Wrong Color, Do It Again.

Color management is a HUGE deal in my business. Charges to hit specifically noted colors can be outrageous on some invoices, as brands have built themselves around the appearance of specific colors and logos. The primary language that is transferrable from RGB to CMYK combinations is the use of the pantone chart, a swatch of thousands of color combinations denoted by the mix of Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, and Black for the digital printing world.

Although it's easy for some companies to say, "Hey, our exact read is PMS201", other companies may say, "Hey, can you match the blue that's on the side of our building?". These are the tricky ones. The "in-betweeners" that is up to the professional's discretion to determine what the appropriate color can be. Luckily, technology has progressed to aid in this process.

Rather than sifting through the color swatches or holding them up to whatever the original substrate is, Pantone has released a new product, Capsure, to identify the color for you. Here is the press release from Pantone that really outlines the significance to this contribution to the visual communication industry:

Created for professionals in fashion, home furnishings, interior, industrial and graphic design, as well as contractors, paint retailers and do-it-yourselfers, CAPSURE allows users to accurately identify color inspiration from any surface, material or fabric and match it to a PANTONE(R) Color for easy communication. With unsurpassed accuracy, CAPSURE significantly reduces the time it takes to measure or choose a color from a sample or any other form of color inspiration.
The device uses powerful tri-directional image capture technology that eliminates the shadows and interference inherent to patterned and textured materials and surfaces. By illuminating the surface being measured from three different directions while simultaneously recording 27 color-accurate images in 1.6 seconds, CAPSURE can extract up to four dominant colors from an intricate pattern so the viewer can clearly identify the desired color.
CAPSURE’s image capture technology lets professionals preview what they are measuring on its 1.75-inch color screen, in real time, to affirm image accuracy. Those images are then stored on the device for later reference. CAPSURE has the ability to record the last 100 colors measured for later reference. Users can also annotate colors with a voice recording as well as a time and date stamp. Additionally, the device provides harmonious shades and identifies related colors that are lighter, darker or similar in tone to the identified color.