Glossary of Printing Terms
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CMYK
The initials for “Cyan Magenta Yellow Black,” which are the colors that are used in four-color process printing. Black is designated “K” rather than “B” to avoid confusion with blue, which is one of the primary colors of the additive color process (Red, Green, and Blue). CMY are the three primary colors of the subtractive color process in which colored pigments are used to represent full color on the printed page. In theory, the combination of cyan, magenta, and yellow should produce black, but since color pigments are not perfect, the resulting hue is actually a dark, muddy brown. This is the reason why black is so important in four-color process printing because it assists the cyan, magenta, and yellow in creating the darkest hues, deepening shadows, and producing a true black text.
CMYK
As shown in the illustration, the combination of
cyan, magenta, and yellow does not produce a true black.
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