Font Color printing not the same as object color

[ray_jewels]

Hello,

I am using Indesign CC 2019 and am having a problem printing. I have a PMS color setup, but when I print, the font color is much darker than the object color with the same PMS. I tried:

• Printing in PDF (verified the accessibility settings were not set to print text as black)
• Changing the PMS color that was problematic to a different PMS blue color - same exact result (almost black blue for the text - PMS blue for the object)
• Changing the font to a different font (currently using Museo Sans, tried Arial and Helvetica)
• Setting up a new paragraph style with the PMS color
• Printing from proof view

Nothing I have tried makes any difference. Please help! Thanks!

[John Mensinger]

I wouldn't call your credibility into question, and maybe a screenshot would move me off this notion, but there is some chance you're only perceiving the text as darker than the object, simply because text doesn't occupy as much continuous surface area and is therefore considerably less reflective in many circumstances. This could also be due to text being set to overprint, so unless you're just printing both on a white-page-background, it could be a factor.

Have you tried moving a copy of the text over the same-filled object and test printing to see if the text disappears? (This will only work if the text is not set to overprint.),

[ray_jewels]

I'm 1000% sure. But thanks for asking - it's definitely a different color. One is almost black - one is blue. It is very clear.

[Laubender]

ray_jewels  wrote

I'm 1000% sure. But thanks for asking - it's definitely a different color. One is almost black - one is blue. It is very clear.

You could pick up and compare color values with Acrobat Pro DC's function Output Preview under Print Production.

Do you see different values there?

Regards,
Uwe

[Randy Hagan]

Uwe's steering you right here. Comparing color values in a PDF file is as easy as getting color values with your cursor in Photoshop: hover your cursor over a spot and it will report exact values.

There is one other possibility to consider here, though ... especially if the text is body-type sized instead of headline/display type sized.

Double-check if the type has a stroke set around it. That can throw your type color off with a nearly imperceptible difference between fill and stroke.

Don't ask me how I know ... it's depressing to remember it ...

[rob day]

but when I print, the font color is much darker than the object color with the same PMS. I tried:

By object do you mean an InDesign frame filled with the Pantone color, or a placed object?

[Andy_Baz]

Items created purely in InDesign should print the same when applied with the same colour swatch.

If the text or the object has been created outside of InDesign then you may find that individual colour profiles will affect output.

Screenshots would be very useful in this instance.