Commonly Asked Questions

What is the difference between RGB and CMYK Color Printing?

RGB stands for Red, Green, and Blue. This scale is most commonly used in monitors, televisions, scanners, and digital cameras. CMYK is cyan, magenta, yellow, and black – “full-color printing”.

When you combine all RGB light it creates white, whereas CMYK creates black. Subsequently, it is impossible for a printer to exactly reproduce a color that we see on our monitors. We require converting images or graphics in RGB to CMYK yourself, click on the button link below so you can adjust any changes before files are submitted for production.

Why do colors differ - offset printing versus digital printing?

Because the ink and toner mediums are different, the printed piece may have a slightly different result. Even though both types of printing use CMYK, the rasterization processes are different, which cause variations in color. In addition, if the file contains RGB elements, the different methods will produce varying results.

File Format and Resolution when submitting job files.

Our preferred method is Hi-Resolution PDF with fonts and images embedded and saved in CMYK – please no RGB, the CMYK printed product colors will vary too much from RGB. We can also accept files in most graphic pic files: jpg, jpeg, png, tiff, gif etc. We prefer 300 dpi but will accept a minimum of 220 dpi.

Please note that pictures and graphics pulled from the internet are often low resolution (typically 72 dpi or 96 dpi). Try to avoid these, as they will appear very pixelated when printing you should convert low dpi graphics prior to submitting production files for the best results.