Real World Print Production with Adobe Creative Suite Applications

Real World Print Production with Adobe Creative Suite Applications

by Claudia McCue
Released June 2009
Publisher(s): Peachpit Press
ISBN: 9780321637598

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Book description

Contrary to popular belief, print is not dead! With all the interest in online publishing here in the 21st century, it’s easy to lose sight of the fact that information is still widely disseminated through the good old medium of print.

The advent of desktop publishing granted new levels of power and control to the layout artist and graphic designer, but it hasn’t made the process of getting the perfect print foolproof. Sometimes managing the disparate elements of fonts, images, colors, and more, while dealing with the quirks of page-layout applications makes even the bravest designer and production editor long for the hands-on days of moveable type. Creating a great layout on your monitor is only half the battle; how do you make it work on paper? Print production expert Claudia McCue takes on the challenge of putting ink to paper, offering clear, authoritative guidance to print professionals and anyone else who has been frustrated by the obstacles of getting electronic documents to print perfectly.

This new edition of Claudia’s classic book is now fully Adobe-centric, and shows readers how to use the different applications in the Adobe Creative Suite 4 together to create and produce great print documents. Use Photoshop and Illustrator to create raster and vector images, and combine them with text in InDesign to create eye-catching yet readable page layouts. Learn the ins and outs of fonts, and gain a better understanding of how ink and paper work together. Finally, “prefilight” or prepare your job for submission to a printer to make sure the printing process goes off without a hitch.

