advice
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display screen colour management
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It's important to set up the screen up accurately so that it displays images in a way that matches the accepted standards for print viewing. It is essential to calibrate and profile the “display system” using a good hardware sensor.
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about icc colour profiles
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Simply put - a good ICC profile provides an accurate description of the characteristics of a digital device or working colour space.
Here you'll find information on what ICC profiles are, descriptions of the basic types, explanation of why they are important to you and how they are made and used. -
colour management and working environment
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The work area is very important as it has a significant influence on a user's perception of colour and tone.
Room lighting, changing influence of daylight and coloured walls and floors can have a significant influence on perceived colour. I can help with information and advice on room lighting, the influence of ambient light and on wall colour etc. Some studio and workroom environments make it really hard to judge colour and tone, and, thus, image quality - either on-screen or in print. -
choosing and using an inkjet printer
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There's lots of advice from well meaning users out there on forums and web pages, but it's important to be aware that careful printer choice should be very largely influenced by personal circumstances. What is right for someone else may not be right for you and your work.
Why not take advantage of my years of experience in the field and arrange a chat about printer choice?
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proof printing
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Take an image file, which is perhaps intended to be part of a press ready page. It's useful, of course, to have a prediction what's going to happen when this image goes to press; just how will it reproduce?
Softproofing (on screen) is useful during colour correction etc. and it can help a lot, but a printed proof is great to have when possible.
In a press preparation scenario a poor looking proof begs a question, could we improve reproduction using some simple Photoshop adjustments to the elements at this stage - often the answer to this question is yes. It's FAR better that way than leaving the press operator to attempt to fix issues.Get the proof right and the print will be right - IF the process is set up well.
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prepress and print
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In the print industry, the transition to successful reproduction of digital images, supplied electronically has been an uphill struggle for many reasons.
A final transparency film could be considered a definitive reference to the image originator or client’s intent. In many cases the transparency was first scanned, then output as press-ready CMYK using a traditionally set up scanner.
Digital imagery needs quite a different approach and, plainly, a different expertise. CMYK “recipes” for ink on paper: Why not just make "CMYK" like the old days, using a default and work by the numbers?
Well, like RGB, a CMYK recipe, in the form of a Photoshop "CMYK setting" or, more ideally, an ICC CMYK profile is device specific. This means that it is made to suit a particular type of printing machinery and paper surface. Think, for example, “sheet-fed coated”, “sheet-fed uncoated”, “ web offset coated” and “ web offset uncoated”. These different paper categories and press types actually require quite different CMYK recipes (i.e. different mixtures of inks and, thus, quite different plates) to attain the same colour on paper! -
the printing press
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It is my belief that the printing press should be thought of as the heart of the colour reproduction system and that, once CtP and press are run in an optimum state, as defined by a proper standard (like ISO 12647-2, 2004), actual press output should be the target for CMYK separation and proofing. In short, the data is adapted to suit the press rather than the opposite.
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where are my profiles
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ICC profiles are found in various places depending on the system used. This article provides information about where to expect to find them on your machine.
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your equipment
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Just like a car, computer hardware and even installed software need maintenance, I wouldn't go for a track racing day or an advanced driving lesson in a car which kept stalling or had faulty brakes - but you'd be surprised how many systems I've come across that are sick enough to cause considerable delays during a site visit.
If you need help with setting up hardware or restoring software I can, of course, advise - and can refer you to reliable support specialists