Tips & Hints
In the course of our work, we encounter many production challenges. Some are straightforward technical problems while others sheer mind boggling. Here are some interesting queries. We hope you'll find them useful.

I can't tell you how many times we receive art from "high priced agencies or designers," and we have to redo the whole thing from scratch....
I get that a lot. I spent a lot of time drawing up a "graphic guidelines" sheet that spells out, in painfully simplistic detail, what formats we can and cannot take for catalogs, trim sizes for different publications, etc. I get calls from large agencies and people with titles that indicate that they should know better (Creative Director, Senior Designer, etc.) asking if they can submit PowerPoint files, or questioning the difference between trim and bleed sizes. Since I am on deadlines 99.9% of the time, I often just take what they give me and work with it, since walking them through it takes time I rarely have.

Then there is the other extreme. We have people send the image in many different formats up to 10 times. All of them wrong. Rather than conform to the printer's specs, they want us to use their inferior specs and art. They actually print out fuzzy jpg files and send them as art through snail mail when the same electronic file won't work. We receive ink jet printed logos daily in the mail. The problem started the day that computers allowed laymen to "design" and "typeset" their own jobs. For years we typeset school newspapers and printed them. We made a fortune. Now 12 year olds are "typesetting" and "designing" them on state-of-the-art computers and we had to give up the cash cow that was typesetting. I miss the old days of wax and razor blades, too.

I am in the market for a freelancer. Can you give me some pointers to select a suitable person?
There are no hard and fast rules but I think these are some logical pointers to consider.
Compile a list of freelancers before you need them. You may rush the screening process if you wait until you face a deadline.
Don't pick portfolios, pick people - those who seem comfortable to work with.
Make sure they care - They may produce great work, but if they don't care about your problems, their work will disappoint you.
Look for initiative - You need people to say, "This is what I think you should do," not those who say, "Just tell me what to do."
Don't look for bargain rates - Be willing to pay for good work and dependability.

My designer presented me with an out of this world design of a logo and business card. The logo has diminishing tones. The business card was done in negative. You know ...White text on black background. There is a nice gray tone-I think it is in 90% black. It looked good from the monitor screen. I was shocked when I got the finished cards from the printer. The tones were washed out. What happened?
Your designer failed to consider the production limitations of the design. Tones are determined by screens. The dots. There must be some compensation to be factored in. The ink will expand slightly - we term this "dot-gain". What happens here is during the printing process the screen dot expands slightly depending on the ink roller pressure. Visually you'll see a darker tone. Therefore it is imperative to lighten the screen tones. It will cost more to get the job done as special attention has to be given to controlling the pressure. At the end of the day it is a question of economics. Unless you are willing to foot that extra cost, my advise is to take a sensible option... redesign a production friendly logo that looks good when enlarged or reduced. Finally please don't use tonal effects. It usually becomes a pain during production.

Can PC read Mac files and vice versa?
Macs can ALWAYS read PC, but most PC owners don't know they can read MAC files, so they say they can't. You will be able to access the disk when a Mac user formats it for PC but the art and documents should also be saved in PC format. Photoshop has this capability when saving in TIFF format. Illustrator will allow this in EPS format.

Hi I was just asked what the difference between a professional graphic designer and a professional desktop publisher... was. At first I thought oh that's an easy answer. Designers design, create and use multiple programs to create their final product ... They have many skills. Wait ... a desktop publisher may have the same kinds of skills ... so what is the answer to this one? I could really use some HELP here.
Now let me see if this makes sense. A graphic designer is schooled in the fine art of design, colour, psychographics, psychology (to some extend). A desktop artist (I do not comprehend why you term "publisher" has the skills of operating a computer. He or she may not have the skills of a designer but show him a layout sample he will be able to replicate it because of that skill. I would compare the person to a musician and an instrument player. You see a musician reads and writes music, he paints... an instrument player will be able to replicate the sound and tone but does not have the ability to create. I guess with time and the right training he'll get there.

Press Checks
Watch out for trim lines and your bleeds. Especially in a 150 page piece - a bad trim or bleed that is off can be deadly and can ruin the look of the whole piece. If you didn't proof the original job - or even if you did - have your printer pull the first few off the press and let you look before they run the whole job. Trim can vary 1/32" either way, so make sure this has been compensated for. I had a job once where, had I not done this, a 100M catalog run would have had color bars along the bottom of the inside signature!

