How to do CMYK separation in Photoshop?

Hey everyone! So, I’m doing some illustration work in Photoshop and, look, I’ll be the first to admit I’m pretty green here, but I’m totally stumped on what it actually means to hand over a CMYK file organized by layers. I’m too embarrassed to just call up the client and act like I have no clue what they're talking about, so I figured I’d just throw this out here and see if anyone can help me out... 🙈
I mean, sure, I know how to toggle from RGB to CMYK—easy peasy, right?—but honestly, that feels way too simple to be what they're asking for, you know? Is there more to it? Like, is it even possible to separate every single one of those color channels onto its own individual layer? And if it is, how on earth do you actually do that?
I don't even know if I'm even asking the right question or if people will even get what I'm driving at because I'm basically flying blind here, but please, if anyone has some general info or maybe some helpful links on this topic, I would seriously appreciate it... 🙂

Thanks a million!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CMYK_color_model

Just switch the image over to CMYK mode in Photoshop, then head over to Windows->Channels... and you'll be able to see all the individual channels right there.

Gary Williams47 said:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CMYK_color_model

I couldn't find a dedicated thread for Photoshop stuff, so I figured I'd just throw my question in here—though honestly, maybe I should just head over to the other section!

Thanks!

Keith Robinson78 said:Just switch the image over to CMYK in Photoshop, then hit up Windows->Channels... you'll see all the individual channels right there.

Yeah, okay, I get how channels work, but what am I actually supposed to *do* with them? Like, when you're handing off a job to a print shop, do you just hand over a file that's been converted to CMYK and let them deal with all the technical headache themselves, or are you expected to manually pull out every single color channel for them? That whole "separating" part is what's really tripping me up here...

Look, it all boils down to one thing: are you sending this to a professional print shop or just hitting "print" on a local machine? If we're talking offset printing, then yeah, you need to send your files over in CMYK, and then the technician at the shop handles the rest. Basically, they run a RIP process—doing the separations, sending everything to the spooler, and eventually hitting the plates for exposure. But if you're just working with a standard digital printer, you don't need to mess around with manual separations yourself. Honestly, did you even agree to handle the separations? Because either way, it seems totally unnecessary to me. If it’s going to a professional shop, they have to run their own RIP through the plates anyway; if it's just a direct print, there's zero need. Why on earth would you be doing that yourself? :/

BTW, I think you might have mixed things up there. If he did say to make it CMYK with layers... well, I’m just assuming—and this is just my take—that what he actually wants is a Photoshop file converted to CMYK, but one where everything stays separated in layers instead of being flattened into a single mess.

So, from what I gather, this thing is headed straight to the print shop. Honestly, I just don't see why anyone would bother handing over an illustration with all its layers intact, you know? Like, when I'm grinding away on a project, I'll easily be juggling fifteen different layers at once, so why on earth would someone need that mess just to hit "print"? I was under the impression that you only really need the separations on their own specific layers for the final run. So now I'm sitting here wondering if that's actually how things are usually handled in the industry, and more importantly, what's the actual workflow for doing it right? But hey, who knows, maybe I totally botched my understanding of the whole process... 🙂 thanks!

Brenda Kim56 said:As far as I know, this is headed to a professional print shop. Honestly, I don't see any reason why anyone would just hand over an illustration with all its layers intact for no reason. When I’m working, I might be juggling 15 different layers, so I don't get why that would be necessary for the final print. I just assumed the color separations needed to be on their own specific layers. So, I was wondering if that's actually standard practice and, more importantly, how you even pull that off. But hey, maybe I totally botched my understanding here... 🙂 thanks!

☕😉

http://www.planetphotoshop.com/print...-in-color.html

If you actually care about getting your prints to look decent instead of some washed-out mess, you might want to take a look at this http://www.tek-tips.com/faqs.cfm?fid=1959

Gary Williams47 said:http://www.planetphotoshop.com/print...-in-color.html

http://www.tek-tips.com/faqs.cfm?fid=1959

But honestly, she doesn't even need to worry about that... most print shops handle all the color separation for the CTP process anyway. They just RIP every single file they get. :/
☕

BTW
this link actually answers something I've been digging for ages for a research paper I'm working on. 😁

Whether she meant to or not, she was up there rambling on about how she can't seem to draw a line in the sand, so here we go. 🙂