Changeing Spot Colors to cmyk

I am trying to edit an Indesign cs5 file a customer provided. However some how he used 25 spot colors when making this file. Thats even though he only really has three colors used in the design. So I am attempting to match some of his colors in order to make edits and i need to know how to convert them to cmyk. Also I would like to know how to elemenate all of his unused spot colors so that I can use the over print preview. As it stands I get an error saying there are too many spot colors used to create an over print preview. Before any one recomends that I have the customer recreate it, this customer is old and is convinced he has done everything correctly and refuses to make any changes. In his words " I've been doing this for twenty years and I know what I am doing."

As to the unused swatches use the following
followed by the trash can at the bottom of the Swatches panel.

Similar Messages

  • Change Spot Color to CMYK?

    Is there a way in 8.1.4 Professional to change a spot color to another color space? I know colors can be convert in Print Production > Convert Colors but what I'm trying to do is change colors in a PDF from 0AA0 ( 100 magenta, 100 yellow) to 0A50 (100 magenta, 50 yellow).

    Now you can convert CMYK values to another pantone inside Acrobat 9 but not the other way around. Saying that, if you know if there's a pantone which has an alternative colour space of 100M and 50Y then you can remap it to that. Advanced / Preflight.
    You can also achieve this with Enfocus Pitstop (www.enfocus.com) when you have complete control over either single or global changes of object properties including colours.
    Hope this helps?
    Jon

  • I can't convert Spot Colors to CMYK in the Swatches Panel

    I'm having an issue where I can't convert spot colors to CMYK in the swatches panel. Currently to fix I have to copy elements using the spot colors in to a new blank document, then convert them, then paste back into the original document.  Is this a bug?
    Also if I try to delete the spot color, it doesn't fully delet the swatch.
    I'm using Illustrator CC 17.0.0
    I've attached a video of my woes.
    http://luniablue.com/adobe/swatch/index.html

    1. Double click the swatch in the swatches
    2. In the swatches options window select "Process Color" in the "Color Type" drop down menu
    3. Deselect "Global"
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    hope this helps

  • Automatically converting spot colors to cmyk?

    I am working with Acrobat 6.0.2 Professional on a Mac. Is there a way to set Acrobat or Distiller to convert spot colors to cmyk automatically when converting Quark documents to PDF? I also use Badia PrintTools as a preflight check when saving the Quark docs as a PDF.

    Dear Andy
    No, Distiller is not capable of doing this.
    You might want to try 3rd party tools that perform this task.
    pdfColorConvert from callas software
    Quite a Box of Tricks from Quite Software
    PitStop from enfocus
    pdfOptimizer from Apago
    Prinect Color Editor from Heidelberg
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    rgds
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  • Please, can I with help of Javascript change spot color values? for example by my color VARNISH with c:0,m:10,y:15,k:0 to make change to c:0,m:0,y:0,k:0? thank you

    Please, can I with help of Javascript change specific spot color values? for example, I have color named VARNISH with values c:0,m:10,y:15,k:0 and it would help me to make change to c:0,m:0,y:0,k:0 as a part of an action. Is it possible? Thank you

    Hi Kon Verter,
    you can change the values of your spot swatch, but you have to check many things before.
    e.g. you can do something like this:
    var Vcolor = app.activeDocument.swatches.getByName("Varnish");
    if (Vcolor.color.spot.colorType == ColorModel.SPOT && Vcolor.color.spot.spotKind == SpotColorKind.SPOTCMYK) {
        alert("Black value before: "+Vcolor.color.spot.color.black);
        Vcolor.color.spot.color.black= 0; // and so on
        alert("Black value after: "+Vcolor.color.spot.color.black);
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  • Cannot change spot colors to process

    Using the Swatch Options feature to change a CMYK spot color to a CMYK process color does not work. I click on the Save button and nothing happens. Cannot change global feature either. Nor does "Delete Swatches" work with multiple selections, or "Merge" Anyone else having this Swatches malfunction?

    You can delete multiple swatches and you can merge swatches and if global swatches all instances of that color will change to the new color. If thye new color is cmyk swatch that will be the result for all instances of that color as long as it was applied by the fiormer swatch.
    Now the idea of merging multiple swatches does work but all selected swatches mergte to that one swatch.
    You might want to look at the Edit>EditColor>Recolor Art Feature.
    But it is possible you have something locked on your artwork and that might prevent the change.