Also know who is responsible for various parts of the job, and make sure you understand the mechanics of how your work is produced; what is involved at prep, strip, print, collate and bind. In the above example, the press guy tried to blame it on me, saying that my margins were off. However, color bars are not put in by the designer! Know which possible errors can be yours, and which would most definately be theirs, so if comes up, you can make sure you are compensated for it (or know that the "oops" was yours and damage-control).

Even though most printers need only 1/8" bleed, I always pull it out the extra 1/8" to make it 1/4" - just to make sure. If you have spreads with a graphic across, make sure that it lines up properly left and right (unless it is in a middle signature and on a fold). One quick and dirty way to fix a bad bleed when there is no time to modify the file is to have the printer run it at 105% and bump it to fit. You can increase up to about 115% without a visual loss in resolution, assuming that you are dealing with a 300-600 dpi file. This trick has saved me more than once when I had no other option. You may never run into this with your job, but if you do, you will win points with your boss by being able to direct the printer to fix it properly and at a way that will not affect the cost of the job (like an AA to fix the file would).

Are you going CTP from native files, or are you furnishing locked and ripped PDFs? If you are going from the file, double check your fonts and make sure that your version is the one that has been loaded. When I did catalog work, we included vendor ads, and I can't tell how how many times the vendor supplied a knock-off. The printer would load the file, and invariably, there would be some reflow....until they loaded the font I supplied. The thing is, you have to KNOW what you sent and how it is supposed to look. I have had the experience where a vendor supplied a fat sans-serif, the font refused to load and defaulted to Arial....and it almost escaped me because it looked visually OK. With this particular company, their font was an integral part of their brand, and it would have been a major faux-pas for me to let the job run as-is....even though it looked fine. It always helps to have a print-out of what you sent so that you can do reality checks once the proofs come back. It can "look" OK and still not be OK.
One thing that happens way too often with native files is things flipping to the back of the page. I have had graphics and blocks of text hide behind other things. I have also gotten files from others and discovered colored boxes and other things that were forgotten or overlooked by the original designer. Didn't see them on the print-out....but once the printer ran a proof, they were there. Your standard office printer or Fiery has a color tolerance of +/- 5-10%....but the system that generates the proof has one of 2-5%. Anything below 2% in any color usually will not image to plate. So often, things that did not image on your system come up loud and clear on the printer's. I had that happen once with a graphic. The background looked white, yet when the printer ran the proof, there was a faint blue screen in the background. I did not figure out why until I opened it in PhotoShop and eyedropped the background. Sure enough, there was a 4% cyan there for some reason! This is yet another reason why you should have a proof copy from your own system to closely compare to.

I would like to convert Pantone to CMYK?
What are the dangers of doing this?
All printers I know use the Pantone system. Colors on press can always differ from run to run whether it is a Pantone or a process color. The only way to really guarantee that you get the color you want is to bring your own swatch book and attend a press check.

Printing is just as much art as science and colors can differ based on different brands of paper and their finish, the type of press running the job, the skill of the pressman, the lighting used to evaluate the color and even the humidity in the air.

Many printers have these expensive viewing light boxes and I think it is ridiculous. I always take the press sheet and bring it out into the office area and/or take it outside need to assimilate the same conditions under which my clients will be viewing the piece.

Logically, when you get a file in Pantone specs and want to change them to CMYK you convert them using your software. Right? Well it does not work that way. The colors don't turn out right. Can anybody tell me why?
Pantone Matching System (pms) colors are made up of variations of cymk - I believe you are referring to what is called a spot color - spot colors could be a pms color that is made of a solid form of ink and on the computer in different software is titled different things. Each software operates differently and colors looks different at times- this is when you are supposed to be designing with knowledge - a cymk breakdown of a pms is the exact same in every software even if it looks different on your screen - due to software - different operating systems - monitors - etc...

PMS vs. Black Ink
A related matter involves the cost of black ink vs. the cost of a PMS ink or match color. In simplest terms, a PMS ink costs more than black ink. Therefore, when you specify ink for a print job, note not only how many colors you plan to use but also whether they are process colors, PMS inks, or black and one or more PMS inks.

For example, in printers' shorthand, you might note that a job will print PMS + K / same (2/2). This means that one side of the sheet will be printed with a match color and black, and the other side will be printed with the exact same colors. Remember that varnish is also considered an ink (actually an ink with a vehicle but no pigment). Therefore, if you were to flood gloss varnish both sides of the above-mentioned job, you would spec it as follows: PMS + K + flood gloss varnish / same, and you would consider this a 3/3 (three-color over three-color) printing job. The K, by the way, is printers' parlance for black. It stands for "key."

