How To Calibrate Your Monitor for Colors

Having accurate colors on your computer’s monitor will help you to get the colors you want on your printed piece. Both Windows and Macintosh computers come with built-in color calibration tools that you can use to do a fair job of getting the right colors, but nothing will substitute for calibrating against a real-world reference. You can get a color reference book and calibrate your monitor so that it matches the reference color swatch you see. Or you can purchase a color calibration tool that will look at your monitor and make the adjustments automatically. Or, you can get started with the tools included with your computer’s operating system.

Windows – The built in Windows display calibration and color profiles let you determine how colors appear on your screen.

Right-click anywhere on your desktop and then select “Screen Resolution.”
Click “Advanced Settings” and then click on the “Color Management” tab. Click “Color Management.”
Click on the “Advanced” tab and then click “Calibrate Display.”
Follow the on-screen instructions to finish calibrating your monitor.

Macintosh OS X – The Apple operating system also has color calibration built in.

Click “Apple Menu,” “System Preferences,” “Display” and then “Color.”
Click “Calibrate.”
Follow the on-screen instructions to calibrate your monitor.

If you have the option in your calibration tools create an International Color Consortium (ICC) profile. We can use that profile when we convert your artwork to get the best color matching possible on our equipment. If you have questions, feel free to contact us by phone at 877-405-3949 or online.