAT’S ALL FOLKS. THANK YOU!