  • How do I stop FH Mx from converting spot colors to cmyk on export to pdf

    I have Freehand Mxa on my PC.  I created a couple of rectangles and filled with two Pantone colors from my swatch pallet.
    I exported to pdf and the spot colors converted to cymk.  Shucks!  How do I stop that?
    (When I print directly to my Adobe Distiller print driver the spot colors are retained as they should in my pdf.)
    In the Freehand export function there is a setup dialog box just below the "cancel" button.  When that opens there is only a drop down button allowing conversion to cmyk and cmyk/rgb.  So, I am guessing that is not where I can tell Freehand to leave my spots alone.
    What am I doing wrong?
    I was going to attach the small test file but the system did allow. Hope my description is enough to render a solution.
    -Steve

    The only thing you're doing wrong is using FH's PDF export. It creates PDF files that are adequate for viewing online or printing to composite inkjet printers, but it doesn't support spot colors.
    There are many more reasons why you shouldn't use FH's PDF export for print work. See this technote for limitations of PDF export.
    http://go.adobe.com/kb/ts_tn_13496_en-us
    When you need to retain spot colors, print to a Postscript file and Distill.

  • Spot color to CMYK and out of gamut

    I do the following:
    - Create a document, CMYK workflow
    - Color Settings: CMYK: US Web Uncoated v2
    - Select PANTONE solid coated color book
    - Create a rectangle and fill it with PANTONE Hexachrome Orange
    - Now change the PANTONE Hexachrome Orange (double click on the swatch) to a process color in CMYK. Illustrator tells me everything is OK (no out of gammut warning) but believe me, there is no way this can be printed in CMYK (a DeltaE of 30 is not uncommon). PANTONE Hexachrome Orange is way out of gamut in CMYK prints.
    Anyone knowing what I am doing wrong?
    Thx,
    Dirk Ruys
    AGFA Graphics

    Indeed, I do get an out of Web Color warning as well ..
    Yet Hexachrome orange is out of gamut on top of out of Web color and this warning I do not get ..

  • Should the print company I use be able to change a file to spot color for me?

    I recently sent a document in to a major print company to have a folder printed.  The document was created in Illustrator using only two colors. They said they could not print it because it was still more than two colors and that I needed to change it to a two color document using Pantone Spot Color.
    I've never had to do that for a print company before but I've also never had a two color project before. I opened the file back up and selected my objects and "recolored" the work and deleted all the swatches aside from the two colors I needed that were now Pantone Spot Color (HSB). It literally took me 2 minutes.
    The reason I am asking is because they pretty much said that I don't know what I'm doing, which to a designer is completely insulting.  We all do new things from time to time but that is an insult. Shouldn't they, a large print company with years of experience, know how to do this for me? They had the original design file.. Maybe they don't know what they are doing?
    Any clarity on as to why I needed to do it and not them is greatly appreciated.  Also.. any direction as the best way to use spot color over cmyk is appreciated too.

    ...which to a designer is completely insulting...
    What's so special about "a designer"?
    Prior to the mid 1980s, designers could get away with prima Donna attitudes, because they (or their employers) were paying pre-press "color houses" around $350 per hour to tweak colors to sooth their oh-so-erudite discernment and hyper-developed color sensitivities, and to gain reimbursement for the $100 per plate lunches on proof-check days.
    That all changed when designers (and their employers) got tired of paying those fees and took on the responsibility for the technical side of assembling their designs into something printable. That was the so-called "desktop revolution" and "revolution" was not a bad word for it. It turned a huge industry on its head. Color houses which didn't adopt PostScript devices and workflows were soon dropping like flies--and so were designers who didn't climb down off their lofty pedestals and buckle down to learning the technical realities of what they were doing.
    Don't be insulted, but the simple fact is, you still don't know what you're doing if you think converting any given process color job to a two-spot job is "just a couple of minutes' work." Only in the very simplest designs would it be as simple as re-defining a couple of process Swatches as spot color Swatches.
    In Illustrator in particular, doing so won't even work if the original Swatches were not originally defined as Global Swatches.
    If those two process Swatches were used in any Blends, converting them to spot will likely not update the intermediate steps of the Blend. In earlier versions of Illustrator, the same problem applied to grads.
    You can often get away with not having properly trapped the file with process swatches, because there are potentially four component inks which may be shared between adjacent different-color objects. Spot inks are not so forgiving. Trapping is essential if the two spot colors touch.
    So you really expect a printer to just have a policy to do that for you? And thereby bear responsibility for anything they may misinterpret or overlook that may cause a registration sliver on press and thereby loose every bit of profit on the printing (which these days is cut-throat competitive)?
    No. It's your responsibility to build the file correctly. The printing houses I use know better. They know I would have a coniption fit if I ever caught them modifying one of my files. They know they are to return any problem file to me for correction.
    JET

