Photoshop® CS4 All-in-One For Dummies®

Chapter 3. Using and Managing Color

In This Chapter

• Choosing foreground and background colors

• Defining color

• Establishing color management settings

• Getting consistent color among multiple applications

• Soft proofing colors

Color in Photoshop takes on two personalities. On one hand, choosing colors and applying them is easy, fun, and stress-free. On the other hand, managing color — that is, making what you see on-screen match what comes out on paper (or in your browser) — can be difficult and frustrating.

Unfortunately, you have to be well-versed in both picking great colors and managing colors for print. What's the use of creating the next Mona Lisa in Photoshop only to find that it looks like a fifth-generation color Xerox copy? In this chapter, I start by showing you how to define and apply color; then, I ease you into the world of color management.

If you haven't already read the section on color theory in Book II, Chapter 2, you might want to give it a gander before you dive into this chapter. Knowing a little color theory may make this chapter a little more palatable.

Dealing with Foreground and Background Colors

Photoshop has two categories of color — a foreground color and a background color. You apply the foreground color when you use the type tools, the painting tools, or the shape tools. The foreground color is also the beginning color of a default gradient applied by the Gradient ...