Acrobat Overprint Preview is innaccurate

[defaultrjaomfiv0pg5]

I've just done an overprint check after some errors came back from the printer. We're able to see some text on a dark background does get printed over when we turn on Overprint Preview in InDesign but this doesn't seem to be the case with the PDF the printer sent back to us that they used.

I've tried a few other test runs with different documents but the Overprint Preview in the latest version of Acrobat seemingly doesn't work at all.

[S. S]

Hi @defaultrjaomfiv0pg5,

Hope you are doing well. Sorry for the trouble, and the delayed response.

If you are still looking for a solution, here are a few troubleshooting steps to investigate and resolve the issue:

1. Check Overprint Settings in Acrobat:

   • Ensure that Overprint Preview is enabled in Acrobat. Go to Preferences > Page Display and confirm that "Use Overprint Preview" is set to "Always" or "Only for PDF/X Files."
   • Open the PDF and verify overprints in Print Production > Output Preview.

2. Confirm the Export Settings from InDesign:

   • In InDesign, ensure that overprint settings are correctly defined for the objects/text.
   • When exporting to PDF, use a high-quality preset like PDF/X-4, which preserves transparency and overprint settings.

3. Check for Flattening Issues:

   • Overprints may not render correctly if the PDF was flattened during export or processing.
   • Ask the printer if they flattened the PDF and confirm the settings they used.

4. Verify Output Intent:

   • Confirm the color profile and output intent in both InDesign and Acrobat. Inconsistencies here can cause overprints to behave differently.

-Souvik