Adobe 22002484 User Guide - Page 335

USING ACROBAT 9 STANDARD 330 Color management Basic steps for producing consistent color 1. Consult with your production partners (if you have any) to ensure that all aspects of your color management workflow integrate seamlessly with theirs. Discuss how the color workflow will be integrated with your workgroups and service providers, how software and hardware will be configured for integration into the color management system, and at what level color management will be implemented. (See "Do you need color management?" on page 328.) 2. Calibrate and profile your monitor. A monitor profile is the first profile you should create. Seeing accurate color is essential if you are making creative decisions involving the color you specify in your document. (See "Calibrate and profile your monitor" on page 340.) 3. Add color profiles to your system for any input and output devices you plan to use, such as scanners and printers. The color management system uses profiles to know how a device produces color and what the actual colors in a document are. Device profiles are often installed when a device is added to your system. You can also use third-party software and hardware to create more accurate profiles for specific devices and conditions. If your document will be commercially printed, contact your service provider to determine the profile for the printing device or press condition. (See "About color profiles" on page 338 and "Install a color profile" on page 340.) 4. Set up color management in Adobe applications. The default color settings are sufficient for most users. However, you can change the color settings by doing one of the following: • If you use multiple Adobe applications, use Adobe® Bridge CS3 to choose a standard color management configuration and synchronize color settings across applications before working with documents. (See "Synchronize color settings across Adobe applications" on page 330.) • If you use only one Adobe application, or if you want to customize advanced color management options, you can change color settings for a specific application. (See "Set up color management" on page 331.) 5. (Optional) Preview colors using a soft proof. After you create a document, you can use a soft proof to preview how colors will look when printed or viewed on a specific device. (See "Soft-proofing colors" on page 335.) Note: A soft proof alone doesn't let you preview how overprinting will look when printed on an offset press. If you work with documents that contain overprinting, turn on Overprint Preview to accurately preview overprints in a soft proof. 6. Use color management when printing and saving files. Keeping the appearance of colors consistent across all of the devices in your workflow is the goal of color management. Leave color management options enabled when printing documents, saving files, and preparing files for online viewing. (See "Printing with color management" on page 336 and "Color-managing documents for online viewing" on page 334.) Synchronize color settings across Adobe applications If you use Adobe Creative Suite, you can use Adobe Bridge to automatically synchronize color settings across applications. This synchronization ensures that colors look the same in all color-managed Adobe applications. Last updated 9/30/2011