  • Changing a Spot Color Swatch with a script

    I have about 150 files where I need to replace a Pantone color with another.
    So far I've been able to rename the old color, delete it and add the right one. But I cant find any info on how to change an existing color without messing up the existing art work (if I rename it, it converts the spot color to CMYK).
    For example I could rename it:
    i if ( app.documents.length > 0 &&
    i app.activeDocument.swatches.length > 0 ) {
    i var lastIndex = app.activeDocument.swatches.length - 1;
    i var lastSwatch = app.activeDocument.swatches[lastIndex];
    i lastSwatch.name = "Pantone 414 C";
    i }
    But that doesn't change it to 414 C. If you have any idea, I would be very grateful...
    Regards Simon

    Why not change it in Illustrator?
    Since you're using Creative Cloud you should be aware that the new
    applications will not install on Windows XP. The minimum configuration
    is Windows 7 SP1 or Windows 8.
    Bob

  • CMYK layers showing up when spot color illos placed in InDesign CS3

    When I place an Illustrator CS3 (13.0.2) illustration into InDesign CS3 (5.0.3), Preflight tells me that CMYK colors are being used, even though the imported illustration has only 2 Pantone spot colors matching those used in the InDesign document (the 2 spot colors show up in Preflight as well). I double-checked to make sure they were spot colors, not CMYK. When I go to Separations Preview, my 2 spot color show up but nothing shows on the CMYK layers. I deleted all unused color swatches in my InDesign file (and the Illustrator file), and when I delete the illustration Preflight just shows the 2 PMS spot color that I'm using in the document. I'm using Mac OS 10.5.4 on a brand-new Quad-Core Xeon, if that matters.
    I've tried saving the illustration as both AI and EPS, and using CMYK and RGB color modes. I deleted all unused color swatches from both Illustrator and InDesign. For another test, I created a fresh Illustrator file that just had a box in 1 spot color and placed it in a fresh InDesign file, and again Preflight said that CMYK was being used. Besides the usual work-around of telling my service bureau to not output the CMYK film, does anyone have any idea of how to correct this? I've encountered it several times. (BTW, my service bureau didn't know what the problem is).
    This is my first visit and post here, so if I have violated some forum etiquette, please forgive me.
    James

    Save a PDF and place that.
    Bob

  • [CS4-5.5][JS] Problem convert spot colors to process

    Hi,
    I'm trying to convert all spot color swatches to process, but for some strange reason, some weird behavior occures.
    First I tried this piece of code...
    app.activeDocument.colors.everyItem().properties = {space:ColorSpace.CMYK, model:ColorModel.PROCESS};
    After running the script, the color icon changes, indicating the colorspace/model is changed. But when checking the color in detail, it's still a spot color.
    Just as a test, I tried this piece of code...
    function convertColors2Process(){
         for (var i = 0; i < app.activeDocument.colors.length; i++){
                var myColor =  app.activeDocument.colors[i];
                if ((app.activeDocument.colors[i].name != "") && (app.activeDocument.colors[i].name != "Registration")){
                        if (app.activeDocument.colors[i].model != 1886548851){
                              while(myColor.model != ColorModel.PROCESS){
                                        myColor.model = ColorModel.PROCESS;
                                        myColor.space = ColorSpace.CMYK;
                                            myColor.colorValue = [50,20,30,40];
    Now, the color thumbnail changes to the new color, but again, when checking the color. It's still a pantone color with the old values.
    No error occures when running the script and I'm able to change the color manualy in Indesign.
    How do I change the colour mode of all spot colors to CMYK?
    Thanx
    John

    Hi Larry,
    I've tried using ...
    function convertColors2Process(){
         for (var i = 0; i < app.activeDocument.inks.length; i++){
                                    app.activeDocument.inks[i].convertToProcess = true;
    This will modify the ink manager to process the spot color as process color, but the color itself is still unchanged....
    How do I modify any spot color to process color and change the colour mode to CMYK?
    Thanks

