The performance of a color laser printing medium is affected by various factors such as media design, printer design, toner characteristics, fuser temperature and dwell time. This paper discusses the effects of coating designs on the imaging qualities of both transparent and opaque film media for color laser printing applications. The interactions between toners and image receptive coatings are explored. Results of spectrophotometric characterization of various media will be presented in relations to their surface physical properties. Coating formulations and processing conditions for the imaging media are carefully optimized and controlled to obtain high imaging quality as well as reliable feeding performance.