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Lately I have have purchased some digital prints. The first job was a sword with a golden gradient. I sent a Corel file and the color looked perfect. When the print arrived it was red..no gold anywhere. Fortunately the boat had red stripes and customer liked it. The second job this digital printer did was sent in the same Corel format. It was gradient panels that went from a golden orange / hot pink / to a deep purple. I had this order FedExed in order to make some magnetic signs that were due early that morning. The prints were unusable. It was as if there was no red printed at all. They turned out being pale yellow/pastel orange/ to lilac. Is there an easy way to calibrate your colors so you get the print you want? I have tried darkening my monitor just to get the color to match my printer to no avail.(it's too dark!) I realize there are so many varibles when you send a file to another computer plus the fact that the printer is probably using a MAC computer. Anybody got any answers? Judy
------------------ Judy Pate Signs By Judy 110 LuMac Road Albany,Ga 31701 229-435-6824 Letterville is my HOME! Life is like a canvas...you do the painting.
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Judy, I'm no Corel expert but with Flexi bingo! Flexi comes with a color chart you can print each shade of color it's has values which you can edit in the color mixer and get the precise color you desire. Just compare your sample color or swatch to your chart change the values in the software and BINGO perfect everytime.Just ask a Corel expert if this is also possible with Corel.
The entire system cost about $250. I used it and it works great! It takes about 10 minutes to calibrate everything...monitor, scanner printer, everything...
Meanwhile, rather than using CMYK or RGB colors, get the Pantone Solids to Process chart. When you do your color fills and gradients, use the PMS colors. And, when choosing the colors, pick them out of the chart, not what you see on your monitor. That way, when you send the file to the printer, you can be assured that your colors will be reproduced as accurately as is practical.
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Calibrating your own system first is the logical thing to do. Corel has calibration tips built into the help file I believe, and they also include a glossy photo to scan so that you can have something to compare to.
Going through all this does not guarantee acceptable results. You may have your system calibrated to give you expected results on *your* printer and scanner and monitor, but the company you send the file to will not be using the same equipment as you. Calibration files are generally specific for particular equipment.
Specifying and using the Pantone pallet will be helpful because you can then have a recognized agreement on what a particular color is supposed to look like, regardless how it was produced.
Another issue is the fact that some colors will just not print from inkjet or thermal transfer systems. Scanning artwork which was printed on a printing press using printing inks can frequently run across this problem.
The other possibility is that you had your files correct and the person printing them doesn't know what they are doing.
------------------ EmpY® is also known as Mayo Pardo. Known to wander Australia, currently in Elgin IL. I cut stuff on my router table. 847 931-4171
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Your screen is RGB....your printer is CMYK. RGB has 256 colors....CMYK has 100 colors plus shades. What you see onscreen CANNOT possibly print accurately.......apples and oranges. I use the TRUMATCH system (www.trumatch.com). It enables me to print out color swatches together with their CMYK values, on MY printer. I then select the colors I wish to print from these swatches. Most SIGN and PRINTING programs allow you to assign CMYK values to your screen. Forget what the color looks like on your screen. It will print the color you've chosen from your own swatch!
------------------ Bob Burns Bob Burns Signs
1619 Oregon Ave. Prescott, Az 86305 1-520-778-5879
Posts: 2121 | From: Prescott, Arizona, USA | Registered: Nov 1998
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Judy, like the others said...that's not an easy task. Knowing how the print shop needs the artwork before you start will help a lot. I have the Corel color pallets printed and pick my colors from there with my printer. I have 6 printers and the same image will print differently from all of them, so in order for me to print the colors to match as closely as possible from different printers I would need to print those color pallets on each printer and pick colors from the charts for that printer. Sending a print job to someone else is another story. For instance a printer I work with prints restaurant menus for me and likes to have all the colors separated and printed in black. Then I can pick the colors from their charts. Using Corel it's easy to design this way when you know what you'll need for the print shop.
I had a job from hell a couple weeks ago. I was originally told to send the artwork in as jpeg form and they could use it to print 100,000 cups. I spent a week getting it all together and 2 of the images were given to me as jpeg's. No big deal cause they said they could use a jpeg. Well I got the artwork approved from the customer and sent it to the print shop. They called me back and said they need everything color separated in 8 color simulated process.(line art) I'm not saying it can't be done because it's done all the time but it would have saved me a lot of headache had they told me that to start with. So if you're going to work with a certain print shop, try to find out and understand how he needs the artwork.
Hope this helps...
------------------ When good things happen...that must be a sign!! Ace Graphics & Printing P.O. Box 91 Camdenton, MO. USA (573) 346-6696 <daddyo@advertisnet.com>
Posts: 1199 | From: Camdenton, MO. USA | Registered: Oct 1999
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Judy..everyone else has told you the correct info...
I mentioned to you last evening that I had purchased Corel 10 and had used it's color management feature to "calibrate" my monitor and printer. It worked great.. the colors that were printed were MUCH closer to what I expected than in previous versions of Corel. BUT that doesn't mean that they would match some one elses printer.
Use your Pantone swatch book and use pantone colors in you layouts..they are universal..
------------------ Dave Grundy AKA "applicator" on mIRC "stickin' sticky stuff to valuable vessels and vehicles!" in Granton, Ontario, Canada 1-519-225-2634 dave.grundy@quadro.net www.quadro.net/~shirley
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Judy...you could ask for a scaled down "proof" and then have your customer sign off on it. It takes longer, costs a bit more...but you will be protecting yourself because no matter what you do, there is just too much room for error with this kind of stuff. And, if it's wrong...ultimately it will be your fault because that's just the way it seems to work. The only other way I can think of is to have your customer sign an agreement that he is willing to accept the job, even if the colors are off. If you go this route, be very careful the way you word this agreement. If you do use Pantone colors and have the swatch book handy, you should at least get close no matter what.
------------------ Louis A. Lazarus Milt's Sign Service, Inc. 20 So. Linden Ave. #5B 650-588-0490 fontking1a@aol.com
Posts: 560 | From: El Granada, CA | Registered: Apr 1999
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Thanks for all the info guys!I printed it out..gonna get a new system soon and I will get printer/monitor calibrated with one of these programs. I figured Pantone colors being a standard would be the way to go. Judy
------------------ Judy Pate Signs By Judy 110 LuMac Road Albany,Ga 31701 229-435-6824 Letterville is my HOME! Life is like a canvas...you do the painting.
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