  • Issue with Gaussian Blur and Spot Colors

    Wondering if anyone has a solution to this issue.
    Setup: We are using CS4 + CS5 Illustrator on Mac OS 10.5.X and 10.6.X
    We created a spot color radial gradient filled circle over a background of the same spot color. The gradient went from 100% of the color down to 2%. We then applied a gaussian blur set to 50 pixels so that we had a nice smooth transition from the circle blurring outwards over the background with the blur blending into the spot color background.
    The problem arises when we select "Retain Spot Colors" on the blur. It fills the gradient circle with 100% solid color (but at the 2% range of the gradient so it appears white) and deletes the blur effect. If we don't select "Retain Spot Colors", it converts the blur to process and we get a banding on our printouts where the spot background and CMYK gaussian meet.
    We tried the gaussian blur set at 5 pixels all the way up to 55 in 10 pixel increments but nothing worked. We tried different spot colors, same issue. We know we can do the background in Photoshop and import it into Illustrator as a workaround, but we are constantly editing and changing files and would like to keep everything in Illustrator.
    Does anyone have any suggestions on how to solve this or if there is even a solution. We have not tried Illustrator 5.5 and do not want to invest the money in the upgrade yet. We would prefer to stay with both CS4 and CS5.
    Thank you for any input.

    Hi Mike,
    Okay, I have some new information that changes things. I misunderstood what the issue was from the designer. My apologies in advance for the confusion. There are actually two issues but they are somewhat related.
    Issue 1:
    We are concerned with banding on the outside of a spot color gradient with a gaussian blur over a patterned background of the same spot color.  We do not  know if this is becasue of the number of pixels on the blur, the version of Illustrator, the blending of the blur into the patterned background, etc... While the banding looks slight on screen it is more pronounced when printed. There are many variables and we have tried everything we can think of to create a smooth transition but we keep getting some banding.
    The first image shows what happens when the Preserve Spot Colors in the Raster Effects Settings (found under the Effect menu) is unchecked. We believe that the spot color is being treated as CMYK and causing the blur to be a slightly different color than the spot color background thus causing the banding.
    The second image shows what happens when we select Preserve Spot Colors. We lose the blur.
    The third image is what we are trying to achieve over a over a patterned background of the same spot color. This was achieved with the Preserve Spot Colors unchecked and also unchecking Overprint Preview in the Separations Preview Palette. However, this brings us right back to the issue with the Preserve Spot Color being unchecked.
    Issue 2:
    The issue is that we want to print a spot color gradient with a gaussian blur (over 50 pixels). In order to preview the blur effect correctly we have to uncheck the Preserve Spot Colors in the Raster Effects Settings (found under the Effect menu). However, we have recently found out that this will not work with the software our printers use to do separations. If we check the Preserve Spot Color for the separator, it turns the blur into a large square of color (see screensnap below). We have played around with the Add: x Around Object setting in Raster Effects but it has not helped.
    3. If we do not select "Preserve Spot Color", the blur looks correct but it is no longer a spot color but CMYK when separated.
    I hope that isn't too confusing and makes sense. Again, apologies for the mixup on my part originally. Thanks again for any help.

  • Converted spot colors is different...

    When converted spot colors to cmyk the breakdown is different in CS6
    In CS3, Cs4, Cs5, CS5.5 and my pantone spot color book converted to cmyk all match.

    PMS 187 Inside my Pantone Book c-0 m-100 y-79 k-20
    If you want the older Pantone CMYK simulations, copy the PANTONE solid to process.acb file from and older version of ID and put it in your Presets>Swatch Libraries folder and use that library.
    PMS 187 Color Bridge CS6 c-7 m-84 y-56 k-16
    Looks like you are in Color Bridge Uncoated—the coated simulation is 7|100|82|26
    PMS 187 Inside CS6 c-22.3 m-100 y-88.93 k-14.68
    This is a color managed conversion from the solid Lab values to CMYK and is dependant on your document's CMYK profile. If you change your document's CMYK profile you will get a different conversion.

  • Preview in Mountain Lion Doesn't Like Spot Colors

    I upgraded to Moutnain Lion and CS6 at the same time, and one thing I've noticed is that Mac's preview doesn't seem to dig on spot colors. Has anyone else noticed this? It seems to be the case with .ai and PDFs. Not a huge deal; when you open the files, the spot colors display properly, but when you view the files within a folder through Finder, click "space" to preview, or view the file as an attachment within Mail, anything with a spot color previews as solid black, which makes the file appear as if something is "off".
    My biggest concern with this is if I'm sending a PDF to a client, and they only view it within their Mail app, will it view properly for them? Not knowing the answer, I've taken to converting all of my spot colors to CMYK before I save the proof file, and this way they display properly within Mac's various previews. Just wondering if everyone using Mountain Lion/CS6 are having this issue, or if mine is somehow an isolated case.

    I'm having the same problem. When I open the Acrobat Files, the color looks fine. When I look at a PDF with spot colors in Preview Mode, in a Window Column View, or as an email attachment, I see SOME of the spot colors showing up as black, but not all of them. It seems to depend on the particular Spot Color.

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