Table of contents

  1. Copyright
    1. Dedication
  2. Introduction
    1. Who Should Read This Book
    2. What This Book Is Not
    3. About the Author
    4. Acknowledgments
  3. Life Cycle of a Print Job
    1. The Olden Days
    2. Brave New World: Desktop Publishing
    3. Job Submission
    4. Scenic Tour of a Typical Printing Plant
      1. Sales
      2. Customer Service
      3. Planning, Estimating, and Scheduling
      4. Preflight
      5. Prepress
      6. Creating Plates
      7. Pressroom
      8. Digital Printing
      9. Finishing
      10. Fulfillment and Shipping
    5. Glossary of Printing Terms
  4. Ink on Paper
    1. Fundamentals of Black-and-White Printing
    2. Fundamentals of Color Printing
      1. Limitations of CMYK
      2. Spot Colors
      3. Approximating Spot Colors with Process
    3. Press Issues
      1. Registration
      2. Trapping
      3. Large Ink Coverage Areas
        1. Rich Black
        2. Problem Inks
        3. Specialty Inks
        4. Custom Mixed Inks
        5. Coatings and Varnishes
    4. Digital Printing
      1. Digital Printing Advantages
      2. Digital Printing Issues
    5. Your Monitor is Not Made of Paper
      1. A Quick Overview of Color Management
      2. Control Your Environment
      3. Realistic Expectations
      4. Contract Proofs
  5. Binding and Finishing
    1. One Size Does Not Fit All
      1. Rule Number One: Build to the Correct Trim Size
      2. Rule Number Two: Provide Bleed
      3. Rule Number Three: Stay Away from the Edge
      4. Rule Number Four: Follow the Print Specifications
    2. Folding: High-Speed Origami
    3. Imposition
      1. Basic Imposition
      2. Multipage Imposition
    4. Binding Methods
      1. Saddle Stitching
      2. Perfect Binding and Case Binding
      3. Comb Binding
      4. Coil Binding
      5. Other Binding Methods
    5. Moving Beyond Two Dimensions
      1. Die Cutting
      2. Embossing
      3. Foil Stamping
  6. Preparing Raster Images
    1. Ancient Times: B.P. (Before Pixels)
    2. Now: A.P. (All Pixels, All the Time)
      1. Scanners
      2. Digital Cameras
      3. Imaging Software
    3. Resolution and Image Fidelity
      1. Bitmap Images
      2. Scaling Up
      3. Scaling Down
      4. Planning Ahead
      5. Digital Photographs
      6. Cropping and Transforming Images
    4. Appropriate Image Formats for Print
      1. TIFF
      2. Photoshop EPS
      3. Photoshop Native (PSD)
      4. Photoshop PDF
      5. Moving to Native PSD and PDF
      6. Special Case: Screen Captures
        1. Converting Screen Captures to CMYK
      7. RGB versus CMYK
    5. Inappropriate Image Formats for Print
  7. Vector Graphics
    1. Vector File Formats
      1. Encapsulated PostScript (EPS)
      2. Native File Formats
      3. Adobe PDF
      4. Vector Formats Not Appropriate for Print
    2. Handling Text
      1. Embedding Fonts
      2. Outlining Text
    3. Incorporating Images into Vector Files
    4. Avoiding Unnecessary Complexity
      1. Simplify Your Paths
      2. Recommended Approaches to Document Construction
  8. Fonts
    1. Font Flavors
      1. PostScript (Type 1) Fonts
      2. TrueType Fonts
      3. OpenType Fonts
      4. Macintosh OS X System Fonts
      5. Windows System Fonts
      6. Multiple Master Fonts
      7. Substituting One Font Species for Another
    2. Activating Fonts in the Operating System
      1. Apple Font Book
      2. Windows Control Panel
    3. Font-Management Programs
      1. Automatic Font Activation
      2. Font Conflicts
    4. Font Licensing Issues
      1. End User License Agreements (EULAs)
      2. Embedding Fonts in PDFs
      3. Converting Text To Outlines
      4. Sending Fonts to the Print Service Provider
  9. Cross-Platform Issues
    1. Crossing The Great Divide
    2. Naming Files
      1. Let’s Have a Lot of Brevity
      2. Filenames Don’t Need Punctuation. Period.
      3. Watch Your Language
      4. Include File Extensions
    3. Fonts
    4. Graphics Formats
  10. Job Submission
    1. Preparations During the Design Process
    2. Talking with the Printer
    3. Planning for Print
      1. Checking Raster Images
      2. Checking Vector Artwork
      3. Checking Page Layout Files
    4. Sending Job Files
      1. Submitting PDF Files
      2. Submitting Application Files
        1. Platform Issues
        2. Sending Files
    5. Preparing for Proofing Cycles
      1. Checking Image Proofs
      2. Checking Page Proofs
      3. Checking Corrections
      4. Checking Imposed Bluelines
      5. Signing Off on Proofs
    6. Attending a Press Check
  11. Photoshop CS4 Production Tips
    1. Off to a good Start
      1. Know the Fate of the Image
      2. Image Resolution
      3. Color Space
      4. Converting RGB to CMYK
    2. Working in Layers
