RGB vs. CMYK

SN3 · 07-14-2006, 06:21 AM

What are the pros and cons of RBG and CMYK? Which one should be used for what?

Tomassi · 07-14-2006, 06:43 AM

rgb = digital
cmyk = print
what its intended for

Varelse · 07-14-2006, 08:36 AM

CMYK cannot reproduce all the RGB colors - check the difference between the color spaces:

As you can see, the difference is quite big, especially for blue shades.
This results in colors being washed out when RGB image is converted to CMYK, and that's why it is important to prepare designs for print in CMYK color space (of course if they are going to be printed in CMYK).

Leon · 07-14-2006, 09:00 AM

So for online applications you'd really want to use RGB, but if you intend to print it CMYK

.

SN3 · 07-14-2006, 09:28 AM

Is it possible, for example, to make a poster with a color that is in the visible light spectrum but not in RGB?

chicgeek · 07-14-2006, 09:29 AM

A poster? Use Pantone or CMYK. Do not use RGB.

It is possible and expected, yes.

adamx8 · 07-18-2006, 11:33 PM

Always use CMYK for any kind of print work, RBG is for web. Web broswer are only design to operate in 216 colors I believe (For some reason I am thinking 255, but I think I am thinking binary here) so CMYK won't display most colors properly thats why they are "web-safe" colors. Try to build your graphics in 2 seperate files one for RGB and CMYK and your always safe for everything you do if it's required.

Varelse · 07-19-2006, 08:20 AM

adamx8 - browsers can display 16M* colors (256x256x256) and the times of "web safe" colors are now gone

*) Which is BTW much more than CMYK color space is able to produce.

Louis · 07-19-2006, 09:08 AM

Another subtlety is that RGB colors are additives while CMYK colors are substractives.

increasing all the colors in RGB gives you white (additive)
increasing all the colors in CMYK gives you black (substractive)

For more info:
http://www.rgbworld.com/color.html

Edit: even better explanation:
http://www.sketchpad.net/basics4.htm

adamx8 · 07-19-2006, 10:13 AM

Thanks, it was late last night...your absolutely right, but web safe is not gone. You can see that in all adobe products with the rbg default swatches. Not everyone has moved onto the 16 million color thing yet so some web designers still tailor to even the slowest person out there. I try to make sure I build as much as possible this way just incase.

DaveyBoy · 07-19-2006, 10:56 AM

I'm pretty sure everyone has moved onto 16M colours already

If you are building with web-safe on I bet ur sites are ugly and boring

adamx8 · 07-19-2006, 11:16 AM

They are, I try to repress the net as much as I can