How to read a G7 report without treating every patch as equal
In a G7 report, gray balance is judged by the gray scale and the black scale, not every skin tone or spot. G7 Targeted then looks separately at paper white, cyan, magenta, yellow, black, and overprints. If one product colour fails, treat it under the product-colour clause in the contract. That is not a G7 fail, and a G7 pass does not hide that product colour.
In a G7 report, gray balance is judged by the gray scale and the black scale, not every skin tone or spot. G7 Targeted then looks separately at paper white, cyan, magenta, yellow, black, and overprints. If one product colour fails, treat it under the product-colour clause in the contract. That is not a G7 fail, and a G7 pass does not hide that product colour.
Which cells on the report count
Gray balance asks whether CMY stacked gray and single black walk together toward neutral. The weighted colour difference commonly used is a mean of about 1.5 and a max of about 3. That is one column. Targeted solids are another: paper white ΔE00 about 3, CMY about 3.5, black about 5, RGB about 4.2. Skin tones and brand spots printed on the same test chart have their own contract; they do not vote in those two columns.
Averaging every cell into one colour difference dilutes a gray problem with a pile of passing solids, and a spot problem can hide behind a passing gray.
Separate the conclusions
| What failed | Write the conclusion under | Do not write |
|---|---|---|
| Gray scale | G7 gray balance | That every patch failed |
| Targeted solids | The solids column | That gray balance failed |
| Brand colour or skin tone | That product colour | That G7 therefore failed or therefore passed |
When you record, write
- One conclusion for gray balance, one for solids.
- Product colour on its own line.
- Do not leave only one overall mean colour difference.