To complicate matters, make sure to alert your printer if your 2/2 job or 3/3 job does not use the exact same colors on both sides of the press sheet. Otherwise, he may assume they are the same colors and estimate your job accordingly. Then, when the bill comes, it may be higher than you expect.

Press Proofs
One of the most expensive proofs to buy is a press proof, a proof actually printed on an offset press. This, of course, is in contrast to an off-press proof, such as a digital (laser or inkjet) or analog (Cromalin or Matchprint) proof.

Why would anyone want to spend more for a press proof, particularly when one might cost $1,000 to $2,000 per 16-page signature?

A press proof is printed on the actual stock to be used for the final press run. If you have chosen a colored sheet, the paper color will affect the ink colors. If you were to purchase a digital or analog proof, either would be printed on one of a limited number of proofing stocks. Almost all of these stocks are white (gloss or matte). You would have no idea of how the color of the actual paper stock would affect the final product, since most printing inks are transparent and are therefore dramatically influenced by the paper substrate. For example, if you put a blue ink on a yellow paper stock, the resulting color would probably appear green. But that same blue ink on a white paper stock would appear blue.

Another reason to purchase a press proof is if you will include duotones in your design. Digital proofs (the most common these days) are produced with process colors. Duotones are printed with PMS colors. Granted, the newer inkjet proofing devices often have additional colors (up to four more for a total of eight) to help simulate PMS inks. These have become increasingly effective proofing devices. However, the only way to get absolute color fidelity in the proofing of a duotone is to produce it on the press.

A third reason to choose a press proof is to catch "in-line" color conflicts. Visualize a press sheet with eight pages on one side and eight pages on the other. Each side of the press sheet is divided into two rows of four pages, one row above the other. As the sheet travels through the press, color on pages in line with one another can be problematic. If, for example, an image on the top left page of one side of a press sheet has a lot of yellow, and the page immediately below (bottom left) includes Caucasian flesh tones, the flesh tones could look jaundiced. This is because the press needs to use a certain quantity of yellow ink to produce one image, but the next image in line needs less yellow ink to look the way you want it. To avoid this, you could rearrange the images on the press sheet. Even if a press proof of this signature of your publication costs $1,000 to $2,000, it would be far better to know about the in-line color conflict before you commit to the entire press run.

These are only a few reasons to consider a press proof. Most jobs will not require one. However, for an expensive, high-profile job such as an annual report, even the high cost of a press proof can be considered an insurance policy against the much higher cost of reprinting. If an important job is worth doing, it's worth doing right.

My biggest problem has been clients who don't have their own logos in hard copy or on disk. Or even available for download on the net. They give me business cards printed in light blue on blue stock and say "here's my logo." One client gave me a beautiful letterhead, yes, in blue. I can only do so much magic.
My solution has been to provide a "Slick Sheet" of client's logos ONLINE as Illustrator EPS files. Any time the client needs a logo sent to a vendor (for whatever, newspaper, T-shirts, whatever) all they have to do is refer the vendor to a secret web page for FTP.

Trying to get some large companies to make logos available electronically via the Internet is harder than pulling teeth or amputating your limb. I am a strong advocate of this, as we charge every time we have to amyl or send a logo on CD

Self-Cover vs. Plus Cover
When you specify a booklet or book (made up of signatures) for print, your printer will ask whether you want a "self-cover" or "plus cover" job.

What does this mean?

If you were to print a 16-page booklet, for instance, on 80# text stock, you would call this a 16-page self-cover booklet since all the paper stock in the booklet is the same. If you added a 4-page cover of 80# cover stock to the 16-page booklet, you would have a 16-page plus cover booklet. However, if you added a 4-page cover of the same stock, you would call this a 20-page self-cover booklet.

Knowing this can save you money. First of all, if you aren't explicit, your estimate will not match your final bill. Your printer's estimator might assume you want "plus cover" if you are not clear. As a result, you may end up with two kinds of paper stock, and you may pay a lot more.

For another example, let's say you're printing a 16-page booklet. Furthermore, let's assume you plan to add a cover but through a few editing and design changes, you cease to need the 4-page cover. In such an instance, you could conceivably print one 16-page self-cover booklet in one pass on the press instead of one 16-page text signature and one 4-page cover signature. Percentage-wise, you would pay dearly for that cover signature. You could save yourself a lot of money by eliminating it.