CMYK color and RGB color

There is a major difference between CMYK color and RGB color. It is crucial for those who work as visual artists and graphic designers to differentiate between these colors. The primary difference lies in their specific purposes of use, whereas the secondary difference is their different working mechanism. This article will thoroughly guide you to understand and distinguish between CMYK color and RGB color modes.

CMYK color

The printing process of the CMYK printer uses a subtracting model, which is simple yet interesting.  The CMYK ink on exposure to printer light subtracts the percentage of CMYK colors from the white paper. Also, this way the printer mixes the different combinations of cyan, magenta, yellow, and black to paint the desired colors of a digital image onto a printer paper.

It is important to know that CMYK colors have some limitations, as compared to RGB colors. CMYK printer cannot produce some vibrant colors as displayed on the screen, due to some limitations of CMYK ink.

CMYK is an abbreviation of Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, and Key (Black). Generally, color printers use these four basic colors. The compositions of these four colors produce the rest of the colors needed in a colorful print. These four colors magically work to produce as many colors as you would like. Think back to your school days, when you had to buy twelve different colored pencils to work in your drawing class. Scientists have made it easy by inventing CMYK color to depict much more than twelve colors to print a realistic image or design. Posters, colorful stickers, brochures, colorful photographs, magazines, colored books, etc. are printed in CMYK color ink.

RGB color

RGB stands for Red, Green, and Blue. It is a color mode to display a colorful image on a monitor, laptop, television, camera, or mobile screen. These colors use an additive model, meaning that the intensities of all four colors (Red, Green, and Blue) can be changed to create vibrant, saturated, and colorful images. You should also know the fact that Red, Green, and Blue are colors of light, full intensities of all these colors produce white color, whereas the lack of these colors produces black color.

In simple terms, you can say CMYK are real colors, while RGB are virtual colors. RGB colors have a wider color range to produce a vibrant and dynamic display.

Understanding the use of RGB mode is very important for graphic designers, social media marketers, and photographers. Since, their job relies on catchy designs, attractive posts, and mesmerizing photographs. So, understanding the use of Red, Green, and Blue colors in different combinations could be a magical skill to boost your viewers.

Sometimes you may be worried to know that your CMYK printer is not printing the way your screen is displaying. This is just because the color range of CMYK color ink has a narrower color range compared to the RGB color display.

Key differences between CMYK and RGB color

Color Range: The major difference between these colors is their color range. RGB color has a broader color range, whereas CMYK ink has a narrow color base in terms of printing limitations.

Process: CMYK ink creates different colors by subtracting light, whereas RGB colors create different color displays by adding light.

Purpose: CMYK is used in color printing, while RGB is used in electronic displays.

Results: CMYK colors and RGB colors have different color scales. So, the resulting CMYK color print could be different from the RGB color display screen. Graphic designers and visual artists should set the CMYK mode before printing graphic images.

Convert RGB to CMYK in Adobe Photoshop

You can convert RGB color into CMYK color in Adobe Photoshop. Here is a step-by-step guide on how to convert RGB to CMYK without losing color:

1. Open Your Image:
   • Open Adobe Photoshop.
   • Open the image you want to work with.
2. Check Current Color Mode:
   • Go to the “Image” menu at the top of the screen.
   • Select “Mode” from the dropdown menu.
   • Make sure the current mode is set to “RGB Color.”
3. Convert to CMYK:
   • If your image is not already in CMYK mode, you need to convert it.
   • Go to the “Image” menu.
   • Select “Mode.”
   • Choose “CMYK Color.”
4. Review the Warning Dialog:
   • Photoshop will show you a warning about converting to a different color mode. Review the message and click “Don’t Merge” or “Flatten” based on your preference. Also, this step might depend on your specific needs or the layers in your image.
5. Check the Color Values:
   • Select “Eyedropper Tool” from the toolbar (or press “I”).
   • Click on the color you want to check or convert.
   • Look at the “Info” panel to see the RGB values.
6. Adjust Colors (if needed):
   • However, if your image looks different after the conversion, you may need to adjust the colors to achieve the desired result.
   • Go to the “Image” menu.
   • Select “Adjustments.”
   • Use tools like “Hue/Saturation” or “Curves” to tweak the colors.
7. Save Your Image:
   • After making the necessary adjustments, save your image.
   • Go to “File” > “Save As” or “File” > “Save for Web” depending on your requirements.
   • Choose the desired file format and save your image.
   • Also, use the “Print Test Page” to check the quality of your printer.

However, if you feel that the screen color is different from the printed result, you can adjust it a little bit to get a favorable print.

Convert RGB to CMYK in illustrator

1. Open Your Document:
   • Open Adobe Illustrator.
   • Open the document containing the RGB image you want to convert.
2. Check Current Color Mode:
   • Go to the “File” menu.
   • Select “Document Color Mode.”
   • Set the current mode to “RGB Color.”
3. Convert to CMYK:
   • If your document is not already in CMYK mode, you need to convert it.
   • Go to the “File” menu.
   • Select “Document Color Mode.”
   • Choose “CMYK Color.”
4. Review the Warning Dialog:
   • Illustrator will show you a warning about converting to a different color mode. Review the message and click “OK.”
5. Check the Color Values:
   • Select “Eyedropper Tool” from the toolbar (or press “I”).
   • Click on the color you want to check or convert.
   • Look at the “Color” panel to see the RGB values.
6. Adjust Colors (if needed):
   • If your image looks different after the conversion, you may need to adjust the colors to achieve the desired result.
   • Use the “Color” panel or go to “Window” > “Color” to access color adjustment tools.
7. Save Your Document:
   • After making the necessary adjustments, save your document.
   • Go to “File” > “Save As.” and save the document in the desired format.
   • Also, use the Print Test Page to check your printer.

Conclusion

Conclusively, CMYK and RGB are two different color modes. Both have their pros and cons. Those engaged in printing and graphic design must understand the difference between these two color modes. CMYK colors are working on a subtractive model, and the RGB colors are working on an additive principle. However, due to some limitations of CMYK ink. The RGB image cannot be dyed as it is onto paper print. We cannot specify which color mode is the best, because both color modes furnish different purposes.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)