spot color seps not happenin'

[rainbow2bryte]

got a 2c ad, K+spot
trying to make a final PDF.

the separations come out correct EXCEPT for some text boxes and some of the images.

Drop shadows are not affecting this ,HOWVEVER- the only places it's not separating properly are the areas that have a drop shadow applied-BUT if I get rid of them it STILL separated wrong

these aren't variables!
neither are lack of clipping paths, nor placing these 'culprits' on a new top layer, neiether is the FLIPPING gradient in the background!!!! GRRRR!!!!

help before i start breaking sh*t!!!

ready for my smoke break....

Ii'm going to attempt to post the screen shot)

EDIT:
if i take the drop shadows off the text, THEY speparate, but the pics do not

[prepress_goddess]

what program? are you postscripting and then distilling? are you exporting out to a pdf?

[rainbow2bryte]

what program? are you postscripting and then distilling? are you exporting out to a pdf?

Indy

yes, postscript
sorry

[prepress_goddess]

ok, just made a file like yours out of indy - spot color, greyscale image, drop shadows, black type. postscripted and ran through distiller - seps come out correct. do you have your distiller settings under color as "Leave Color Unchanged"? Are you printing to postscript with the selection of CMYK Composite?

[rainbow2bryte]

composite
but makes no diff either way on my end.

I don't know what the flip these peeps did when creating this, but it's a mess!

thanks

[rickself]

try pdf/x-3. tha's what I use for spot color pdf's.

[prepress_goddess]

double check that the pix are actually greyscale with out a profile embedded and not rgb grey, also check that they used a pure black on the type and not registration - have it happen all the time

if you have pitstop for acrobat, you can also remap and do a global change to correct the separations.

[rickself]

I don't know what the flip these peeps did when creating this, but it's a mess!You work with pink, blue and yellow soft marshmallow clients!? Cool!

I've been in prepress longer than I care to admit anymore. You'll get thru and we're here for ya.

Anything can be done in prepress to get a job out.

Keep posting.

[rickself]

print laser seps of all colors and see where things are going

[Seapony]

double check that the pix are actually greyscale with out a profile embedded and not rgb grey, also check that they used a pure black on the type and not registration - have it happen all the time

if you have pitstop for acrobat, you can also remap and do a global change to correct the separations.
I second the notion. It's more than likely it. Like Rick said, output the seps on laser first to be sure.

:)

["Technical" Terry]

Or check the "separations preview" in Indy. Should give you same results as printing seps to laser. See if the problem is first with the source before jumping to the pdf.

[rickself]

ya, it's gotta be in the indy file

[rainbow2bryte]

Or check the "separations preview" in Indy. Should give you same results as printing seps to laser. See if the problem is first with the source before jumping to the pdf.

checked the seps in Indy which are coming out as they should, so something's going awry when making the PDF....

only profile is a dot gain... i'm gonna take that off and see if it makes a diff.

yeah, one can ALWAYS find a way to get the job out but i want to know WHY!
or i don't really learn a damn thing except how to 'african engineer' something in a new way!

thanks again for all the help my peeps!

[jimking]

Do you have Pitstop and Acrobat Pro?

[rainbow2bryte]

Do you have Pitstop and Acrobat Pro?
sure do

[jimking]

You've sent color seperated lasers from Indy and it seperates correctly? You print to create a postscript file then you distill and it seperates wrong? And you have under the dropdown menu in Acrobat "Advanced" and chose "output preview" to see how it seperates?

[rainbow2bryte]

double check that the pix are actually greyscale with out a profile embedded and not rgb grey, also check that they used a pure black on the type and not registration - have it happen all the time

if you have pitstop for acrobat, you can also remap and do a global change to correct the separations.

before i posted about this monster, I did check the K to ensure it was K and nothing more.

the profiles being trashed aren't making any diff.
I even removed the ICC profs. in PitStop, refried, no dice.

