4
Printing: Beyond the Basics
4-2
Phaser 350 Color Printer
Working with color
Whether you are producing color reports, memos, graphs, charts, overhead
transparencies for presentations, color handouts, or design comps, there are
a few things to keep in mind when using color.
■ A large area of color looks more saturated (brighter) than a small
area of the same color.
■ A color looks brighter against a dark background than it does
against a white background.
■ Colors look different due to the background color or to the
surrounding colors.
■ The appearance of a color varies with the type and amount of
light, for example fluorescent lighting versus sunlight.
General guidelines
■ Keep a document or design simple and consistent.
■ Select colors that look good together and that reinforce your
message.
■ Check your application for standard palettes to get you started.
■ Use a color scheme of five or six shades, and in a series of images,
use the colors in a consistent manner throughout the series.
■ Use color to highlight the most important information, such as a
bar or pie segment in a chart or graph.
■ Use color to show relationships between objects, such as a range of
values. Objects with a similar meaning or value should be in
similar colors.
■ Use color as graphic elements in the design of newsletters, logos,
and brochures.
■ Avoid red and green combinations; these colors are hard for
people with red/green color blindness to distinguish.
