An introduction to colour management for sublimation – part two

In the second part of a series of articles on colour management, Sawgrass’ global public relations manager, Robin Kavanagh, provides further insight into this key process for ensuring you are able to print the correct colours when sublimating products.

Your goal with any printing project is to have the colours that are created on the final product match the colours that were originally put in for production. Most colour issues can be corrected with the use of colour management software programs that take into account the variables associated with inks and production processes.

When you do this, you are colour mapping. In the digital decoration industry, this is the process of transforming an RGB colour into an acceptable CMYK equivalent, while taking the production variables into account. Colour management programmes help a great deal with this process, as they are designed to collect specific variables and make adjustments as the data moves from the computer to the printer.

Some solutions such as RIP programs will require an investment, but will work on a variety of printer platforms. Others that are more printer and ink specific are available at no charge to users.  Whichever path you pursue, be sure to learn your software and then use it on each and every job to achieve the highest quality of image each and every time.

Modern colour management software does an excellent job of mapping and converting colours. However, due to all of the factors affecting colour we discussed in the previous article, there may not be an exact match generated. Colour management software is designed to help make matching and managing colour easier for the user. It cannot replace the skill of the person printing, who still needs to conduct some trial and error, and evaluate how colours look fully produced on desired substrates in comparison to the original colours.

Steps for learning colour management techniques

Reading this article is a big step toward being able to better manage your sublimated colours. Your next steps should include the following:

• Colour management or RIP software: Install and use some form of colour management software. On-brand inks usually offer free software that enables you to match colours based on the properties of their inks. No matter which you choose, you should be able to import the program’s colour palette into your graphics program. This will enable you to easily select the right colour, regardless of how it looks on the screen.
• Print your colour palettes on specific substrates: Remember that screen colours are often misleading, so you must depend on the output colours in order to assign the right colours to your image in your graphics program. This is a process referred to as spot colour matching. You can save time by printing your colour management program’s entire palette on each of the different substrates you use.
• Conduct experiments: Invest in a set of ink, samples substrates and some transfer paper. Use them to experiment with all of the different factors discussed and see which combinations produce the best colours. Keep a record of what works and use this to define standard production procedures. This will save you time and money in the long-run because it will exponentially increase your efficiency.
• Master your graphics program: Knowing how to use your version of CorelDRAW, Illustrator or PhotoShop is probably the most important step in producing better colour. You should be using one of these three programs to create graphics for sublimation.

Effective colour management results in vibrancy and accuracy that makes your work stand out from that of your competition and keeps your customers coming back for more. In the case of sublimation, a technology that produces uncommonly deep and compelling colours, the effect is even more powerful.

Testing different settings and then printing and cataloguing the results, will help you see how different settings, substrates, inks, papers and printers all have an effect on what is printed. Once you are familiar with the variables, then you can control them so that you can be assured of beautiful products with rich accurate colours.