Most Common Prepress Mistakes

rockem · 02-10-2006, 04:18 AM

when our production team gets swamped I help out sometimes with art comming in from outside our walls, there are tons of problems
blacks not set up to true black
they will call out a pms color and then have multiple variations of that pms color
embedded images in illustrator so if you need to make changes you alwasy have to rasterize it
missing linked images
font not created to outlines or missing fonts
sending low res comp images instead of high res
not following printer specs
rgb and cmyk used wrong
dirty scans or other unclean art
posterization on pictures
corrupt files
use of illy effects that are not rasterized

I really dont miss prepress at all

Logo-Mechanix · 02-10-2006, 12:54 PM

The biggest problem I have seen is fonts not coverted to outlines, but the mistake most people make is not calling the printer they are going to use and find out things like acceptable format and file types they may or may not accept.

rockem · 02-10-2006, 04:42 PM

Originally posted by Logo-Mechanix

The biggest problem I have seen is fonts not coverted to outlines, but the mistake most people make is not calling the printer they are going to use and find out things like acceptable format and file types they may or may not accept.

For accepting file type I think printers should be some of the first people to get the newest and up to date software, even if they havent done all the testing to work out bugs, they should have it I think to accept the files designers make. They can save down version if they have to. Our printing at work is alwasy up to date to accomodate to files comming in, and it makes everything go much smoother

Logo-Mechanix · 02-10-2006, 04:45 PM

You would be surprised how many printers as well as silk screeners and the like don't have the latest software, they should, but they don't, so I will always ask.

rockem · 02-10-2006, 05:10 PM

Originally posted by Logo-Mechanix

You would be surprised how many printers as well as silk screeners and the like don't have the latest software, they should, but they don't, so I will always ask.

Oh I know, I will usually not work with a printer that is so outdated, throws up a red flag right there.

Mynock · 02-10-2006, 05:25 PM

Not using spell check.

rockem · 02-10-2006, 05:35 PM

oh forgot about that, but one that makes it even worse is thinking spell check catches all the errors

Logo-Mechanix · 02-10-2006, 06:03 PM

I have used some pretty good printers that don't have the absolute latest software versions. Hell, I sometimes don't have the latest software versions, rarely, but sometimes I don't. It may be a red flag but I have not found this to be the case on most counts, I mean unless they are more than an upgrade or two behind.

rockem · 02-10-2006, 06:06 PM

a desinger having older softwarer is a huge difference than a printer having older software.
I agree with your but the upgrades depend on how major the upgrade is, like know if a printer is not using CS, it can be a pain for them and the designer

Logo-Mechanix · 02-10-2006, 06:09 PM

I have skipped an upgrade here or there but always got the next one, it's not a good idea to fall too far behind it creates problems and looks unprofessional when you have to ask someone to dumb down the file for you.

icetea1980 · 02-10-2006, 06:40 PM

try printing daily newspaper with only one imagesetter. Time is tight and crusial, no spare time for mistakes.......if that imagesetter is burnt....the hell with that day's newspaper!!

DesignerScott · 02-10-2006, 09:23 PM

How about the obvious (and bane of my day, today); remembering that most things require not just a bleed, but also an inside margin....

Vikia · 02-11-2006, 04:27 PM

Knowing what side the gripper is on and how the stock is fed through the press will affect how the signature is layed out and backed up.

Plan for not only bleeds, but perfs and folds.

balou · 02-11-2006, 10:09 PM

Originally posted by Vikia

Knowing what side the gripper is on and how the stock is fed through the press will affect how the signature is layed out and backed up.

Vikia, isn't this more part of the decision making of the printer rather than designer though? Every printer runs things differently, gangs jobs, lays out jobs/pages for certain presses, etc. depending upon the design and the press scheduling. I guess knowing how to design things so your printer can print it in a more cost effective way is important if there is flexibility in the design.

I don't understand your terminology "signature is layed out and backed up" - can you clarify for me? And I'm going to feel down right dumb if it's something common I missed after 10 years at a print shop!

But I figured if I didn't understand it, the newbies out there won't either.

Most Common Prepress Mistakes

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