This brief book contains fourteen articles on color authored by Gary Field. Most are reprints from the members-only newsletter of the Technical Association of the Graphic Arts; the others have previously appeared in publications of the International Prepress Association or the Institute of Printing. The primary focus of this series is on the printing system, but visual processes and prepress issues are also addressed. Informal yet scientifically-based, these succinct essays stress principles and offer new insights into how the subjects apply to everyday color management challenges in the graphic arts.

From the Preface: “...In practice, misconceptions about color abound in the age of desktop color and so-called digital color presses, and the concept of quality is often reduced to trite definitions that have little practical value. Color quality, to be sure, has always been a somewhat elusive concept, but it is more of a science and less of an art than most people recognize. Although color quality judgment and analysis skills can be acquired through years of experience, it is much more efficient if the principles discussed in the books of this series are learned earlier in one's career...”

Target Audience: Any student or practicing professional concerned with color reproduction and management in the graphic arts.

Table of Contents:

Color Quality and Business Strategy

Color Vision I

Color Vision II

The Number of Printable Colors

Ink-Paper Color

Color Printing Dynamics

Ideal Color Sequence

Additivity and Proportionality Failure

Color Systems Engineering — And Beyond

Color Management: Does It Really Work?

Color Separation Transitions

The Black Printer

Three Hundred Years of Color Reproduction I

Three Hundred Years of Color Reproduction II