Color Management Tools and Techniques

Color management involves various profiles that are used to characterize the display of color in devices such as digital cameras, monitors, inkjet printers (wide format and standard), and proofers. Color is a complex matter in electronic and computing devices as there are different colorant systems (RGB and CMYK) and colorants. As a result, the color output from one device to another varies. So, color management techniques have emerged in an attempt to compare and match the color among different devices. 

Why is Color Management Required?

The Print industry uses a wide variety of formats, printer types, ink types, media, Raster Image Processors (RIPs), and settings. In such a scenario, Color management is required for various reasons: 

• Consistency: Marketers, graphic designers, and printers must be able to get the correct color every time, across different collateral and different reprints.
• Soft proof: The color output on a monitor need not be the same as what appears in the print output. Both printer and monitor profiles must be factored in the color management workflow.
• Hard proof: Proofs of the final output are generally provided to clients and printed on low cost inkjet printers. Whereas, the actual production printer may present a different color output.
• Calibrating digital photos with digital print: Photographers are often commissioned for marketing campaigns and their photos used in the print in large formats. If the color in the camera output does not match true colors, the large format prints may look bad.
• Use of multiple software: Digital camera outputs may be reprocessed using software tools. At the same time, these tools are used to create new images. Both these images should look consistent and have similar color profiles.

Color Management Procedures

Color management involves various procedures to calibrate a device and these are categorized as follows:

• Configuring devices to optimize the color
• Aligning devices to various color specification standards
• Profiling devices using software programs and color targets
• Color conversion to ensure colors match across devices

Commonly employed tools

Depending on the device whose color output is being analyzed, various devices are used: 

• Emissive colorimeter. A colorimeter is an inexpensive instrument which is required to profile monitors. It uses a system like an edge band filters to separate light out into red, green, and blue components. It then maps these to matching curves based on human vision. Emissive colorimeter is a type of colorimeter which analyzes the light emitted by monitors, as against that reflected from printed material.
• Emissive/reflective spectrophotometer. Since color is a subjective perception and can vary from one human being to another, measuring color objectively requires the use of sophisticated instruments that can measure both emitted and reflected color components from light. In this regard, the spectrophotometer is a better option than a colorimeter as it can read a vast range of wavelengths from 380 to 720 nm.
• Automated color measurements. Previously, manual instruments were used for measuring and calibrating color. But their limitation is that they can read just one color patch at a time which falls short when there are several hundred colors involved. Today, semi-automated instruments like x-scanners are preferred.
• Color profiling software. There are innumerable devices like scanners, printers, monitors, projectors and mobile phones that process color today which use different digital imaging techniques. Color profiling software makes it easy to achieve uniformity of color across devices.

With Digital Printing being applied for various uses like Interior Design, better Color Management tools and techniques make it easy for Marketers and Designers visualize the final output better.