File Check Up: Rich blacks are set too high

File Check Up: Rich blacks are set too high

What is rich black?


Rich black is created when creating objects that are using than just black ink. This is no problem for black objects besides text but don't add any more than our recommendation below.

Black Text

We only recommend the below values. If you add any other color, the text may look fuzzy or have a halo of color around the text:
Cyan: 0%
Magenta: 0%
Yellow: 0%
Black: 100%
For perfectly sharp text, only use 100% black.


Example of black vs rich black text:


Black backgrounds and black objects besides text


For black backgrounds or objects besides text, if you want a nice dark black, we recommend these CMYK values:
Cyan: 40
Magenta: 40
Yellow: 40
Black: 100

If you put too much ink on the rich black you can get defects called "picking" where the ink does not stick to the paper.

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