What is CMYK printing?

CMYK printing, also known as “Process Printing,” is an industry standard method of printing in full color. CMYK actually stands for the four colors used as part of this printing standard. C is Cyan, M is Magenta, Y is Yellow, and K is for “Key,” which is the description that printers use for Black ink. CMYK printing can reproduce most color photographs very well. In traditional printing, a full color photograph is scanned and then run through software to create “color separations.” Once the separations are processed, and “plates” are made for each of the CMYK colors, the printer runs the ink through the plates on press, and the result is your full color image printed on paper. CMYK is the most economical method of reproducing full color images in the highest quality, and most magazines and glossy collateral are printed using CMYK. CMYK is the standard method that we currently use to process all print jobs for our customers.

RGB compared to CMYK

Computer monitors use RGB to display color. RBG stands for Red, Green and Blue. When you print to the CMYK process, for best results, you should convert RBG images, to CMYK images first. Sometimes you’ll notice slight changes to the image when you make this conversion, so it’s better that you see the changes first before uploading your file. Also, some colors that you see on your screen are very difficult to reproduce exactly using CMYK (or any other printing method). Therefore, if you have the software that enables you to convert your image to CMYK before uploading to pipoprint, you’ll have a better idea of what you’ll receive once the printed products are shipped to you. Note: Blues pose the greatest color-match challenges when converted to CMYK from RGB.

How do I upload my artwork?

First, if you have print-ready artwork, please ensure all artwork meets established requirements for file size, image dimension, resolution, and file format before uploading. Next, select “Artwork Upload” from the top navigational menu and follow the step-by-step instructions.

You can provide your own artwork or we can create custom artwork for your projects.

If we create the artwork for your project, there will be a fee of $45.00 per hour to complete the artwork.  However, this fee may be waived for larger orders or repeat clients.

If you provide your own artwork, please make sure it meets our requirements.  You may select the "Artwork Formats" from the main Artwork navigational menu on the top of our website for more information.

If you have any questions or concerns about your artwork, please contact us at (540) 320-1275.