Warning: That $200 Pantone color deck I bought has already paid for itself but the book version is a trap

I bought the big Pantone guide book last year for $180 thinking it would be my go to for matching inks. But the paper absorbs light differently than screen prints or digital work so I kept getting mismatches. Spent like 40 bucks on sample swatches that were totally off from what the book showed. Has anyone else found the fan deck or the digital version works way better for actual client work?

2 comments

2 Comments

briannguyen11d ago

Yo have you tried the digital swatch tool on Adobe? For me the book was a total waste of money too but the digital version lets me see colors under different lighting conditions before I even buy ink. I also switched to using actual printed proofs from my local shop instead of relying on the book's paper. The fan deck is way more accurate for my workflow too, especially when I'm matching spot colors for packaging jobs. Sucks you had to learn this the hard way like I did but at least you know now.

robinmason12d ago

The book's value is in understanding undertones not matching prints, so you're using it wrong.