In Printlane Studio, you can define colors in various places, including:
Text layers
Background layers
Artwork layers
Color palettes
You can choose a color using the color picker, which allows you to adjust hue, saturation, and lightness.
By default, colors are stored in the web-friendly sRGB format, the standard color model for digital displays and web browsers. This ensures accurate color rendering in Printlane Designer. Color values are displayed in hexadecimal format.
Conversion to CMYK
Printlane Designer always renders colors in sRGB, as it is the standard color model supported by web browsers. However, when exporting customer designs to a PDF file for print production, all colors can be automatically converted to CMYK based on your preferred CMYK output profile.
To enable this, configure a Color Conversion Profile in the export settings of your template. This setting ensures that sRGB values are converted to their CMYK equivalents, following to the selected profile.
CMYK Process Colors
In addition to sRGB, you can configure the color picker to accept CMYK color values, allowing you to enter them directly.
Warning: Manually entered CMYK color values will not be converted to the destination profile, but are used as-is when exporting to PDF with a CMYK color conversion profile.
Use this functionality only if you understand CMYK color processing and need to specify exact CMYK values in print production PDFs.
Since CMYK colors are designed for print and cannot be accurately displayed on screens, their RGB equivalents are used in Printlane Designer. This ensures color consistency across different devices.
To enable CMYK color input, activate the following settings:
Studio: Allow to configure CMYK colors in templates
Enables the ability to enter specific CMYK color values in templates, allowing customers to select them in the Designer.Designer: Allow customers to enter CMYK colors in the color picker
Allows customers to input CMYK values directly in the Designer. Activating this setting also enables setting (1).
Once CMYK color input is enabled, you can select the format in the color picker.
Note: CMYK values are only applied when exporting to PDF with a CMYK Color Conversion Profile. If an sRGB conversion profile is selected, the RGB equivalent of the CMYK values will be used.
Spot Colors
In addition to sRGB and CMYK process colors, Printlane supports Spot Colors, such as Pantone/PMS colors. These colors allow for precise color matching, special effects (e.g., metallic or fluorescent finishes), and cost-effective printing for colors that cannot be accurately reproduced with CMYK inks.
The format of Spot Colors can be set to either sRGB or CMYK values. However, these values are not converted to the destination profile when exporting to PDF. Instead, they are used solely for on-screen representation and proofing purposes.
Use this functionality only if you are familiar with Spot Colors and separation color spaces and need to specify named Spot Colors in print production PDFs.
To enable Spot Colors, activate the following setting: Studio: Allow to configure spot colors. Once enabled, you can select the Spot Color format in the color picker and create Spot Colors:
A Spot Color must always have a unique name (e.g., PANTONE 266 C) to ensure precise identification in the printing process. This guarantees consistent color reproduction. It is not possible to define the same Spot Color name with different color values.