Colours

RGB is an additive color model: colors are created by adding light. All colors together create white. This system is used by your computer, phone, and television screen. RGB can display over 16 million colors, including bright and vibrant hues.

CMYK is a subtractive color model: colors are created by removing light with ink on paper. If you mix cyan, magenta, and yellow, you get (dark) black. The paper itself creates the white areas. CMYK has a much smaller color spectrum (approximately 16,000 colors) and can display bright colors less vividly than RGB.

Bright colors that look beautiful on your screen can sometimes appear duller or less intense in print. This is a natural consequence of the difference in color models, as screens create colors by mixing light (additive), while printed materials use inks that absorb light (subtractive). Furthermore, the RGB color spectrum, with 16 million colors, is much larger than that of CMYK, which has 16,000. Furthermore, each screen has its own characteristics and color rendering.

To avoid surprises, we always recommend creating a proof before placing a large order. This way, you can be sure that the colors look exactly as you expect in real life.

Handy tool

Apple offers a handy tool to see how RGB colors look in CMYK: https://support.apple.com/nl-nl/guide/colorsync-utility/welcome/mac