Pantone to CMYK colours

[JKA@4153]

Hi everyone,

I've chosen the following navy colour from the Pantone solid to process guide (coated) booklet:

Pantone 295C

C: 100

M: 57

Y: 0

K: 40

When viewed in the booklet the CMYK equivalent is close in colour to the Pantone but when I view the two colour formulas side-by-side in Illustrator they're very different.

I don't know if this is just my screen but I just wondered can someone test this out for me and see if they're experiencing the same thing?

Would appreciate any advice.

[mecdos]

they are not supposed to match. you can't reproduce pantone colors with process printing, the formula is trying to give you the closest match it can to the pantone. but also this is to be compared in print not on screen. 

[JKA@4153]

Thanks for the reply. So even though the onscreen CMYK version of the pantone colour appears lighter than the printed swatch, the darker CMYK printed swatch will be the shade that is printed - is that right?

[mecdos]

that depends on how your screen is calibrated and also how your printer is set up. to get close to exact print preview you need to have it professionally calibrated. you also have to acount for the color and type of paper

[JKA@4153]

Ok thanks for the advice. I think I'll need to consult my commercial printer as they will be printing it.

[Ton Frederiks]

You probably got a very old book.

Check the Pantone website or use the Pantone color bridge or use Illustrator's Lab > CMYK translation.

They will probably give you all different colors, which is fine since the spot ink cannot be correctly converted to process inks.

So the best advice (as you said) is to consult your printer.