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leighb61493055
Inspiring
September 18, 2023
Answered

Illustrator to Frame to PDF with spot color

  • September 18, 2023
  • 1 reply
  • 639 views

We are changing printers and the new printer says they can't produce the print from the PDF files as we have done in the past. Our book is over 900 pages and is printed in black and a PMS blue only. Headings, headings of tables that have a blue shading behind the black text, and imported images all contain blue. Some of the blue "touches" the black.

 

The Illustrator files have always been in RGB (they are also used for online viewing as well but not in PDF form). I am using Frame 2019. In my digging, I see that if I save out the Illustrator file as an EPS with spot color, I can import into Frame and then save as a PDF. I can see in the Acrobat Ink Manager that the image is now black and a spot color of blue. Perfect...however, the imported EPS images in Frame are terrribly rastorized. FrameMaker is where our editor is editing so to not being able to see if something is a period or a comma is not acceptable. I am at a loss to come up with a solution to this in a short period of time. I have some questions:

  1. Is this even the correct process for something like this? Maybe this just isn't the process that other people use to get to a spot color separated output?
  2. Is EPS the only way to maintain the spot colors designated in Illustrator after it is imported into FrameMaker and saved out as a PDF?
  3. Is there a way to view the EPS images (if that is the best route) in Frame and have them sharper (not rastorized)?
  4. How to I spec the headings and shaded table headers in Frame to be a spot color? I don't see a PMS option (I need them to display on the same plate as the blue from the Illustrator images). With the images saved out as a spot EPS, the PDF is showing everything in CMYK with a spot of blue (from the images).
  5. Is a PDF the best output for sending off to the printer?

 

I hope all you experts have got some ideas on how to get what the printer needs because I am stumped.

 

Thanks,

Leigh

      This topic has been closed for replies.
      Correct answer leighb61493055

      @leighb61493055 did you get this resolved? 

      I managed these issues for a number of commercial printers...let me know if you have any outstanding issues and I can get you straightened out.


      Thanks all for the suggestions. We ended up printing CMYK however the printer did say that many people import a pdf into the file (instead of a .png). I tried it and it did seem to work in Frame and the output was clean. The image pdf inside the file pdf for the printer appeared to be a vector image which the printer indicated was a working solution but we ended up going with CMYK. 

      1 reply

      Bob_Niland
      Community Expert
      Bob_NilandCommunity Expert
      Community Expert
      September 18, 2023

      Why can't the shop print your PDFs?
      And if the problem is PDFs generally, what do they expect you to submit? .ps?
      (I can't imagine any print shop planning to stay in business not continuously enhancing their PDF capabilities).

       

      EPS is PostScript (as is PDF). Any vector art in an EPS should survive into PDF (or .ps) as vector. If the source art is verified as containing no raster, it would be worth finding out where it is getting trashed in the workflow.

      L
      leighb61493055Author
      Inspiring
      September 18, 2023

      Thanks for the reply. The printer says that if the blue and black didn't touch each other, they would be able to separate out the blue by itself for the PMS color but the PDF file is CMYK so the blue of the headings and table headers (with a shaded blue background) also contain yellow, magenta, cyan and black. Does that make sense? Is there no way to spec a spot color in FrameMaker (and output it that way)?

      frameexpert
      Community Expert
      frameexpertCommunity Expert
      Community Expert
      September 18, 2023

      If you choose View > Color > Definitions, you will get this dialog box, where you can determine how to output colors. I am not sure if these settings survive when you make the PDF.

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