BTW, i'll have you all know that i have color bars tattooed on the back of my neck. I intend to be put in the casket face-down when i die, so they'll all know the death of me!!!

ahhhh.... but i love it.

can't say thanks enough my 'lil prepress support group!

where's Print Driver at??? ;)

[rainbow2bryte]

You've sent color seperated lasers from Indy and it seperates correctly? You print to create a postscript file then you distill and it seperates wrong? And you have under the dropdown menu in Acrobat "Advanced" and chose "output preview" to see how it seperates?

did not print laser seps.

checked the seps in ID and acrobat/ pitstop as of late

yes, output preview as well as overprint preview is always on

[rainbow2bryte]

off topic
but i just noticed i just moved up to 'senior member'
what the fluff does that mean???
i'm talking too much???
;)

[rickself]

I think the next step here is to print laser seps - ALL colors.

One question...why do you need the pdf...workflow? Proof?
To make it work, as a last resort, change the spot color to a process - 100% of SOMETHING.

But do the laser seps first.

[jimking]

Explain how you are viewing seperations in Indy. This could be problem.

[rainbow2bryte]

Explain how you are viewing seperations in Indy. This could be problem.
thru the seps pallette, under window>output

i realized there was a sep problem after having a look at the final PDF and turning the spot & K plate off...

crap in the background of the 'trouble' areas are process...

[rainbow2bryte]

I think the next step here is to print laser seps - ALL colors.

One question...why do you need the pdf...workflow? Proof?
To make it work, as a last resort, change the spot color to a process - 100% of SOMETHING.

But do the laser seps first.

why should i print the lasers if i know what's on what plates?

PDF work -flow is by request of our printers.
since this is a fractional the art director will just be dropping it into their mag somewhere...

does that make sense?

also, yes, making it a cyan plate or something WOULD work, but it'll be like pulling teeth to get the prod. mngr to agree.
they're afraid (and rightly so) that is the spot plate doesn't show up then it will get printed wrong....

damnit!!!! i just want answers!!! :)

[jimking]

How many colors does this mag print? Are they going to use a spot pms just for this one ad? Or maybe they'll convert to 4/c process? Knowing this could speed your pdf out the door.

[rainbow2bryte]

How many colors does this mag print? Are they going to use a spot pms just for this one ad? Or maybe they'll convert to 4/c process? Knowing this could speed your pdf out the door.

yup, 4c, but YES surprisingly they DO ad a spot for this one ad....

it's all RETARDED!

thanks man....
i'm about to contact the PM to see if we can slide thru with a C plate or something...
i STILL want to figure out the problem though

[rainbow2bryte]

i'm retarded.

i can't put that spot on the cyan plate for instance....

duh...
my thinker is hurting...

I'm going to see if just making another 'spot' color makes any damn diff

[steve2112]

indesign has a problem when doing a drop shadow on top of or with a spit color. Make sure this is not happening. If it is it will force the spot/shadow to be flattened into a cmyk image. It happens to me all the time with people using indy

steve

[doubting_thomas]

Have you checked to make sure the drop shadow is set to Multiply? That
can cause problems if it's not.

[prepress_goddess]

Have you checked to make sure the drop shadow is set to Multiply? That
can cause problems if it's not.

true - but that wouldn't cause the pictures to come out built instead of greyscale. I still think it's something in the distiller settings. i'm curious - i'd love to run the postscript file through my workflow just to see what happens.

PM me if you want to try this.

[rainbow2bryte]

getting rid of the drop shadows is making a diff. at least on the images.

when i take it off the text, that DOES help.

However, it doesn't change the way the images are sep'ing

yes, the drop shadow is set to multiply

[rickself]

Ya, I think we'd all like to rip the file to see what the heck is happening here.
Pitstop has an action set for a 2 color job. It should be able to weed out the prob. But of coourse, we've all been to that point of utter frustration "IT'S SPOSED TO WORK!!!!"

[rainbow2bryte]

Ya, I think we'd all like to rip the file to see what the heck is happening here.
Pitstop has an action set for a 2 color job. It should be able to weed out the prob. But of coourse, we've all been to that point of utter frustration "IT'S SPOSED TO WORK!!!!"

okay, applied the 2c job action and it made those 'boxes' behind the images
black or gray i should say...

how would this help me weed out the problem???
i KNOW it's stooopid shadows w/ the text and that there's some sort of issue created due to these images...

gah...
i'm exausted, got nothing done today and am sooo ready for a martini

[rainbow2bryte]

okay.
so check it....

