It’s hard to communicate colour to clients.

Why is it so difficult to communicate colour with clients?

In an effort to shorten timelines for clients, we have abandoned getting colour proofs for sign off. We send pdfs to our clients instead. But, are you sure your client is seeing the same colour you are? No, they are not.

First of all, each of us perceive colour a little differently. No one seems colour exactly the same, even people with “normal” vision.

Second, lighting can effect the colour. Whether you are viewing a printed piece or a file on a screen, the lighting in the room (whether incandescent, daylight, fluorescent or otherwise) will cause a slight shift or cast. Try this test… take 2 pieces that seem to be the same colour, or really close (I did this with some spot Pantone chips and a digital proof). Have a look in daylight, then in incandescent light, then in fluorescent light. You will see shifts in the closeness of the colour match. What appears close under one light source can look like vastly different colours under a different light source. Colour is the reflection of light, therefore it is affected by that light.

Third, and probably the biggest issue when reviewing electronic files, is monitor calibration. Monitors depict colour in RGB (Red, Green, Blue). The RGB colour model is an additive colour model, meaning that the more red, green and blue you add together, to closer you get to white. Therefore, in order for two monitors to show the same colour, they must be set to the same white point (how much red, green and blue is added together to give you white). Once that white point is set, it affects the information relayed from the computer to the monitor, which in turn changes the values of R, G and B used to depict that colour. Don’t forget that light source can also affect colour depiction, and in areas where colour calibration is critical (like printers or anyone doing critical colour correction work), special, controlled light conditions are part of that calibration equation. They even have special neural gray paints for the walls, so that colour can’t be tainted by light reflecting off the walls.

These are just three of many basics in colour theory and certainly not meant to address the intricacies of colour management. Colour theory and management is a science, and the principles can get very complicated. But, in order to start getting better about accurately depicting colour to clients, I believe you need to address these basics first.

If you want to dive into the technical side of monitor calibration, visit the article on wikipedia.

Next on my list… why doesn’t the printer’s proof match my monitor? Or, the differences between the RGB and CYMK colour models.