Using Color Libraries

Instead of defining your own colors, it is much easier to just import colors from preset documents. These documents can be based on colors seen in color-matching libraries such as those from Pantone, Inc. or they can be colors that ship with the Creative Suite applications. You can even use your own documents as color libraries.

Although most of the features for colors in each of the Creative Suite applications are very similar, working with the color library features are very different. Each application has different techniques for accessing the color libraries and applying them to documents.

Photoshop Color Libraries

Photoshop has a wide range of color libraries that can be accessed two different ways. If you are in the Color Picker, click the Color Libraries button. This opens the Color Libraries dialog box (Figure 10-13), where you can choose the type of color library from the Book list.

Figure 10-13. Color libraries in Photoshop (left and top middle), Illustrator (middle), GoLive (bottom middle), and InDesign (right).

Tip: Just Type the Number!

Photoshop beginners (and even some experienced users) look for a field in which to type the number of the color that they want to find. You don't have to click into a field just type the number! Type the numbers 1, 8, 5 to select PANTONE 185 C in the PANTONE Solid Coated library. However, you do need to type the numbers fairly quickly; if you pause too long, those numbers wind up selecting PANTONE 500 C.

You can also choose a color library from the bottom of the Swatches palette menu. When you open any color library from the Swatches palette menu, you will be given the choice to replace the current swatches or append (add) the color library to the existing swatches. Most people choose to append. But if you do replace your current swatches, you can get them back by choosing Reset Swatches from the Swatches palette menu. When you're working in the Swatches palette, you can't type in the number of the swatch. But if you place your cursor over a swatch, you'll see a tool tip with the color's name (Figure 10-13).

Remember, though, that just because you choose a color library doesn't mean that you are that color is actually on your document. If you choose a CMYK color, it isn't actually a CMYK color if you're working in any of the other color modes; the document has to be (converted to) CMYK mode for the colors to actually be CMYK colors. This is especially important when choosing spot-color libraries, as explained in the section "Working with Spot Colors" later in this chapter.

Illustrator Color Libraries

To access the color libraries in Illustrator, choose Open Swatch Library from the Swatches palette menu or choose Window > Swatch Libraries. Then choose one of the color libraries. Instead of appending the colors, as happens in Photoshop, the color library appears in its own palette (Figure 10-13).

To add swatches from the color library to your document's Swatches palette, simply select them in the palette (you can also select multiple colors by holding the Shift key or the Command/Control key and clicking the swatches you want to select). Then choose Add To Swatches from the color library palette menu.

If you always work with the same color library, you can choose the Persistent command from the color library palette menu. This reopens that palette each time you open Illustrator.

You may also want to choose a specific color based on its number or name. If so, choose Show Find Field from the color library palette menu. This gives you a field where you can type the numbers of a particular color.

InDesign Color Libraries

You'll find the color libraries in InDesign by opening the New Color Swatch dialog box and then choosing the Color Mode menu (Figure 10-13). Choose a library to view its colors. You can also type the number of the color in the field.

We find it awkward to have to open this dialog box just to find one color in a color library. Fortunately, InDesign makes it easier than Illustrator to create default colors for all new documents. Simply define a new swatch with no document open. This action adds the swatch to the default Swatches palette for all new InDesign documents.

GoLive Color Libraries

In GoLive, go to the Swatches palette menu and choose Open Swatch Library. You'll see the complete set of color libraries from the other Creative Suite 2 applications. Choose the library with which you want to work. It appears as a separate palette (Figure 10-13). You can then choose any swatches from this palette.

Unlike in Illustrator, the swatches that you pick in this second palette are not automatically added to the regular Swatches palette. You have to choose New Swatch From Selection Color to add the swatch to the Swatches palette.

However, like in Illustrator, in GoLive you can set one of the color library swatch palettes to Persistent so that it opens every time you use the application. Similarly, you can choose Show Search Fields to type the name and number to go to a particular color.

Tip: No Spot Colors on the Web

When you choose a spot color or any of the other colors from the color libraries in GoLive, you are simply choosing an RGB color that is most similar to the original color swatch. All colors in GoLive are converted to RGB.

Color Libraries from Other Documents

Illustrator and InDesign let you use their own documents as color libraries. This allows you to point to any Illustrator file and add the colors from that document to the colors of the current Illustrator file. Similarly, in InDesign you can select another InDesign document from which to add colors to your current document. Simply choose Other Library from the Color Libraries list in either program, and find the document you want to use.

Note that the Other Library command in GoLive does not let you point to another GoLive file. That command is used only for swatch exchange files, described immediately below.