On Wed, Sep 15, 2010 at 12:17 PM, <inkscape-devel.neophyte_rep@...2295...> wrote:
Who, among those active in this thread, actually produces Inkscape data for printing on a regular basis?
Not for color stuff - they all want CMYK (here in the US, ~20 print companies). Producing CMYK files from Inkscape is too much of a hassle. I sometimes draw portions in Inkscape, but I end up doing final assembly in Illustrator.
What does your print service know about this issue? (Assuming you've asked, of course.)
Since I do the design, I'm not always sure who the print service even *is* sometimes. So if it's a full-color print job CMYK is the lowest common denominator (and usually required). And I am on a budget - I don't have time to go head-to-head with every print company out there over some idealogical war about color spaces ;)
Who, among those lurking, is a printer who understands the issue being discussed?
Does building a screen press make me a printer? ;-) I've run (and repaired) large format printers using due and pigment inks as well.
Would you be willing to publish a work flow that you would find technically competent?
Wow - loaded question. The so-called way might look something like: - Design in a calibrated environment, in RGB - Use soft proofing, based on the printer's profile if available - Send RGB files with embedded profile
The unfortunate reality is that since I do not get to choose my printing service (as a freelancer), I must conform to what said service wants - and it's almost *always* generic CMYK.
Yes it's entirely broken, wrong and terrible - but in order to use Inkscape for color work I need to be able to work in a generic CMYK color space (coated SWOP for example), and be able to embed that profile into output PDF and EPS formats. I also need to be able to specify CMYK ink levels for particular colors (100%K vs 60%C 40%M 40%Y 100%K). Spot colors are a must (think metallics, or embossing).
When I was running the large format printers, I did not care if the files were CMYK or RGB - just as long as they had a profile. I could just as easily/accurately RIP from Generic_CMYK->Printer_CMYK as I could RGB->Printer_CMYK.
Chris