What you see is not always what you get when designing graphics for t-shirts and other items to sell online.  The most common mistake that would-be T-shirt Entrepreneurs make is that they think that what is displayed on their screen in their top end graphic software program is what is going to get spit out on canvas (t-shirt, mug, etc).

Well, it’s not.  And to understand why it’s not, you have to understand that there are two different ways in which colors are generated for our eyes; RGB and CMYK.

That computer monitor you are looking at generates colors by an additive process combining Red, Green and Blue light.  Hence the name RGB.  But fabrics and other materials on which graphics are printed do not emit light like a computer monitor.  Instead printed colors are generated through a subtractive process by removing one of four colors cyan (blue), magenta (red), yellow, and black.

And needless to say that when you make colors in different ways, you run into problems.  The simple fact of the matter is that there are colors in the RGB spectrum that CMYK printers cannot print.  This is often referred to by the fancy term “out of gamut”.  When a color is out of gamut it gets replaced with another color that is in gamut and may not look right with the design.

Understanding this problem is half the battle.  Dealing with it is the other half.

Some graphics software such as Adobe CS2 have the ability to display colors on your monitor the same way they would appear on your finished projects using filters to convert the RGB colors to CMYK.  Others like Paint Shop Pro (which I use) however do not have such a function.

For me, the fact that PSP does not covert the image on screen has never been much of a problem because I have a habit of printing every design I create on my CMYK printer anyway to see how it looks.  I have also run into problems where the algorithm programs like Adobe use still do not show colors completely accurately.  So I have just gotten used to working in the RGB format and can eyeball colors that are “out of gamut” from experience 99.9% of the time.  The other .1% of the time I catch it on the printout and fix it.

The best way to check your colors and get an idea of how your finished project will look is to always print it out.  It is also important to remember that variations in how the colors appear on your final products can still occur based on the types of material they are printed on and the type of ink used as well as the exact application process.

The same image on mugs and t-shirts I have ordered from Cafepress as gifts have had slightly different colors.  Note that they were not hideously different but the shades were certainly noticeably different.

So take the time and make sure you are using colors that will print right and your designs will look great.  The alternative could be a high return rate and many unsatisfied customers.  And that certainly is not good for business.

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J.J. Jackson is President of Land of the Free Studios, Inc. and Cafepress “Top Shopkeeper”. He has been selling t-shirts on-line since 2004 and is the owner of the T-Shirt Entrepreneur, a site dedicated to helping people get involved in the T-shirt Economy. He is also the owner of Funny When Wet T-shirts, American Infidel Tshirts as well as many other online t-shirt and gift stores.