Home >

July 2005

Golden Nugget #7…Ink Jet Proofing Dry Time Prior to Measurement

by JimRaffel on July 27, 2005

*** User’s Group Conference News ***

Even though the date to receive our guaranteed pricing on rooms at the Mirage has passed it is not too late to attend the 2005 user’s group conference. If you are still interested in attending, we may be able to assist attendees in getting our hotel rates ($129/night for Sun, Mon, Tue, and only $199 for Sat. night!) Complete conference information can be found at (http://www.colormetrix.com/cmug05/). Before calling the hotel for a room, please give us a call to see if we can assist you with a room at the guaranteed conference rates.

*** Jim Raffel’s Week 7 Golden Nugget…How long do I have to let my ink jet proof dry before I measure it? ***

While there is not single correct answer to the question above, we have some basic guidelines from the field. Obviously, before following our suggestions it is very important to check with the manufacturer of the paper and ink that you are utilizing to print your proofs. They should know how long a dwell time is necessary before the proof is sufficiently dry that no more color shifting is occurring.

So, our general rule of thumb when we go in the field and assist our customers in setting a baseline or gold standard is to wait 30 minutes after the proof has finished printing before measuring it. We vary this a bit depending on the ink technology, pigment vs dye, but it seems to be a pretty good rule of thumb.

Now, we recognize that waiting 30 minutes to measure every proof may not be practical, but we are talking about the baseline or gold standard proofs right now. Once you have that down, it’s time to make another proof, to test for the optimum dry time for measurement of production proofs. Starting five minutes after the proof has finished printing measure the control strip every 5 minutes for half an hour.

Using the software you utilized to measure the proof take a look at the trend line analysis of the Delta E shift over the 30 minutes. You should be able to see a clear place where the shift levels off. Again, depending upon your environment (temperature and humidity), and proof type (pigment vs. dye) this could be at 10 minutes or 20 minutes.

That’s it! You now know how long to wait in order to get accurate proof verification measurements. If by any chance you are having trouble getting the trend line analysis I mentioned above out of your software….I know a great little software company called ColorMetrix that will be able to assist you in fixing that problem!

{

Continue Reading 0 comments }inkjet, measurement, proofing

Golden Nugget #6…Why Measure?

by JimRaffel on July 19, 2005

*** Introduction ***

In the last several weeks several readers have mentioned that they are forwarding these e-mails to others. That is perfectly fine, but anyone can get on the list by sending me their complete contact information.

*** Jim Raffel’s Week 6 Golden Nugget…Why Measure ***

Over the years I have gotten the comment that ColorMetrix does not “fix” the problem. This comment would be similar to a carpenter saying that a tape measure does not fix his problem cutting 2X4’s to a specific length when he had been eyeballing it all along. If the tape measure is not used, or is used incorrectly, the statement is accurate.

If on the other hand the tape measure is used to measure and mark each 2X4 BEFORE it is cut many fewer 2X4’s will end up in the waste pile (Remember when your Dad taught you to measure twice cut once?). The same holds true for the measurement of printing process.

Here is just a partial list of all the places we should me measuring to improve color reproduction:

  • Any monitor used for critical color work (yes monitor calibration is a form of measurement).
  • Any proof viewed for color (I know a great little software company called ColorMetrix that can help you with this!).
  • Printing plates need to me monitored with an accurate plate reading device, so we know what dot percentages we are sending to press (You can also catch processor problems by doing this, just ask Gary Briney who will be at the User’s Group Conference again this year).
  • Press sheets – for Density, Dot Gain (TVI), Print Contrast, Trap, and Colormetric values like L*a*b* with Delta E tolerances.

If you are not measuring in all these areas, please ask yourself why not? It is neither difficult nor expensive to acquire the tools and knowledge necessary. Even better, once you have made the investment, you will be amazed at how quickly the returns begin to flow in via reduced time and material waste.

Imagine using the data you collect in the pressroom to tweak the curves in your CTP device. If press performance changes you can adjust the device to compensate for the changes, and have a more stable production environment. Then, you can utilize your plate reader to confirm that the changes made in software are making it to the actual printing plate.

Imagine verifying that each proof made is color accurate and can be reproduced on press. This also means that the proofs you show your customer can be matched on press. I am not sure I can imagine a worse scenario than putting a proof in the hands of the customer that “they love” that we are not capable of matching on press.

So, if you are not measuring in all of the above mentioned places, perhaps you should considering investing in the correct tool for the job and getting it done today.

{

Continue Reading 0 comments }measurement

Golden Nugget #5 Density & TVI or L*a*b?

July 13, 2005

This post now appears as Color Conversations: Density & TVI or L*a*b? on Color Conversations the blog of ColorMetrix Technologies, LLC. *** Introduction *** Next, I want to let you all know that since the inception of the golden nuggets idea both of the Mikes at ColorMetrix (Michael Litscher-CTO & Co-founder; Michael Woods-Technical Services Manager) [...]

Continue Reading2

Golden Nugget #4…Proper Color Viewing Conditions

July 9, 2005

Once again this week our topic has been set by a golden nuggets reader. I will get to that in a moment, but first I wanted to share some observations I made this 4th of July weekend. I had the honor and pleasure of joining my son’s Boy Scout troop for their last day and [...]

Continue Reading0

Golden Nugget #3 / Urgent ColorMetrix User’s Group Info

July 9, 2005

Because of the upcoming ColorMetrix User’s Group Conference, we needed to change the e-mail around a bit this week. In order to not send multiple e-mails to many of you on this list, I will first address urgent issues regarding the User’s Group Conference August 21-23 at the Mirage Resort & Casino in Las Vegas, [...]

Continue Reading0

Golden Nugget #2…Consistent Measurement Environment

July 9, 2005

If you are joining us for the first time, here is what the golden nuggets are all about. At ColorMetrix we spend a great deal of our business life on the road. We have come to realize that we take one golden nugget away from almost every stop we make on the road. So, the [...]

Continue Reading0

Golden Nugget #1…UV vs Non-UV Measurement

July 9, 2005

I spend a great deal of my business life on the road. Some of that time I am visiting clients for sales, training or good will purposes. Much of the rest of the road time is spent at trade shows and conferences. What I have realized is I take one golden nugget away from almost [...]

Continue Reading0

Welcome!

July 9, 2005

Many people have encouraged me to blog the Golden Nugget posts. I will continue to send them via e-mail, but you will also be able to find the history here if you ever need it. As always let me know what you think. Thanks! – Jim

Continue Reading1