Designers Guide to know the use of RGB and CMYK
Bhuvan Verma | 7th June 2018
However, as a designer, you have to also know which colour system to apply if you want your design to look as intended. Knowing which colour to apply will be a lot less difficult whilst you recognize how your design will be used.
Colour performs a vital position in normal existence. It could have an effect on your mood, an effect on brand impression, and even have an impact on your shopping for alternatives. Getting the colour proper on your designs is important if you want to deliver the right message.
There are mainly two colour systems that are used in the digital as well as print design industries. Those are the RGB colour system and the CMYK colour system. This article will explain you the difference between the two and will show you how you can easily switch between them in Photoshop, Illustrator, and InDesign.
What do these colour systems stand for
- RGB = Red, Green, Blue. Use for digital designs.
- CMYK = Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, and Key. Use for anything printed.
CMYK Color Mode
If printers are using a digital printing method, they would print colour on paper using CMYK colours. This is a four colour mode that utilizes the colours cyan, magenta, yellow and black in various amounts to create all of the necessary colours when printing images. It is a process to create colours that each additional unique colour means more light is removed or absorbed. When the first three colours are added together, the result is not pure black, but rather a very dark brown.
RGB Color Mode
RGB is the colour scheme that is associated with electronic displays, such as CRT, LCD monitors, digital cameras and scanners. It is that type of colour mode that combines the primary colours, red, green and blue, in various combinations to produce a much wider spectrum of colours. When all three of the colours are combined and displayed to their full extent, the result is a pure white. When all three colours are combined to the lowest degree or value, Without any intensity, each of those colours will be perceived as black, while full intensity will make them appear white. Software such as photo editing programs uses the RGB colour mode because it offers the widest range of colours.
