CS0405_SpecReport_SoftProofs

The concept of approving a catalog proof that was anything but ink-on-paper seemed absurd back in the early 1990s. Sure, we’d all been soft proofing for years, eyeing up the way pages looked on our art director’s desktop display. But we looked at those images differently then. We saw them for what they were — a poor RGB imitation of what a CMYK-printed catalog would look like as the paper rolled off the press.

Some things never change.

“Soft proofing is a double-edged sword,” says Sarah Fletcher, creative director for Charlestown, R.I.-based Catalog Design Studios. “On the one hand, it is, by its very existence, impossible. What you see on screen is RGB, and what you get on paper is CMYK. RGB produces a much larger color gamut than CMYK. You can see more colors on screen than you can actually print.”

But then again, some things do change. Today, the print production community can scrutinize monitor-based proofs with a little less skepticism. That’s because there’s been some progress recently in soft-proofing technologies that are finally enabling catalogers to consider alternatives to hard-copy proofs for later-stage production and even contract-level proofing.

David Motheral, chief technical officer at Motheral Printing, Fort Worth, Texas, says his customers have embraced soft proofs, especially when they discover how cost-effective, reliable and convenient they can be. His company uses Creo’s Synapse InSite to facilitate proofing exchanges not only with its customers, but with its customers’ collaborative partners, too.

Via a standard Web browser, a cataloger can submit digital page files to the Synapse InSite portal established by the printer. The files are preflighted to ensure they’re accurate and all elements (e.g., embedded fonts, images) are present and accounted for. If the files pass preflight, the pages then become available to the cataloger as soft proofs. Internally, the cataloger can access the soft proofs and collaborate on them until the pages reach final approval. The printer is notified of the sign-off, and the files then can proceed through the prepress workflow.

“I have a client for whom we used to produce four catalogs a month,” Motheral says. “They were highly versioned editions that needed to be approved by 80 people scattered throughout the country. There was a lot of proofing and time involved. With [Synapse InSite], they’re now able to compress the approval schedule so much so that they were able to recoup time and costs to now produce 12 catalogs a month.”

Dawn Flook, director of production for Catalogs By Lorél, King of Prussia, Pa., says that some of her catalog clients are seeing real value in soft proofing. “Take Lenox Collections. They work with North American Color (NAC) in Michigan. They may have a photographer who is shooting images in Georgia, for example. Those images are then uploaded to NAC, the conversions are done … and then they electronically submit files to Lenox for approval.

“NAC installed a viewing monitor at Lenox, and that’s regularly calibrated,” she continues. “They’re able to skip the transparency mark-up stage and do some basic composition fixes all by way of the soft-proofing system. In that case, soft proofing has been very beneficial. NAC also put an Epson 4000 proofer in their operation, so they can electronically submit digital files directly to that device if they need hard-copy confirmation.”

Cautious Optimism

Soft proofing is common among today’s catalogers, says Miriam O. Frawley, president of e-Diner Design & Marketing, a Highland Mills, N.Y.-based catalog creative agency. But there are caveats to incorporating soft proofs into your catalog production process, she notes.

“We’re used to dialing up to a server and viewing pages. You can approve them, not approve them or print them out to a hard-copy proofer. But as far as I’m concerned, soft proofing still is best for content review, not color review. You can get pretty accurate color now, but a lot of that depends on color calibration,” she says.

Frawley also cautions her catalog clients that they could end up spending more than they bargained for in both time and money on soft proofing — between the necessary equipment, software and training. “In my case, I’ll use a soft proof for content only, and I don’t believe there are many catalogers out there who rely solely on soft proofing for color sign-off. They may use soft proofs early on, but still want that final contract document in their hands.”

Catalog Design Studio’s Fletcher agrees: “If you’re not selling color-critical goods, then it’s fine. But if you’re talking about clothing, for example, and merchandising and inventory will be affected if a shirt’s color isn’t right in the catalog, then you’ve got a problem. If you’re L.L. Bean, for example, you care about getting the color right, so you’re going to be far less apt to rely on a soft proof.”

That said, there is one compelling argument for using soft proofs: cost. Says Fletcher: “If you can make soft proofing work, it’ll give you a competitive advantage — not just in time saved on production, but in all the money you spend on hard proofs. I think we all want soft proofing to work, but I think it’s still very much a content-level solution.”

For example, Fletcher notes, if you proof your first round of images in hard copy and the color is correct, those images aren’t going to change, thus elevating your trust level. “Then your next round of proofs could be soft proofs, and you’re just checking to be sure everything’s there, for example, that the bleeds are right. I think, for just about anyone, there may be the opportunity to use a soft proof at that intermediary stage.”

Soft-proofing Technologies Available

* Kodak Polychrome Graphics (KPG) reports that several catalog printers are using its Matchprint Virtual Proofing solution, a SWOP-certified (Specifications for Web Offset Publications), monitor-based proofing system, which the developer says is well-suited for content to contract-level proofing. Matchprint Virtual comprises one of several high-end viewing monitors, proprietary color management technologies, and the KPG RealTimeProof suite of Web-based viewing and collaboration tools. It enables collaborative and individual viewing; online annotations and markups; and e-mail notifications of project progress.

* Integrated Color Solutions’ (ICS) Remote Director is another SWOP-certified proofing and workflow solution that enables collaborators to comment on color and content — anyone involved in the print workflow, including designers, photographers, clients, prepress shops and printers.

Dallas-based Williamson Printing rolled out Remote Director to its customers, one of which is Arroba International, a marketing firm with offices in Mexico and Texas. “Remote Director bridges the gap for me,” says Carlos Bolanos, founder and principal of Arroba International. “Before, I had to rely on overnight packages, which were often delayed in customs. It could take four to five days to turn around one round of proofs. With Remote Director, it’s possible to view several rounds of proofing in the same day. Working in sessions, I can review color according to my schedule. Williamson Printing schedules a session, and I can review it at my leisure, 24 hours a day, and have the annotations ready for them to work on as soon as I finish.”

International Color Services, a digital prepress and image management supplier to the retail, direct mail and catalog markets, and its customer Williams-Sonoma/Pottery Barn, have been using Remote Director to collaborate on proofs for nearly a year, says John Sweeney, vice president of sales and marketing at ICS.

ICS positions its soft-proofing solution as cost-effective, because it runs on commercially available hardware you may already find at a printer, a prepress supplier or at a catalog production department. All you need is a Mac (G4 or G5), OS X or higher, and one of five recommended displays. And Remote Director generates a complete, auditable record of each job — all the comments for any given proof, all the way through to final sign-off.

Conclusion

Determining if soft proofing is right for your catalog production workflow is much like deciding on what type of hard-copy proof to choose, says Nick Patrissi, print media markets manager for Creo and graphic arts professor at the New York City Technical College.

“Choosing the correct proofing technology is dependent on knowing the true requirements of the job and the considerations for choosing a proofing solution. A color proof can mean different things to different people.

“To be an effective color-proofing buyer,” Patrissi adds, “understand the seven basic considerations of color proofing, and prioritize them according to your particular situation. You should consider the following characteristics before you choose a system: repeatability, resolution, color fidelity, tone reproduction, halftone fidelity, appearance and cost.”

Indeed, once armed with the right information, you can make a choice that’s ideal for your catalog production workflow.