      1. Don’t Erase that Pixel!
      2. Color Corrections with a Safety Net
      3. Smart Objects
      4. Clipping Masks
      5. Should You Flatten a Layered File?
    3. Transparency
    4. Silhouettes and Masking
      1. Creating a Path: Right and Wrong
      2. Alternative Silhouetting Methods
      3. Non-Destructive Mask Edits
    5. Beyond CMYK
      1. Creating Duotones
      2. Adding Spot Color to a CMYK Image
      3. Creating a Spot Varnish Plate
    6. Beyond Pixels
      1. Vector Elements
      2. Saving as a Photoshop PDF
    7. Saving for Other Applications
  12. Illustrator CS4 Production Tips
    1. Document Profile and Color Mode
    2. Artboards
      1. Creating Artboards
      2. Modifying Artboards
      3. Bleed Settings
      4. Please Don’t Call Artboards “Pages”
    3. Using Symbols
    4. Simplifying Complex Artwork
    5. Live Effects
      1. Why Filters Are Gone
    6. Using the Appearance Panel
    7. Creating 3D Artwork
    8. Transparency
    9. Flattening Transparency
    10. Linked and Embedded Images
    11. Blended Objects
    12. Spot Colors
      1. Pantone Goe System
        1. What About My Old Pantone Guides?
      2. Separations Preview
    13. Why Versions Matter
    14. Saving For Other Applications
      1. Saving Files with Multiple Artboards
    15. Creating PDF Files
      1. Saving to PDF
      2. Opening PDF Files in Illustrator
  13. InDesign CS4 Production Tips
    1. Graphics
      1. Placing Graphics
      2. There’s Good Drag and Drop...
      3. ... and There’s Bad Drag and Drop
      4. Embedding and Unembedding Graphics
      5. Updating Missing or Modified Graphics
      6. Editing Graphics
      7. Transforming Graphics
    2. Using Native Files
      1. Photoshop Native Files (PSD)
      2. Illustrator Native Files (AI)
      3. InDesign Files as Artwork
      4. PDF Files as Artwork
    3. Swatches
      1. Stubborn Swatches
      2. What to Do About All Those Extra Swatches
      3. Ink Manager
      4. Colorizing Images
    4. Converting Legacy QuarkXPress and PageMaker Files
      1. Preparing for Conversion
      2. What to Expect
    5. Miscellaneous Document Tips
      1. IDLK Files
      2. Automatic Recovery
      3. Going Back in Time
        1. Cautions About Backsaving
      4. Reducing File Size
      5. Let It Bleed
      6. One Size Fits All: Layout Adjustment
      7. Checking Out of the Library
      8. Why Is My Text Two Sizes?
      9. Getting Smart
    6. Transparency
      1. Transparency Flattening
    7. Finding & Fixing Problems
      1. Forensic Tools
      2. Info Panel
      3. Live Preflight
        1. Creating a Custom Preflight Profile
        2. Importing and Sharing a Preflight Profile
      4. Packaging the File
    8. PDF Creation Methods
    9. PDF Creation Settings
  14. Acrobat Production Tips
    1. Acrobat Product Line
    2. Where Do PDFs Come From?
    3. Creating PDF Files
      1. Determining Which Type of PDF You Should Create
      2. PDF Settings and Some Important Standards
      3. Export vs. Distiller
      4. Acrobat Distiller
      5. Handling Image Content
      6. Font Embedding
    4. Editing PDF Files
      1. Editing Text
      2. Editing Graphics
    5. Comment and Review
      1. Reader Users Can Play, Too
      2. Collaborating with Others
      3. Collecting and Summarizing Comments
      4. ConnectNow
        1. Sharing Your Screen with Adobe ConnectNow
      5. Acrobat.com
    6. Print Production Toolbar
      1. Forensic Tools: What’s Wrong with This PDF?
      2. Repair Tools
        1. Ink Manager
        2. Convert Colors
        3. Add Printer Marks
        4. Crop Pages
        5. Fix Hairlines
        6. Transparency Flattener Preview
        7. PDF Optimizer
        8. Trap Presets
        9. JDF
    7. Using External PDF Editors
  15. Print Production Resources
    1. Organizations
      1. User Groups
      2. Online Communities and Forums
      3. Printing Industry Organizations
      4. Packaging Organizations
      5. Technical Education Organizations
    2. Conferences and Trade Shows
      1. Printing Industry Events
      2. Design Conferences
    3. Design and Printing Books
      1. Desktop Publishing
      2. General Design
      3. General Printing
      4. Typography
    4. Software-Specific Books
      1. Acrobat
      2. Adobe Creative Suite
      3. Illustrator
      4. InDesign
      5. Photoshop
      6. Photoshop Specialty Topics
    5. Publications
      1. Desktop Publishing
      2. Design
      3. Printing Technology
      4. Tutorials
    6. Destinations

Product information

  • Title: Real World Print Production with Adobe Creative Suite Applications
  • Author(s): Claudia McCue
  • Release date: June 2009
  • Publisher(s): Peachpit Press
  • ISBN: 9780321637598