Transparency Issues

[Aqua5]

Is there anyone who has experienced transparency issues, or more specifically, gray boxes appearing around images/text when you import them to your RIP? I've had an issue lately when working with pdf's and eps files. I've had areas where there is hot spots, gray boxes or rastered images/text. I've tried flattening the file but that only seems to work sometimes not always. I'm using EFI Colorproof XF for some jobs and Colorburst so I can rip files for direct print on a Vutek. I seem to have more problems with files I rip for the Vutek. It doesn't seem to be able to handle any large (MB) or complex (many images, many font styles and colors).

 

[charissabuskirk]

I've had areas where there is hot spots, gray boxes or rastered images/text.

Rasterize the entire file.

 

[bob]

Is there anyone who has experienced transparency issues, or more specifically, gray boxes appearing around images/text when you import them to your RIP? I've had an issue lately when working with pdf's and eps files. I've had areas where there is hot spots, gray boxes or rastered images/text. I've tried flattening the file but that only seems to work sometimes not always. I'm using EFI Colorproof XF for some jobs and Colorburst so I can rip files for direct print on a Vutek. I seem to have more problems with files I rip for the Vutek. It doesn't seem to be able to handle any large (MB) or complex (many images, many font styles and colors).

What you describe is what happens to drop shadows when they are exported out of their proprietary format. The grayish box is usually the bounding rectangle for a drop shadow.

There is no standard, none, nada, zip, zero, for handling transparencies. Every package does it differently and, more often than not, one package's transparency is incompatible with another's.

Typically, if you have drop shadows and stuff floating around, you flatten the entire image into a bitmap. Or at least from the suspect transparencies down through the background.

 

[Roto]

Open the entire Illy File in Photoshop then flatten it and save as a Tif file, then send to your RIP.

No More problems.

Roto

 

[animenick65]

Try saving the PDF in a higher version and see if that helps. Rasterizing it will certainly take care of the issue. I've always had problems with drop shadows in Fiery XF, especially with .ai files. Re-saving as .eps or .pdf always helped, but for some reason thats not doing it for you. EFI almost always recommends using .PDF files in your workflow.

Also, what version of Fiery are you on?

 

[oldgoatroper]

Open the entire Illy File in Photoshop then flatten it and save as a Tif file, then send to your RIP.

No More problems.

Roto

Exactly -- once your file is rendered by photoshop, you get precisely what you see...

So, in effect, we're using Photoshop as the RIP...

 

[Roto]

Try saving the PDF in a higher version and see if that helps.

8 times out of 10 in might help. But who wants to chance it. I hate reprinting jobs so I go the bullet proof route.

Roto

 

[Roto]

Exactly -- once your file is rendered by photoshop, you get precisely what you see...

Amen to that brother!

Roto

 

[Aqua5]

thanks for all the suggestions/tips. I am going to give it a try the next time I have this issue.

 

[JWesthead]

Just curious if you are using Pantone/Spot colors? ...All Photoshop is doing is removing the PANTONE values and setting to CMYK OR RGB values. You can also just tell your rip to not recognize PANTONE if you dont want to change your file. Downside to this is color shift.

As far as what I do......Make sure your rendering intents match for image and vector. This will sometimes cure the problem. If you are already set to that, save your files as HIGH QUALITY PRINT PDF - VERSION 7. Solved every transparency issue we have and is now our standard workflow and can still run Pantone Recognized/Pantone color chart/or whatever your rip calls it. Reminder your artboard will now be your bounding box not the edge of your artwork.