Like other ukiyoe prints created in Meiji period, carminite and ramco which were based on imported inexpensive aniline were used in shinbun-nishiki-e and they exerted a colorful and loud effect and, therefore, shinbun-nishiki-e had different color tones from those of ukiyoe created before the end of Edo period.
明治の浮世絵の例にもれず、新聞錦絵には舶来の安いアニリン系の洋紅や紫ムラコが使用され、鮮やかでいささかどぎつい効果をあげ、幕末までの浮世絵と色調が異なる。