Operation Manual

502

Color

Last updated 11/30/2015

Using colors from imported graphics

InDesign provides various ways for you to sample and redefine colors from the graphics you import into your

document. Spot colors from placed PDF or EPS files and spot-color channels in Adobe Photoshop (PSD) and TIFF files

appear as spot colors in the Swatches panel. You can apply these colors to objects in your document or convert them to

process colors; however, you cannot redefine the color values or delete the imported swatches. If you delete the placed

graphic, the colors remain but are converted to native InDesign colors, which can then be edited or deleted.

Using the Eyedropper tool to sample colors

You can use the Eyedropper tool to add colors from imported graphics to your document, or to apply them to

objects in your document. This is useful for coordinating layout colors with images.

For best results with color separations, you may want to make sure that color names, types (such as spot and process),

and models (such as RGB and CMYK) of the colors sampled in InDesign are consistent with the color definitions in

the imported graphics. If you’re not sure about the best settings to use, consult with your prepress service provider.

Working with spot-color channels in an Adobe Photoshop (PSD) file

When you place a native Photoshop file (PSD) or TIFF file in InDesign, any spot-color channels the imported file

contains, appear in the Swatches panel as spot-color inks. You can select and apply these swatches to other objects in

your document; to delete these swatches, however, you must first delete the placed file.

By default, if you import a file that has a spot-color channel with the same name as a spot color in your document, but

with different color values, the color values in your document are retained. However, you can replace the color values

in your document with the values of the color in the imported document. To do this:

1 Open the Preferences dialog (Edit > Preferences > General).

2 In the General section check the following option:Allow incoming spot color to replace existing swatch of same

name

3 Click OK.

Now, if you import a files that has a spot-color channel with the same name as a spot color in your document, you will

be prompted with the following warning:

Working with colors from EPS or PDF files

When you place a PDF file, EPS graphic, or Adobe Illustrator (.AI) file, names of spot colors used in the graphic are

added to the Swatches panel in your document, so that you can be aware that they can cause additional printing costs

later, and also so that you can use the spot colors in your document.