Clients often ask us why agencies send them printer proofs to sign, even though they’ve approved the PDFs. Sometimes, it feels like another laborious part of the process. But it’s an essential one.
Once we’ve tweaked, perfected and signed-off your PDF, it’s time for us to start the artwork stage. For Gravity, this means going through a detailed checklist to ensure your artwork is ready for release to the printer. We need to check all files and colour breakdowns are accurate and that images are saved at the right resolution and in the right format.
There’s also a typographic check to make sure we finish sentences beautifully with full stops, ligatures, and spotting that double-spaces haven’t crept in. Next, there’s the checklist for continuity, safeguarding for proper capitalised brand names and other important details. Once we're done on the Mac, we’ll mock-up the finished article to check the cutter guides are correct, crop and fold marks are accurate, and headlines line up across spreads. Generally, we make sure nothing has gone awry, and that’s why a once-over off screen is a must.
These are just some of the little details that are easy to miss but come to light when samples arrive from the printers. We complete many of these checks as we go, so clients notice little difference. However, it’s important to set time aside at the end of the project to focus on these important aspects. That’s why the checklist must always be completed before we release the artwork to the printer.
Next stop, repro. This involves passing the disc to the printers, who place our files on their system, and impose and translate them into a suitable format for print. The printers scrutinise the files further and can often spot tiny errors at this stage. Ah, the benefits of a fresh pair of eyes. Once they’ve set up the files on their system, it's onto the printers proof – and time for that final, final check.
As every job is different, there are no definitive rules for this stage. However, we’ve come up with this handy proofing checklist to use as a starting point. As a client of ours, you may want a personalised checklist to use internally, so just ask, and we’ll be happy to provide you with one. The document might also prove useful for making sure you've circulated the proofs among the relevant people. But most importantly, it will mean you can feel sure you’ll get a great piece of work just the way you wanted it.
At the dawn of a new year, it’s natural to want to embrace mankind's myriad of technological enhancements. So why do I find myself back at my desk (yep, too cold for gardening) wondering why so many of the everyday things we rely on are just rubbish?