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Virtual Seminar Report - Production Tips and Timesavers in the Digital WorldWhile it could be argued that digital production is far from new in the publishing world, designers still face new challenges resulting from file format issues on a daily basis. Production can be brought to a halt when the colors on a printed piece don't match the colors on the screen. Most designers will know the basic reason behind this - design programs utilize RGB (Red, Green, Blue) color schemes, while printers read CMYK (Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Black) - but tweaking the image to get the two to match consumes precious man-hours and may never completely resolve the problem. In order for the production process to be as efficient as possible, both designers and editors need to understand exactly what it is that makes a sky look blue on the screen of a digital camera, but purple when it prints out on paper. According to Lauren Browne, Director of Production at digital image experts Getty Images, most photographers work in a large color space (Adobe 1998), most monitors work in the smaller color space known as sRGB, and printers read from an even smaller, CMYK color space. In other words, digital printers print from a drastically smaller range of color than design programs, said Browne in an AEP/Stanford Publishing Virtual Seminar last week. Add to that the fact that every monitor, scanner, camera, and printer can have its own unique color profile, and it's no surprise that color variations often occur between the design and printing of a piece. For companies outsourcing their printing, Browne recommended developing relationships with printers that accept RGB files and will work with a design team to convert accurately to CMYK. All design files should be archived in RGB format for future use so that designers are working with the best possible image. "Color management - or the ability to predict and control color through its entire digital journey - is a highly specialized skill and really not a designer's job," she said. But for those that do a majority of their printing in-house, Browne had two recommendations for cutting down production time. The first was purchasing a color management kit, a software package that compensates for discrepancies between how a device reads colors and how the colors are actually written in the file. For example, a digital file may instruct a monitor to show 30% red, but the monitor may actually show 37% red. Utilizing a colorimeter will detect this difference. Using the ensuing profile will compensate accordingly, meaning that designers can be confident of the colors they see on their screen. Browne admitted that kits are not cheap, but they more than make up their worth in time saved. "About five years ago, Getty purchased a kit for about twenty thousand dollars," said Browne. "But in those five years we've probably saved close to two million dollars in re-proofing costs alone." On average, today's color management kits cost around $2,000, she said. There are also various steps designers can take within their design programs to help standardize in-house production and cut down on tweak time: Gamut Warning Color Settings Digital production technologies are changing the way traditional publishing houses do business. Lower costs, faster turnaround times, and more ways to reuse and repurpose content can save publishers million of dollars in production costs. However, shifting to a digital mindset requires employees to develop new skill sets and results in rethinking the entire product development process. Next week, Browne will be appearing at the Global Learning Initiative (GLI), in Area 42 of the Bologna Children's Book Fair. Her three-day seminar series, taking place March 27-30, will discuss developing, leveraging, and profiting from a digital content library.
Questions, ideas, or in need of more information? Please contact Stacey Pusey at 302-295-8349. |
To purchase Browne's entire seminar on CD, contact Stacey Pusey at 856-241-7772 or spusey@AEPweb.org. |
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