Choosing colors

You can choose fill and outline colors by using fixed or custom color palettes, color viewers, color harmonies, or color blends. When you want to use a color that already exists in an object or document, you can sample the color to achieve an exact match.

For information about applying the colors you choose, see “Applying uniform fills” and “Formatting lines and outlines.”


Default color palette

A color palette is a collection of color swatches. In some programs, color palettes are known as “swatch palettes.”

You can choose fill and outline colors by using the default color palette, which contains 99 colors from the CMYK color model.

The selected fill and outline colors appear in the color swatches on the status bar.


Fixed or custom color palettes

Fixed color palettes are provided by third-party manufacturers. Some examples of these are PANTONE, HKS Colors, and TRUMATCH. It may be useful to have on hand a manufacturer’s swatch book, which is a collection of color samples that shows exactly what each color looks like when printed.

Some fixed color palettes — PANTONE, HKS Colors, TOYO, DIC, Focoltone, and SpectraMaster — are collections of spot colors. If you create color separations when you print, each color from these color palettes requires a separate printing plate. This can significantly affect the cost of your print job. If you want to use these colors, but you don’t want to use spot colors, convert the spot colors to process colors when printing. For more information, see “Printing color separations.”

Custom color palettes can include colors from any color model or fixed color palette. You can save a custom color palette for future use. For more information about working with custom color palettes, see “Creating custom color palettes” and “Opening and editing custom color palettes.”

CorelDRAW loc color pantone solid coated Choosing colors

The PANTONE solid coated palette is an example of a fixed color palette.


Sampling colors

When you want to use a color that already exists in a drawing, you can sample the color to achieve an exact match. By default, you sample a single pixel from the drawing window.

Color viewers provide a representation of a range of colors by using either one-dimensional or three-dimensional shapes. The default color viewer is based on the HSB color model, but you can use this viewer to choose CMYK, CMY, or RGB colors. The default color viewer is based on the HSB color model, but you can use this viewer to choose CMY or RGB colors. For information about color models, see “Understanding color models.”

CorelDRAW color viewers Choosing colors

Examples of color viewers


Color harmonies

Color harmonies work by superimposing a shape, such as a rectangle or a triangle, over a color wheel. Each vertical row in the color grid begins with the color located at one of the points on the superimposed shape.

The colors at each corner of the shape are always complementary, contrasting, or harmonious, depending on the shape you choose. The color harmonies let you choose a color model, and they are most useful when you need to choose several colors for a project.

CorelDRAW loc color harmonies Choosing colors

Examples of color harmonies


Color blends

When you choose a color by using color blends, you combine base colors to produce the color you want. The color blender displays a grid of colors that it creates from the four base colors you choose.

CorelDRAW color blends Choosing colors

Examples of color blends


To choose a color by using the default color palette

CorelDRAW btnbacktotop Choosing colors

To
Do the following
Choose a fill color for a selected object
Click a color swatch.
Choose an outline color for a selected object
Right-click a color swatch.
Choose from different shades of a color
Click and hold a color swatch to display a pop-up color picker, and then click a color.
View more colors on the default color palette
Click the scroll arrows at the top and bottom of the color palette.

CorelDRAW tip Choosing colors

 
You can display color names by pointing to a swatch.

CorelDRAW color popup pal Choosing colors

A pop-up color palette


To choose a color by using a fixed or custom color palette

CorelDRAW btnbacktotop Choosing colors
1.
 
Select an object.
2.
 
In the toolbox, do one of the following:
To choose a fill color, click the Fill tool CorelDRAW pgx fill tool Choosing colors , and click Uniform fill.
To choose an outline color, click the Outline tool CorelDRAW pgx outline tool Choosing colors , and click Outline color.
3.
 
Click the Palettes tab.
4.
 
Choose a fixed or custom palette from the Palette list box.
5.
 
Move the color slider to set the range of colors displayed in the color selection area.
6.
 
Click a color in the color selection area.

CorelDRAW note Choosing colors

 
Each color swatch on a fixed color palette is marked with a small white square.
 
You should use the same color model for all colors in a drawing; the colors will be consistent and you will be able to predict the colors of the final output more accurately. It is preferable to use the same color model that you are using for the final output. For more information about reproducing colors accurately, see “Managing color for display, input, and output.”

CorelDRAW tip Choosing colors

 
You can display or hide the names of fixed or custom colors by clicking Options CorelDRAW onestep Choosing colors Show color names.
 
You can swap the Old color (of the selected object) and the New color (which has been chosen in the color selection area) by clicking Options CorelDRAW onestep Choosing colors Swap colors.

To choose a color by using a color viewer

CorelDRAW btnbacktotop Choosing colors
1.
 
Select an object.
2.
 
In the toolbox, do one of the following:
To choose a fill color, click the Fill tool CorelDRAW pgx fill tool Choosing colors , and click Uniform fill.
To choose an outline color, click the Outline tool CorelDRAW pgx outline tool Choosing colors , and click Outline color.
3.
 
