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the vertical axis. You can specify up to 13 points on the curve. When you specify two values along the curve, Photoshop calculates
intermediate values. As you adjust the curve, values are automatically entered in the percentage text boxes.
The value you enter in the text box indicates the percentage of the ink color used to represent the grayscale value in the original image.
For example, if you enter 70 in the 100% text box, a 70% tint of that ink color is used to print the 100% shadows.
4. Click Save in the Duotone Curve dialog box to save curves created with this dialog box.
5. Click Load to load these curves or curves created in the Curves dialog box, including curves created using the Arbitrary Map option.
You can use the Info panel to display ink percentages when you're working with duotone images. Set the readout mode to Actual Color to
determine what ink percentages will be applied when the image is printed. These values reflect any changes you've entered in the Duotone
Curve dialog box.
Specifying overprint colors
Overprint colors are two unscreened inks printed on top of each other. For example, when you print a cyan ink over a yellow ink, the resulting
overprint color is green. The order in which inks are printed, as well as variations in the inks and paper, can significantly affect the final results.
To predict how colors will look when printed, use a printed sample of the overprinted inks and adjust your screen display accordingly. Keep in mind
that this adjustment affects only how the overprint colors appear on-screen, not when printed. Before adjusting these colors, make sure to calibrate
your monitor.
Adjust the display of overprint colors
1. Choose Image > Mode > Duotone.
2. Click Overprint Colors. The Overprint Colors dialog box shows how the combined inks will look when printed.
3. Click the color swatch of the ink combination that you want to adjust.
4. Select the desired color in the Color Picker, and click OK.
5. Repeat steps 3 and 4 until you are satisfied with the ink combination. Then click OK.
Saving and loading duotone settings
Use the Save button in the Duotone Options dialog box to save a set of duotone curves, ink settings, and overprint colors. Use the Load button to
load a set of duotone curves, ink settings, and overprint colors. You can then apply these settings to other grayscale images.
Photoshop includes several sample sets of duotone, tritone, and quadtone curves. These sets include some commonly used curves and colors.
Use these sets as starting points when you create your own combinations.
View the individual colors of a duotone image
Because duotones are single-channel images, your adjustments to individual printing inks are displayed as part of the final composite image.
In some cases, you may want to view the individual "printing plates" to see how the individual colors will separate when printed (as you can with
CMYK images).
1. After specifying your ink colors, choose Image > Mode > Multichannel.
The image is converted to Multichannel mode, with each channel represented as a spot color channel. The contents of each spot channel
accurately reflect the duotone settings, but the on-screen composite preview may not be as accurate as the preview in Duotone mode.
Note: If you make any changes to the image in Multichannel mode, you can't revert to the original duotone state (unless you can access
the duotone state in the History panel). To adjust the distribution of ink and view its effect on the individual printing plates, make the
adjustments in the Duotone Curves dialog box before converting to Multichannel mode.
2. Select the channel you want to examine in the Channels panel.
3. Choose Edit > Undo Multichannel to revert to Duotone mode.
Printing duotones
When creating duotones, keep in mind that both the order in which the inks are printed and the screen angles you use have a significant effect on
the final output. (If needed, change the halftone screen angles on the printer's RIP.)
You do not have to convert duotone images to CMYK to print separations—simply choose Separations from the Profile pop-up menu in the Color
Managementsection of the Print dialog box (for setting printer options). Converting to CMYK mode converts any custom colors to their CMYK
equivalents.
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