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Proofing perfection – get it right first time.

27 February 2021 Stuart Nimmo

Once upon a time (well that sounds like a children’s story), the process of “proofing” was a critical process of producing an item for print. We are in changing times, and every penny counts in a budget, so a costly mistake can be the last thing you need. In a day and age, where online content is always updated and evolves, sloppiness creeps in. A piece of printed collateral will have a longer life span than a piece of digital content.

It may seem like there is never time to proof something thoroughly the first time, but when it is not done, you may end up making time to do the entire job a second time. Just what are some of the things that should be checked during the proofing process? Here is a list to perfect your proofing strategy:

Proof the textual content.

The first place to start is the text. Review all text for spelling and grammatical correctness, check punctuation, and most importantly, the accuracy of the content. One of my early bosses encouraged us to read the text backwards, so read it properly, then go to the end of the paragraph and check every word. If you have written the text and revised it copiously, get a second pair of eyes to be your critical friend and read it. Good editors/copywriters don’t charge too much for this service.

Check the image quality.

Image quality expectations change vastly with different types, colour is a critical item as well. What might view ok on your computer screen, could reproduce differently in print. An experienced pre-press technician or digital printer will guide you through ensure modest colour management. They will ensure calibration from screen to print and different paper stocks. Worth noting that a screen uses subtractive colour (RGB) and we print using an additive process (CMYK) so colours will vary. For high-level image quality jobs, it may be wise to have physical proof rather than just an on-screen proof, as digital printers, we can proof your job on the paper stock. Or provide benchmarking for colour with standardized materials.

Confirm the overall look and feel.

Pages can look very different on screen to when they are printed. Look over the typography, and the quality of reproduction, ensure you are happy with the detail. Ensure placement of images, illustrations and text. Don’t forget to check hyphenation and line arrangement (as us about Widows and Orphans), page format, and bleeds.

Whilst the print process has dramatically reduced in its timelines, the proofing process is something which you cannot afford to reduce. It is the difference between making a modest impression or an excellent impression with your reader.

Product Review: Stormtech Men’s Patrol Softshell – XB-3

6 February 2021 Stuart Nimmo

It’s not every day I get the opportunity to try/test out high-end kit. Recently I was lucky enough to win a technical jacket from one of our garment suppliers. Luck was on my side that day/week.

So let me unpack this…. Stormtech is probably a name most people haven’t heard of. However, the specification and the performance matches some of the high end outdoor technical kit you would send time “browsing” in any of the Ambleside gear shops on a wet afternoon in the Lake District.

So I was lucky enough to get my hands on a Stormtech Patrol XB-3 Softshell Jacket. With a retail price of £170.00 (plain jacket, no personalised branding applied)

It’s highly technical and functional softshell which is specified and designed for the outdoors. Stormtech, which is a Canadian company has seriously designed this for versatility in variable weather (which I am aware they get there!). With fully sealed seams, waterproof zippers and an excellent waterproof resistance – technically it’s excellent. Design-wise, there are some nice trim and features such as dual chest pockets for stowing your valuables, yes it does fit an iPhone XR max in the chest pocket.

I was testing it in a week where the weather in Yorkshire was very wintery. This jacket is comfortable and does a great job of blocking wind and moisture. The water repellence was good, with modest precipitation beading on the surface. Some Softshell jackets whilst light showerproof, don’t bead as this one did. The shell system does need layering for added warmth – however, ask anyone with some background in outdoors, and they’ll recommend layering. The softshell material is heavy-duty enough to be used as a ski jacket, breathable enough to workout in, and comfortable enough for day to day wear – which I have worn it every day in the last week with this review in mind.

With a background in the Outdoors, thanks to Scouting and also doing a Mountain Leadership course a few decades back, I always look at the technical details. The seams are sealed so the inside of the jacket, equally I have come across some sealed seams which are basic, Stormtech’s are a credit to them. Before I even looked at the technical specification of the jacket, you could tell, it was waterproofed to a good degree. (Water Resistance 10,000mm, Breathability 3,000g/m2)

Point to note, fit, I am a broad-shouldered person with longer than average arms, the large fitted me well for the shoulders and arms, with plenty of movement around the waist. So credit to the sizing of the garment, spot on.

Only only design point I would possibly suggest improvement on; The range provided by the UK distributors is very focussed on black with modest colour trim. Which, when dog walking in the evening in a dark Yorkshire, doesn’t do anything for your visibility. Even if it was flashes of reflective trim, it would add both for urban and outdoor use.

Verdict, if you are outdoors a lot, then yes I can say, specify something like this jacket, as you will reap the benefits from it. If you value your technical specifications and are a gear snob, then give it a try, you will be surprised, there is good gear out there, without the flashy branding. Valid point as per anything, you pay for what you get. Thanks to one of our garment distributors for letting me give it a go!

The lost art of repro

17 January 2021 Stuart Nimmo

Our Stuart unpacks some of the traditional knowledge when applied to digital print, really packs some punch in creating stunning results.

In an age not that long ago, there was a rare breed of skilled craftsman called Repro Technicians. Usually found in something called Repro Houses, or Prepress departments in reputable print businesses. They had a unique skill set, high-level understanding of colour, making the printed image sharp, understanding the magic of half-tone screens and many more mystical things print-related. They were masters of ensuring that that was given to the press operators allowed them to produce top-notch results on press. A classic case of quality materials provided is indicative of quality out.

As technology evolved, Repro Technicians also did evolve. Grasping colour scanning, this was substantially more than your desktop scanner. With equipment which was tuned with fine optical lenses and sophisticated electronics, this produced results which were often tailored to “High-End Repro”. This entailed ensuring good reproduction in the shadows and highlights, correct colour balancing, bringing out detail in mid-tones, sharpening and lots more finessing of quality photographic images to deliver exceptional results. This knowledge is still applicable even in a totally digital environment.

A recent example has been using location pictures from a Royalty Free library. The quality is very mixed due to the content creators being of mixed professional background. Taking some of our high-end scanning and retouching knowledge. A first point can be looking at the details in the horizon line, the point of focus is the edge of the water, so the trees and bushes need to be more defined. The building is rather flat, it is the point of focus of the composition, highlights and mid-tones addressed. The crane on the horizon also lacks the right impression, so removed. Skies evoke so much storytelling, so ensuring an aspirational blue and clouds with contrast and shape, flat of lack-lustre don’t help. Final point, the water needs to reflect the tone of the sky, equally a dirty grey provides no aspiration.

There isn’t a week that goes by, where some of this knowledge is discretely applied to our work. Stuart’s professional development was in this very area; Repro. Ensuring the colour is balanced, points of focus are sharp, retouching is applied to maximise the result. Getting the artwork and imagery right before you print, can really maximise the end result, what goes in, comes out. So why scrimp on your artwork and imaging?