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Prepare artwork for print and production

ColorLayers takes over the repetitive half of prepress: colour separation, reducing the ink count, halftoning and checking the artwork. Today that is an end-to-end path for screen printing – from an image to a set of films, without the manual work in curves and channels.

Preparing, previewing and checking are free. So is your first export.

MyImage · 300 ppi 80 LPI · 1200 ppi Export
Artwork split into seven films
films/
films 7 films
MyImage-preview.png preview
PDF
MyImage.pdf 1200 ppi
MyImage.psd 7 layers
palette.png ink map
TXT
report.txt report
White base 99.9%
Ink 2 11.7%
Ink 3 12.2%
Ink 4 1.4%
Ink 5 2.6%
Black 3.3%
Ink 7 68.7%

Features

01

Separation

named inks · tolerance · deterministic

Splits the artwork into the inks you named, with a tolerance you control. Deterministic: the same file and the same settings give the same result, every time, on any machine.

02

Underbase

built for you · choked edges

The white base is built automatically and choked by a set amount, so it does not show from under the colour on a dark garment.

03

Trapping

overlaps from your print profile

Overlaps between neighbouring inks are sized from your shop’s profile, for when registration on the press is not perfect. You choose which way they spread.

04

Halftones

line count · angles · dot shape · moiré

Line count, angle and dot shape are set per ink. Dots too small to image on the mesh are flagged before output rather than after.

05

Artwork checks (preflight)

thin lines · gaps · isolated dots

Thin lines, gaps too small to hold, isolated dots – everything the mesh will lose, marked on the artwork itself. Every problem says which ink it belongs to.

06

Film export

formats · report · ink map

Films, a preview, an ink map and a report in one archive, in the formats an imagesetter accepts. The report is what makes the archive readable months later.

PRIVACY

Your artwork never leaves your computer.

Separation, halftoning and packaging all happen in your browser, on your machine. The image is never uploaded – only the fact of an export reaches the server, to take it off your balance. That is not a promise in a privacy policy, it is how the program is built: which matters when the work belongs to somebody else’s brand.

colorlayers.site/app Your browser
artwork.png
  • Separation local
  • Halftoning local
  • Packaging local
Export
ColorLayers server
The export happened The artwork is not sent

How it works

  1. 01

    Open the artwork

    PNG or JPEG, dropped into the window. Physical size and resolution are shown straight away, before the first separation runs.

  2. 02

    Name the inks and the print profile

    The ink list can be picked for you and then edited. Line count, minimum line and gap are set once – that is your shop’s profile.

  3. 03

    Check, then export the films

    Read the problems it found, fix what matters, and take the archive. Re-exporting the same artwork within a day costs nothing.

Formats and compatibility

In: an ordinary raster file. Out: what any RIP accepts – 1-bit films at output resolution, a multi-page TIFF, layered PDF and PSD, a preview, an ink map and a text report.

IN

PNG
PNGraster artwork
JPEG
JPEGraster artwork
ColorLayers in the browser

OUT · FILM ARCHIVE

  • PNG
  • TIFF
  • PSD
  • PDF
  • Report
  • Ink map

Pricing

Preparing, previewing and checking are free. You pay only for exports.

Pack of 5

Try it on a real order, without a subscription.

$4.99 / 5 exports
What you get:
  • 5 exports
  • $1 per export
  • The pack does not expire
  • Re-exporting within a day is free

Pack of 20

For a shop that outputs films every week.

$14.99 / 20 exports
What you get:
  • 20 exports
  • $0.75 per export
  • The pack does not expire
  • Re-exporting within a day is free
LOWEST PRICE PER EXPORT

Subscription

For a steady flow: a hundred exports a month at the lowest rate each.

$24.99 / month
What you get:
  • Up to 100 exports a month
  • $0.25 per export
  • Cancel any time
  • Re-exporting within a day is free

Packs do not expire. The subscription can be cancelled at any time. Payments are handled by Creem, a payment provider – card details are never stored here.

FAQ

Do I need to be online to separate artwork?

Not for the work itself. Separation, halftoning and packaging happen in your browser, on your machine. A connection is needed twice: when you open the app, and when you press Export – that is the moment one export comes off your balance.

What is in the film archive?

A 1-bit film per ink at output resolution, a print preview, an ink map with names, HEX values, angles and line counts, and a text report: print order, shop profile, decisions taken and problems left open. The report is what makes the archive readable months later – the films alone never say which white, or at what angle.

Can I re-export the same artwork for free?

Yes. Re-exporting the same artwork with the same settings within a day costs nothing. It exists for the ordinary case: you export, notice you left PSD unticked, and export again a minute later.

Who takes the payment?

Payments are handled by Creem, a payment provider acting as merchant of record. Card details never pass through ColorLayers and are not stored here – you go to their checkout page and come back with the exports already on your account.

Is there a free tier?

All the preparation – opening artwork, picking inks, previewing, checking for problems – is free and unlimited, however long you spend on it. Only exporting finished films is paid, and the first export after signing up is free as well.

Which artwork formats can I open?

PNG and JPEG. Transparency in a PNG is respected: fully transparent areas are read as places where no ink prints, rather than as white. Export vector files to raster first, at the resolution you will print at.

How many inks can a separation have?

Up to 32, the white base among them. The limit that matters in practice is not that number but your press: how many go down in one pass is set in the shop profile. A typical job is two to eight inks plus a white base.

Does ColorLayers work on Windows and macOS?

Yes, and on Linux too: it is an ordinary page in a browser and there is nothing to install. You need a current browser and enough memory – a large job expands to several hundred megabytes while it is being halftoned.