color separation - please help!!! 1

[myatia]

Hi,

I need to do a three-color separation on an Illustrator file and save each color plate as a separate PDF file. I know this is probably a really basic thing to do, but I have very little print background and no time to learn. If anyone could tell me how to do this, I would be forever grateful. The colors I'm separating on are black, Pantone 199CVC, and Pantone 293CVC. Please let me know if you need any more information.

Thanks,

Misty

 

[askIllustrator]

First thing is install Adobe Distiller (probably came with the AI install). Do a search for a file called Adist*.ppd on your C:\ drive. Locate latest version you have(Adist5.ppd is the latest one) It should be somewhere in C:\windows\system32\spool\... Make a note of where this is so you can find from Illustrator. You only have to do this the first time you print seps from AI. Adobe Distiller is a virtual printer that will create files on your computer rather than ink on paper when your print. Back to that in a sec.

Now make sure you've assigned your spot colors in the document correctly. Don't worry about a Spot Black cause you can just output the process black as your black plate. Remember every flag in a gradient has to have a spot color assigned as well. I'll show you how to double check that in a sec.

Now hit ctrl+p to bring up the print dialogue then click on the button for Separation Setup. The options should all be dimmed because you havnt selected a .ppd yet (postscript printer description) Click on the Open PPD button and find that Adist5.ppd you found earlier. Now the separation screen should available to you. Mess with the pull down options until your images looks correct in the preview. Now look below your list of colors for a check box for convert to process. Make sure this is unchecked because you do want it convert your spot colors into their CMYK equivalent. Double check the box because they reversed its function between version 8 and 9. Now in your list of colors you see a little printer icon next to your process black plate and your 2 spot colors. The process Cyan, Magenta and Yellow plates should be blank. If the C, M or Y have a process icon next to it then you have left something un-colored in your document. Dont worry about the line screens and angles because those only affect a printed piece and you are printing to a file. Once everything is fine, turn off the two spot colors by clicking on their printer icons twice. The first click will convert it to process, the second click turns it off all together. You should now have a printer icon next to your process black plate and all the others should be blank. You will repeat this step with each color you're outputing but this is the only way you are going to get 3 different files is by sending 3 different print to file commands.

Once everything is fine hit OK. Now you should looking at your print dialogue again. Choose the distiller in the printer drop down menu and check the box that says print to file. Now when you hit OK to print it will bring up a blank for you choose a file name for the print file. Name it whatever you want but make sure you put a .ps on the end. It doesnt ask you where you want to save it to so you will have to do a search for the separation you just made. I find them in the illustrator install folder alot but it's usually the last place you saved something. Find the file and double click on it. It should fire up Adobe Distiller automatically and convert it to a .pdf that you can send out for print. Hope that helps
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[myatia]

Hi,

I got the black plate to work just fine, but whenever I try to print PDFs of the Pantone blue and red plates, all I end up getting is a blank PDF. What am I doing wrong? Thanks so much for your help!

Misty

 

[myatia]

Okay, I think I figured out what I did wrong. I did set up everything in Pantone colors, but then I converted everything to CYMK (I couldn't figure out why all the separations options were grayed out and thought maybe I unwittingly had left an RGB image in there and that was causing the problem).

Thanks so much for your help on such a basic thing. I'm a web designer, but sometimes people just drop print projects in my lap (usually the day they're due) and expect me to know what to do with them. Print and web design are the same! Grrr...Sorry I'm ranting...I just get really frustrated...Anyway, thanks so much for your help!

Misty

 

[askIllustrator]

"It's not rocket science but it takes some know how."
-jAQUAN's mentor BEHOLD! As Steve Jobs introduces us the latest in desk-lamp technology!

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