How to select matching RGB and CMYK colors

Starting from scratch for a client, how do I select matching RGB and CMYK pairs?
Say we find a nice red colour in RGB for screen use, how do I then find the correct CMYK for print? And what assumptions do I have to make when doing this, if any?
Would it be the same for the other way around (choose CMYK first for print and then find the RGB equivalent)
Is it more sensible to start with a Pantone colour and then find the RGB and CMYK equivalents for that?
Many thanks
RobbieG
(I'm working with Ai, Ps and Id CS6)

Yes. Better to start with Pantone reference books where you are viewing the color in a reflective environment. As already mentioned, color on the monitor can be deceptive. And, I think the others are basiclt saying that you should have everything calibrated and use color management policies in your apps. There is a way to find CMYK equivalents using Photoshop's color palette. Let's say you have an RGB Red as the foreground color in Photoshop. If you double click on the swatch you will get Photoshop's color palette which lists the RGB percentages, CMYK percentages, LAB percentages, and HEX web color for that Red. You can go further and select "Custom" and the Pasntone Spot color palette opens and gives you the closest Spot color value for that Red. This however, depends on your color settings. That's why I recommend you start with the Pantone swatch book and get the perecentages of CMYK from their formula guide which is set to industry standard color.

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Thanks.

Generally, is there much if any color shift when going from CMYK to RGB?
Even if a given color is within the gamuts of both CMYK and RGB color spaces, that does not necessarily mean that color shifts will not occur.
You can't think of the RGB and CMYK versions of "a color" as "equivalents." There is not just one set of CMYK values for a given set of RGB values. A simple way to think about it is this: Take the product of three numbers. Now divide that number into four factors. Obviously, there is more than just one set of four values possible.
So switching back and forth between RGB and CMYK color spaces in willy-nilly fashon is not good practice. The software has to make a translation decision out of many possibilities. It does it according to your so-called "color management" settings. Even then, the software does not keep a breadcrumb trail of all of your switches back and forth. So colors can still drift.
Design for print first. Then repurpose for web. Color is not the only reason for this.
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Hi, I am struggling to understand why Illustrator is changing the values inside the RGB and CMYK boxes. I am also not sure of the exact relationship between these values. Essentially, it appears that if you set the Document Color Mode to RGB, it leaves the RGB values that you type in alone. If you set the Document Color Mode to CMYK, it leaves the CMYK values alone.
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Color management.
Hi, I am struggling to understand why Illustrator is changing the values inside the RGB and CMYK boxes. I am also not sure of the exact relationship between these values. Essentially, it appears that if you set the Document Color Mode to RGB, it leaves the RGB values that you type in alone. If you set the Document Color Mode to CMYK, it leaves the CMYK values alone.
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But as soon as you change the Color Mode, it automatically modifies the values. So if you were in RGB mode and you set some RGB values, it changes those RGB values when you switch to CMYK mode. And vice versa.
Same reason.
I had thought that the CMYK palette was a subset of the RGB palette. It would make sense to me if it did this when I switched from RGB to CMYK mode, but it doesn't make sense to me why it does this when I switch from CMYK to RGB mode.
It's not. CMYK color spaces (there are more than just one) are normally smaller than RGB color spaces, but they aren't a "subset".
The other thing I am confused about is the relationship of the values in the RGB boxes to the values in the CMYK boxes. I would have thought that the relationship between them would be static. Actually, it is not. When I am in CMYK mode and I enter a CMYK value of 90 16 0 0, the RGB values become 0 158 222. But when I switch over to RGB mode, the RGB values of 0 158 222 result in CMYK values of 75 23 0 0.
When Illustrator converts the colors, it uses color management: the profiles you set up and the methods you set up. After converting it forgets the color that used to be. When converting "back", it uses color management again.
When you convert an very bright RGB color, it be out of the CMYK gamut. So it get's converted to the closest possbile CMYK color (which might still be far away from the original color. But it's not possible to convert it "back" to the bright one unless you just revert the conversion (by Cmd/Ctrl + Z).

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Jamie,
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Converting RGB to CMYK color

Hi All,
I have few BASIC Questions on converting RGB to CMYK in Photoshop and Illustrator. Hope could get some professional insights here.
1, Are all the DTG printers set only in CMYK color mode ?
2, If there is no difference after viewing RGB image with 'Gamaut Warning' (Photoshop), Does that mean I'll have the exact print result as monitor view ?
and Basically no need for CMYK conversion ?
3, Please list some the most effective way to convert RGB to CMYK, and keep the final CMYK color result as close as the RGB.
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5, compare Photoshop to Illustrator, which one result better final CMYK color image ?

Thanks for the detailed reply. Sure clear some of the doubts.
I just start to draw/design in Photoshop and illustrator, I save my files most as PNG, for a transparent background.
After I went to officework do the poster printing, I found the color of my print image are not as vivid as Mac preview.
To be precise, the poster I printed looks like has a very thin grey layer, it is not much noticeable, but it indeed lost some vivid color. As I want to print out my works and keep color as close exact as Mac preview, here is the issue of coverting RGB CMYK.
Please feel free to add for below:
1, Should I set color space in CMYK before drawing in PS/AI
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How to select matching RGB and CMYK colors

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