CMYK - what language is that?

The most often layer of confusion for clients is when i start talking about their project being printed in CMYK. This is when i get excited, and they look at me like a deer staring into headlights with a slight "huh?"

When you print over 1,000 quantity of your print project, it usually goes on the press. Enough said - this stands for Cyan, Magenta, Yellow and Black. And yes - the Black is 'K'. Plates are printed in this order with 4 plates for the project. Then they are layered together, one on top of the next to reveal the composite image.

These images show how the plates will be separated at the press.

1. CYAN

2. MAGENTA 

3. YELLOW

 

4. BLACK

The composite image looks like this - a full colour pdf image.