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Participant
January 14, 2020
Question

PDF colors changing when emailed

  • January 14, 2020
  • 2 replies
  • 5676 views

Hi, anyone have experience with colors changing on a PDF after it is emailed or sent in fb messenger? The file appears correct on screen after saved and opened in Acrobat. But the color totally dulls out after its sent by email, or sent by facebook messenger, or uploaded to dropbox. Help !!! 

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2 replies

Dov Isaacs
Legend
January 15, 2020

Assuming that the receiver of the PDF file is opening the PDF file in Acrobat or Reader and assuming that the receiver has not set their options to always display the PDF file as a CMYK preview, there is no reason why the colors would change. There is nothing in the process of copying, e-mailing, or transmitting PDF via various messaging programs, even FTP, or file services such as DropBox that opens and modifies a PDF file.

If the receiver of the PDF file (e-mail or messenger) opens the PDF file in some other PDF display software, obviously, colors could vary if that software isn't handling color per the PDF specification. If the PDF file is opened in Acrobat or Reader and the settings mandate previewing overprints and CMYK rendition, obviously the out-of-gamut RGB colors will appear dull.

 

               - Dov

- Dov Isaacs, former Adobe Principal Scientist (April 30, 1990 - May 30, 2021)
Participating Frequently
May 29, 2023

Acrobat attachment to Outlook issue I am having that seems to be the same as scrambledmegs .

 

Form 1 is the correct document with light blue field higlights. 

 

Form 2 are the correct Preference Forms Highlight Colors settings. 

 

Form 3 is the incorrect version document with dark field higlights.after attachment to Outlook and opening WITHOUT the original correct document being open at the same time.  I had to do a jpg of the result because the change in Preferences only appears to happen when the original document is not open.

 

Form 4 are the incorrect Preference Forms Highlight Colors settings in the document WITHOUT the original document open.

 

I looked at the CMYK settings referenced by Mr. Isaacs, but mine are set to U.S. Web Coated (SWOP) v2.  I did not see the CMYK preview option that Mr. Isaacs mentions in my Acrobat version X Pro.

 

Thanks to Dov Isaacs for his long-time contribution to this great product!

Nancy OShea
Community Expert
Community Expert
January 15, 2020

Is your document color managed?

https://helpx.adobe.com/acrobat/using/color-managing-documents.html

sRGB color space is recommended for online viewing. 

CMYK is used for artwork that's sent to a professional print shop.

 

Nancy O'Shea— Product User & Community Expert