Click the Models tab.
4.
 
Choose a color model from the Model list box.
5.
 
Click Options CorelDRAW onestep Choosing colors Color viewers, and click a color viewer.
6.
 
Move the color slider.
7.
 
Click a color in the color selection area.

CorelDRAW note Choosing colors

 
If you choose a color that is out of the printer’s gamut, CorelDRAW displays the closest in-gamut color. This color is displayed in the Reference area, in the small swatch beside the New color. You can either choose this closest in-gamut color or you can correct the out-of-gamut color. For information about color correction, see “Managing color for display, input, and output.”
 
You should use the same color model for all colors in a drawing; the colors will be consistent and you will be able to predict the colors of the final output more accurately. It is preferable to use the same color model that you are using for the final output.

CorelDRAW tip Choosing colors

 
You can swap the Old color (of the selected object) and the New color (which has been chosen in the color selection area) by clicking Options CorelDRAW onestep Choosing colors Swap colors.

To choose a color by using color harmonies

CorelDRAW btnbacktotop Choosing colors
1.
 
Select an object.
2.
 
In the toolbox, do one of the following:
To choose a fill color, click the Fill tool CorelDRAW pgx fill tool Choosing colors , and click Uniform fill.
To choose an outline color, click the Outline tool CorelDRAW pgx outline tool Choosing colors , and click Outline color.
3.
 
Click the Mixers tab.
4.
 
Click Options CorelDRAW onestep Choosing colors Mixers CorelDRAW onestep Choosing colors Color harmonies.
5.
 
Choose a shape from the Hues list box.
6.
 
Choose an option from the Variation list box.
7.
 
Drag the black dot on the color wheel.
8.
 
Click a color swatch on the color palette below the color wheel.

CorelDRAW note Choosing colors

 
If you choose a color that is out of the printer’s gamut, CorelDRAW displays the closest in-gamut color. This color is displayed in the Reference area, in the small swatch beside the New color. You can either choose this closest in-gamut color, or you can correct the out-of-gamut color. For information about color correction, see “Managing color for display, input, and output.”

CorelDRAW tip Choosing colors

 
You can change the number of swatches in the color grid by dragging the Size slider.
 
You can swap the Old color (of the selected object) and the New color (which has been chosen in the color selection area) by clicking Options CorelDRAW onestep Choosing colors Swap colors.

To choose a color by using color blends

CorelDRAW btnbacktotop Choosing colors
1.
 
Select an object.
2.
 
In the toolbox, do one of the following:
To choose a fill color, click the Fill tool CorelDRAW pgx fill tool Choosing colors , and click Uniform fill.
To choose an outline color, click the Outline tool CorelDRAW pgx outline tool Choosing colors , and click Outline color.
3.
 
Click the Mixers tab.
4.
 
Click Options CorelDRAW onestep Choosing colors Mixers CorelDRAW onestep Choosing colors Color blend.
5.
 
Open each color picker, and click a color.
6.
 
Click a color in the color selection area.

CorelDRAW note Choosing colors

 
Only colors that are on the default color palette can be blended. To blend other colors, you must change the default color palette. For more information, see “To open a custom color palette.”

CorelDRAW tip Choosing colors

 
You can change the cell size of the color grid by moving the Size slider.
 
You can swap the Old color (of the selected object) and the New color (which has been chosen in the color selection area) by clicking Options CorelDRAW onestep Choosing colors Swap colors.

To sample a color

CorelDRAW btnbacktotop Choosing colors
1.
 
In the toolbox, click the Eyedropper tool CorelDRAW pgx eyedropper tool Choosing colors .
2.
 
Choose Sample color from the list box on the property bar.
3.
 
Click the Sample size flyout on the property bar, and enable one of the following options:
1×1 — lets you choose the color of the pixel you click
2×2 — lets you choose the average color in a sample area of 2 × 2 pixels. The pixel you click is in the middle of the sample area.
5×5 — lets you choose the average color in a sample area of 5 × 5 pixels
If you want to sample a color outside the drawing window, click Select from Desktop.
4.
 
Click the color you want to sample.
If you want to apply the sampled color to an object, click the Paintbucket tool CorelDRAW pgx paintbucket tool Choosing colors, and click the object in the drawing window. The pointer changes as you hover over an area to indicate whether an outline or fill area is chosen. For example, as you hover over the center of a square, the pointer displays a solid color swatch; as you hover over the outline of the square, the pointer displays an outline shape.

CorelDRAW note Choosing colors

 
In some cases, the sampled color may be an RGB or CMYK color that is the closest equivalent to the original color, instead of being a complete match.

CorelDRAW tip Choosing colors

 
The color you sample appears on the Fill color swatch in the lower-right corner of the drawing window. If you want to change the fill or outline color of an object to the sampled color, you can drag the Fill color swatch to the object.

Choosing colors