SWOP specifications

[uncle carbunkle]

hey kids!

who can tell me about swop specifications? i don't know a thing about it, and i'd like to. a web search sent me to swop.org, but i've got a head-cold and am having troubles understanding whether i REALLY need to spend US$150 on this stuff. my printer is requesting SWOP calibrated digital proofs of each page of a 100+ pg magazine.

any info would be appreciated, as i don't want to let down my bosses or pi$$-off my printer.

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[Kool]

SWOPs are color profiles. You can assign one in whatever program you are using. The most common one that I always use is 'US Web Coated SWOPv2' It will theoreticaly make your film or plate output a standard color. Now getting SWOP calibrated proofs is a whole different matter. It takes a bunch of very expensive software and hardware to get these. We always send them out to a local large format printer for them. I hope your client is willing to pay 20 - 50 dollars a peice for them.

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[Vikia]

SWOP is an acronym for 'Specifcations for Web Offset Publications' - Pocket Pal

This was a standard that was established by the Magazine Publisher Association (MPA) to govern standard ink and dot gain tolerances for the web offset industry. Acceptable color variation is generally +/- .02 density units for yellow, magenta and cyan and +/- .04 units for black.

If color is critical for this job...a SWOP calibrated proof is less expensive than a reprint and therefore worth the money. This will read the dot density for each color on the proof and give the printer an accurate reading to match. If color is not critical, then your printing may or may not hit the desired color in process. Spot color is less of an issue because you are matching a pantone with a single ink instead of recreating a representation of a color with process colors.

I hope this is what you wanted.

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Post Edited (Vikia) : 6/1/2004 11:49:59 PM GMT

[uncle carbunkle]

it enlightens me a bit, but......who does the swop proofs? how does all of that work? i've worked with digital/offset printers before on large and small scale projects but never a magazine - i've never encountered this before.

In theory, there is no difference between theory and practice. In
practice, there is.

[Vikia]

Do you have a local film output prepress house? They can run a proof for you.

If not, a local printer may do a proof for you in their in-house prepress dept to send to your magazine house.

This will allow you to see the separation of the colors before it is actually printed. If the color is not quite right, changes can be made to the images and a proof reran until you have an approved proof.

Send the approved proof with your file. The magazine printer then must match what is approved. That is why they are also called contract proofs.

If you cannot get a proof locally, have the magazine send a proof to you for your final approval. They can make one there.

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Post Edited (Vikia) : 6/2/2004 2:49:54 PM GMT

[uncle carbunkle]

i AM the magazine...

In theory, there is no difference between theory and practice. In
practice, there is.

[Vikia]

uncle carbunkle said...
i AM the magazine...

Sorry, I would just ask the printer to proof the file for a final approval before it is printed. They can run proofs there. You sign off on them and it is what they must match.

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[uncle carbunkle]

thanks viki.

tonnes of anxiety before i start my new role and i'm trying for ALL of the answers to ANY possible problem before the first day. i know these issues will come up, though, and my bosses don't.

i appreciate your input.

In theory, there is no difference between theory and practice. In
practice, there is.