Pantone Gradients - help needed please

[designpunk]

Hi - my logos are always done in spot, but I have one here that has a gradient on it (dark to light red).

Usualy I din the best way to acheive a ncie smooth gradient with spots is to use one colour and rely on tints to produce the dark and light starting points.

However I can't do it on this occasion - if I use 2 pantones it looks awful on screen and the blend is far from smooth.

Will they print this way? I s there a way around it without having to provide a CMYK file as a master logo?

Any help much appreciated.

[Jam]

what about having a solid base colour (light red) and then use the gradient dark to transparant over the top.

[designpunk]

Sounds good in theory but don't they warn against using transparency with spot colours?

["Technical" Terry]

Post the image, so that we can better help.

[doubting_thomas]

What application are you using to make the gradients? Some are
better than others.

[CkretAjint]

Sounds good in theory but don't they warn against using transparency with spot colours?

What do you think a gradient is? :p

[Mynock]

What do you think a gradient is? :pLess and less of a color, not a color becoming invisible that's what transparency is :p.

[CkretAjint]

But in theory, its just 2 color transparencies over lapping in opposite directions. aye?

[Mynock]

You could have them over lapping in the same direction.

[steve2112]

I believe that you do not get accurate previews when doing graidents of one pantone to another. I would try making 2 bitmaps tints one of each color and layer them on themselves and to a press proof. I tried to do it and it came out horrible on the screen but pretty nice on press. Or just make it cmyk. Around here the price for cmyk stuff is falling pretty quick so depended on quatity its more cost effective that way.

steve

["Technical" Terry]

I'll say it again, post the image. Show us what you don't like.
I've done multiple ways. It depends on the colors used, the distance the gradient is covering, the tints you are trying to achieve, and the programs used.

[designpunk]

Ok - attached is a sample. Software is Illustrator CS3 and it's like this with every spot colour unless it's made from a tint.

http://img233.imageshack.us/my.php?image=picture2ej8.png

Payting for hard copy proofs every time I want to make a gradient is really not an option, my clients wouldn't go for that.

["Technical" Terry]

OK, now I assume that you do not like the "orange" color in the center of the 2 spot version. I tried to duplicate your results, but could only get somewhat close. (I don't have the Pantone numbers). However, a result that I thought would look good was to place a 50% screen of the "red" color under the gradient and set the gradient to overprint. I mostly work in InDesign for color referencing, but I double checked in Illy too and it looked the same. Make sure you have "Overprint Preview" and "Proof Colors" on in Illy. For Indy, turn on "Separations Preview".
I think that your gradient should have been smooth to begin with, but also in adding the screen in there will help to smooth it out as well.

If you have the previews on and things setup correctly you should get a very close approximation of the print without having to do a press proof everytime you want to make a gradient.

[Silence04]

2 pantone colors that vignette into each other will always look like that:
http://img143.imageshack.us/img143/8080/grad1rf3.jpg

To get a smoother transition of colors, you would have to make the lighter color stay at 100% all the way through and have the darker vignetted color Overprint on top of the lighter color:
http://img223.imageshack.us/img223/4813/grad2ui3.jpg

Just remember when you overprint, your net color will be different from the original pantone color.

[Broacher]

We talked about 2 colour spot blends just a while ago. Seem to recall some clever bunny describing a good technique using Opacity Masks with Overprint Preview on. [Now who was that masked man?]

[Danger_Mouse]

I believe that you do not get accurate previews when doing graidents of one pantone to another. I would try making 2 bitmaps tints one of each color and layer them on themselves and to a press proof. I tried to do it and it came out horrible on the screen but pretty nice on press. Or just make it cmyk. Around here the price for cmyk stuff is falling pretty quick so depended on quatity its more cost effective that way.

steve

I use to do it that way as well...but we had an in house printer and it was easy to test. usually it takes many tries before you get desired effect...so if you didn't have access to multiple cost efficient tests...this might not be the way to go.


Broacher with opacity masks, you would still have to flatten wouldn't you? then you would lose color control.

[Broacher]

Nope. As long as you save as AI (with PDF) they work great in ID.