How to Print Drawings with Colour

Photo Credit: Adike | Shutterstock

The use of colour is a major concern when printing because it helps to preserve consistency in the output of your work. Your prints come out in good quality and look professional because colour is well-managed during the process. Quality prints depend on various elements such as pixels, resolution, print size, file type, colour and more.

This time, we emphasize colour because of its role in defining your print quality. As an architect or engineer in the construction industry, you will understand how well good prints represent your brand in terms of professionalism.

Colour integrity is a key part of printing architectural designs and drawings. Especially when it involves colour line drawings and graphic presentations. Maintaining the standard of colours on-screen and in print marks a distinction between a professional print and an inferior one.

Understanding Colour Models

Colour models are the numerical representation of primary colours. They define how the colour of your designs appear on the screen and on paper.  Your understanding of colour models will help you produce prints with good colour quality. RGB and CMYK are the two commonly used colour models.

RGB – Red, Green and Blue

RGB indicates the colours shown on screens and is commonly used for digital materials. Most systems come with presets that already have the display in good quality while others need a little tweak from the user.

If you are designing for print, you should fine-tune your print settings to the highest quality for a consistent output on screen and paper. Software like Adobe Photoshop, Autodesk Revit and so on give you the liberty to adjust setting so that they fit your preferences. You should also test run during and after setup to ensure consistency in the output colour.

CMYK – Cyan, Yellow, Magenta and Key (black)

CMYK is the standard model for prints. The colours mix during the printing process to produce the results you see. It is also the best fit for projects with a lot of colours which is common with architectural and construction drawings. Also, CMYK produces great quality for large format prints.

 

Preserving Your Print Quality

Your ability to manage the colour profiles will help you maintain the integrity of your work. Although, RGB and CYMK models differ (because of the difference in the number of colours displayed on the screen when compared to the colours produced by printers); adjusting your printer setting will ensure that what you get in print is as good as what you see on screen.

Your printer’s colour palette (the number of colours your printer can produce); combined with the software it runs with contributes to the quality your designs and drawings will have when printed. You should note this whenever you want to buy a printer or change your cartridges.

Printing gives expression to your drawings. Hence, it is important that you let quality represent you. Partnering with a professional printing service that knows how to adjust colour settings for good quality is a promising step towards getting the best prints for your presentations and construction projects.

 

Choose the right partners for efficiency. Contact PrintMyDrawings for the following print needs

• Architectural Design Drawings
• Construction Detail Drawings
• Electrical Drawings
• Engineering Drawings
• Mechanical Drawings
• Business Documents

---