I opened all the offending gray psd. image files,
put an actual clipping path on them, flattened, and then re-
placed them in the ID file....

PRESTO!

however.... I haven't gotten their damn drop shadows put back on....

making progress though!

[rickself]

sorry it's been such a crap in a bucket of a day! You're gettin advice from all angles and you're the only one who has access to viewing the file. But it sounds like yer gettin there.

These are just all the different approaches I take when I come across a file that's being a total sh!t. Eventually something hits.

[prepress_goddess]

okay.
so check it....

I opened all the offending gray psd. image files,
put an actual clipping path on them, flattened, and then re-
placed them in the ID file....

PRESTO!

however.... I haven't gotten their damn drop shadows put back on....

making progress though!

hmmmmmmm . . . . . could be the fact that you're using a psd file. I'm still old school and stick with eps and tif

depending on the printer driver you're using to create your postscript with, could be causing the misinterpretation of the psd greyscale file and messing with your drop shadows.

the test file that i did this morning consisted of a greyscale eps format and it seperated perfectly.

try changing your image files to eps and see what happens.

[rainbow2bryte]

hmmmmmmm . . . . . could be the fact that you're using a psd file. I'm still old school and stick with eps and tif

depending on the printer driver you're using to create your postscript with, could be causing the misinterpretation of the psd greyscale file and messing with your drop shadows.

the test file that i did this morning consisted of a greyscale eps format and it seperated perfectly.

try changing your image files to eps and see what happens.

I meant to add that i changed them to tiffs.

i didn't create this, i'm just the one that makes sure it prints!

why would it STILL be sep. wrong w/ the shadow on the text though???

[rickself]

is the text on a layer of it's own? Above the image layer?

[rainbow2bryte]

sorry it's been such a crap in a bucket of a day! You're gettin advice from all angles and you're the only one who has access to viewing the file. But it sounds like yer gettin there.

These are just all the different approaches I take when I come across a file that's being a total sh!t. Eventually something hits.

s'all good gramps!

i know, it always a pain when peeps here are like, tell them what to do to make it work, and i'm like, i have no flippin' clue sitting on the other side of the world! ;)

gah... i guess if we didn't have issues such as this, i'd be out of a job!
gotta always remind myself of this...

[rainbow2bryte]

is the text on a layer of it's own? Above the image layer?

wasn't originally.
tried that.
no such luck
man! you guys are gonna think i'm just being difficult and scammin!

it's TRULY not working. :)

[budafist]

BTW, i'll have you all know that i have color bars tattooed on the back of my neck. I intend to be put in the casket face-down when i die, so they'll all know the death of me!!!


:eek: wow. Can you post a pic? Of the tattoo, not of the death of you!

[rickself]

wasn't originally.
tried that.
no such luck
man! you guys are gonna think i'm just being difficult and scammin!

it's TRULY not working. :)
nah, yer just trying to pad your post total! Goin for that first taco!

[rainbow2bryte]

:eek: wow. Can you post a pic? Of the tattoo, not of the death of you!

ha, sure thing.
i think i toook pix when i got it done...

but i'll just try to shoot it w/ my swanky iSight camera tonight when i get home or in the a.m.

maybe i should use that as my little pic thingy

i will say it's looking pretty poo-poo lately... faded...

[rainbow2bryte]

I'm beginning to think it's impossible to get spot seps w/ a drop shadow from ID.

gah.....

[steve2112]

like i said its an indesign problems. You can try doing all the text that needs drop shadows in illustrater and place them in as eps files but i suppose that will get annyoning if you have a lot of them

steve

[rainbow2bryte]

here is the conclusion...

(i feel like such a terd)

the distiller settings I use for a one printer did not have the overprint settings checked, where as another set of distiller settings used by another printer DOES have this checked and there you have it.
all fixed...

damn.

thanks again for everyone's brain power and helping me out!
:)

[steve2112]

CONGRATULATIONS

see friday's are magical

steve