Mr Tint

Digital printers don't print tints the way offset or screen printing does. Mr Tint makes a tint chart you print on your own printer, so you can pick the tint percentage that really looks right for the job.

See it in the shop · Version 1.1.11 · Needs PowerScripts 3.8.42 or later

Open the PowerScripts panel (Window > Extensions > PowerScripts) and choose Mr Tint from the Tools scripts. The script has two tabs: Options and Preferences.

1. Select the colour in the Swatches panel and press Use Selected Swatch.
2. Choose Steps: 10% or 5%.
3. Press Create Tints.

A new document opens with the chart: each row has the full-strength colour next to one tint of it, labelled with the tint and its formula. Print it on the printer and media you'll use for the job.

Tints are set up for traditional printing, where ink dots spread a little on the paper (dot gain), so a printed tint looks darker than the number says. Design software assumes that when it shows you a tint on screen.

Digital printers make tints differently: the RIP or print driver works out each tint from the colour profile, rendering intent and media. It doesn't know the business card your customer wants you to match was printed offset on uncoated card. So a 30% tint can come out lighter or heavier than expected, and a watermark made with a 90% tint on a 100% background can vanish or stand out too much.

Instead of guessing, print a Mr Tint chart, compare it with the sample or what you see on screen, and use the tint that matches.

• Use Selected Swatch: take the colour from the swatch selected in the Swatches panel. A spot colour ticks Create Spot Color and fills in its name for you.
• Colour: the colour to make tints of, in CMYK, RGB or from a colour book.
• Steps: a tint every 10% or every 5%.
• Create Spot Color: make the colour a spot colour with this Color Name, so the tints are true spot tints. Untick for process tints (each tint shown with its CMYK or RGB values).
• Create new document: make the chart in a new document (in CMYK or RGB to match the colour). Untick to add it to the open document.
• Create Tints: does it.

• Swatch Width and Swatch Height: the size of each patch.
• Font Size: the size of the labels.

1. Make a chart of the spot colour with Steps: 5%.
2. Print it on the same media as the job.
3. Hold the sample against the chart and find the row that matches.
4. Use that percentage in the job, even if it's not the number the designer chose.

• Make a chart for each media you print on: the same tint looks different on coated and uncoated stock.
• Keep the printed charts by the printer for quick reference.

• Process tints (CMYK or RGB) are worked out in the document's colour profile.

• 1.1.11: General bug fixes and reliability. Needs PowerScripts 3.8.42 or later.
• 1.1.10: Fixed: the Swatch Width and Swatch Height settings were the wrong way round.
• 1.1.9: Updated for PowerScripts 3.8.32.
• Older changes: PowerScripts Release Notes