Advice on minimising the chances of dodgy greys amoungst a million other colours
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Hi Laura
I'm sorry to hear that you have had problems with the reproduction of the grey on your business cards. As you say reverting to a solid spot colour can be expensive and then you are still subject to possible issues with the surface of the material, the matching of the colour to the pantone reference and the skills of the printer. Having been a litho printer myself I can assure you that print, no matter how skilled the operator, is about how close to perfection you can get - perfection in print is nye on close to impossible due to all of the influencing scientific factors (It's an affliction but I can find fault with virtually any printed item).
I would be interested to know what material the cards were produced on and what screen ruling the printer used for the 50% grey - both being key to this issue.
All is not lost though - international standards have come to the rescue! Our business specialises in colour management and litho print production in particular. Our software and high end proofing system is calibrated so that we are achieving the international colour management standard of FOGRA 39L.This standard is recognised by all litho printers in Europe who are serious about colour! In turn, our partners in print have their plate setters calibrated to meet the FOGRA 39L standard which is part of the ISO12467/2 colour management standard for litho printing.
The log and short of it is that you get what you ask for on press, subject to the material specified. As such we would recommend that you go for a 4 colour process grey and print onto a quality coated or highly calandered board and print using either a 200# or a random dot. Lamination can smooth all flat tints but depending on the colour lamination can yellow things a little.
NOTE: I have just posted an offer on the Offers Forum that could provide you with the opportunity to get some non-blotchy cards. Give me, Ian of Kevin a call on 08701 420430 to book yourself onto our time limited promotion and I will thank your recommendations of us with a further discount!
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