Painting it Black

Back when Henry Ford said you could have any color you wanted as long as it was black, he assumed, rightly, that the color of his Model T was not terribly important to anyone. He might be surprised to hear some of the names car makers have for “black” today. There is Onyx Black, Jet Black, Black Pearl, Black Sapphire, Black Ice, Obsidian, Charcoal Black, Midnight Black, Ebony, even “Black,” and a whole host of others. Today’s car buyers can see and appreciate subtle differences in these colors.

Likewise, when Ben Franklin was in the printing business, “black” ink was only important for legibility. Only the density of the pigment mattered. Not so today. The Pantone Ink Color Guide recognizes 6 different blacks in addition to process black. These blacks are numbered 2 through 7 and each has a slightly different tint, based on the pigments mixed into the ink. Savvy designers know how to use black and they know which black to use.

In addition to the Pantone blacks, there is process black. Process black is one of four colors, the “K,” which make up the CMYK used in color printing. Process black can be altered in subtle ways by adding additional ink colors to it. By adding Cyan, the blue or “C” in the process formula, you get a “Cool Black.” Adding Magenta, the red ink or “M,” gives you a “Warm Black.” And both C and M added together yields a “Rich Black.”

Unfortunately, I can’t illustrate these nuances of black here because computer monitors use RGB instead of CMYK. And that is a whole other topic. But differing shades of black can be used by a skilful designer and printer to great effect in a printed piece. 

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