It may be that your monitor needs to be calibrated or your CS (using Bridge>Edit>Creative Suite Color Settings).

Adobe Illustrator Print Dialog Box Options

Each category of options in the Print dialog box—from General options to Summary options—is organized to guide you through the
process of printing your document. To display a set of options, select the set name on the left side of the dialog box. Many of these
options are preset by the startup profile you chose when you started your document.

General Set the page size and orientation, specify how many pages to print, scale the artwork, specify tiling options and choose which
layers to print.

Marks & Bleed Select printer’s marks and create a bleed.

Output Create color separations.

Graphics Set printing options for paths, fonts, PostScript files, gradients, meshes, and blends.

Color Management Select a color profile and rendering intent for printing.

Advanced Control the flattening (or possible rasterization) of vector artwork during printing.

Summary View and save a summary of print settings.

http://www.pantone.com

1
Using Swatches to Insure Desired Color Results in Printing

When designing for print, a common issue that has to be dealt with is the difference between the color on your computer display and on
paper. Even if your monitor is calibrated correctly the match them as best as possible, your client’s will not be, and so a third “version”
of the color comes into play. If you then print proofs for your client on any printer other than the one that will be used for the final job
(which is often the case), more colors join the mix that won’t match the final piece.
To deal with this problem, you can use the “Pantone Matching System,” or PMS. The PMS has an industry standard book of color
swatches with reference numbers that you can give to the printer, who will then use ready-made inks that match these numbers to
complete the job.
The PMS swatch books come in many versions, made for different papers such as coated and matte. For this reason, it is important to
talk to your printer first about what paper will be used, so you can refer to the proper book. The books are available for purchase directly
from Pantone as well as on Amazon, other web sites, and in art stores. As the swatch book sets are expensive (especially the full
reference library), you may want to start with the “Formula Guide” set, consisting of the coated, uncoated and matte swatch books,
which are sufficient for most standard jobs. It is important to remember that books can “expire,” meaning they are no longer applicable
to the current ink sets.
To get the full value out of your swatch books, meet with your client to discuss the colors that will be used in the project. Once you have
an idea of the project design, you can discuss exact colors for backgrounds, type and other elements. Remember that the swatches are
for determining solid colors, and do not help to insure that elements like photos (which can contain millions of colors) will print as
desired. For this reason, among others, it’s a good idea to always get a proof from a printer before they finish the entire job.
Once you have selected PMS colors, what do you do with them? For starters, you need to use the matching colors in your design
projects. You do this by selecting the appropriate swatch library, and colors, in your graphics software.

In Photoshop: Open the swatches palette by clicking Window > Swatches. The standard swatch palette will be displayed. Click the
small arrow on the top right of the swatches window, and you are presented with a long list of color libraries to choose from, include
several Pantone collections. Select the set name that matches the swatch book you are using. Photoshop will ask you if you want to
replace the current palette or add onto it (Append). Choose “OK” to replace the palette so you are only seeing your Pantone colors.

In Illustrator: The process is basically the same, except when you click the arrow to bring up the swatches list, you must first choose
“Open Swatch Library” to see the full list of Pantone and other color libraries.
Once your Pantone swatches are displayed, you can see the reference numbers by rolling over each color swatch with your mouse.
Now you can select the colors that you have already picked out in your books. This process might vary slightly depending on what
version of Photoshop or Illustrator you are using. The swatch palettes are also available in most standard graphics software, so be sure
to select the right palette for the job.
Even though you have selected the appropriate colors in your design, it is important to let the printer know which colors are used where.
You can do this by marking up a printed example of your design…simply label each PMS color with its reference number. Again, it’s a
good idea to get a proof so you can approve the colors before the entire job is finished, which are much more likely to appear as you
expected if you use the Pantone Matching System.

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Calibrate Your Printer
Monitors use additive RGB color while printing uses subtractive CMYK pigments, each a different way of reproducing color.
In print, ink layering and overlapping causes subtle shifts in color not found in the individual pixels that make up a screen image.
Printed images don't have the same range, saturation, and contrast as a monitor making the colors typically darker and less vibrant
than on screen. Paper texture and brightness also affect — and change — the printed image.
How to Calibrate
The first step in printer calibration is to calibrate your monitor. Then, make sure you use the correct printer driver for your printer. Within
the printer driver you will find controls for finetuning the overall appearance of color from your printer. Depending on your needs, this
may be sufficient to get the color you want.
Two general methods for additional printer calibration: visual and mechanical. The sometimes more expensive and accurate option is to
use a hardware device that can read the output from your printer and make adjustments as necessary. For most typical users, visual
calibration or the use of generic color profiles for your hardware is adequate.

Basic Visual Calibration

Using test images with a wide range of tonal values — ideally consisting of a number of color bars, photographs, and blocks of colors
— and your eyes you can visually match up screen and print colors. You would display and print a test image then compare and adjust
grayscale and color output in whatever controls provided for your printer.
Obtain digital test images from the Web and from some software or hardware manufacturers.

Color Calibration with ICC Profiles

ICC profiles provide a way to insure consistent color. These files are specific to each device on your system and contain information
about how that device produces color. With printers the ideal situation is to create separate profiles based on various combinations of
ink and paper because this affects the appearance of the printed material. However, the stock or default profiles for your printer model
(available with your software, from your printer manufacturer, or from other Web sites) are often adequate for most desktop printing.
For more precise color management needs, you can use color management software to develop custom ICC profiles for any device.
Additionally, some online sources that create custom profiles for you. One such vendor is chromix.com.

ICC profiles
Get an ICC profile for your printer as well as your monitor, scanner, digital camera or other equipment.
Calibration Tools
Color Management Systems include tools for calibrating monitors, scanners, printers, and digital cameras so they all "speak the same
color." These tools often include a variety of generic profiles as well as the means to customize profiles for any or all of your devices.
Color Management Systems
Choose the calibration tools that match your pocketbook and your needs for accurate representation of color on screen and in print.

Calibrate Your Monitor

The simplest calibration methods involve adjustments to the Contrast and Brightness settings of your monitor. An intermediate method
uses special software to calibrate your monitor as well as calibrate your printer, scanner, and other devices so that what you see on-
screen, what you scan, and what you print all look the same - as much as is possible. For high-end use, even more precise hardware-
based calibration methods exist.
For basic Web viewing and non-critical printing, the simple calibration methods described below may be sufficient. However, serious
design work and accurate color-matching calls for software or hardware calibration methods. Monitor calibration is simply one part of a
complete Color Management System (CMS) for desktop publishing.

Simple Calibration
Make sure your monitor is in 24-bit or high-color mode. Use your normal room lighting but avoid reflections or glare from lights or
windows. Locate the Contrast and Brightness controls for your monitor. These may be buttons right on the front of the monitor or you
may have to pull up an on-screen menu to make these adjustments.

If your monitor is already calibrated using software or hardware methods, don't do the following adjustments. It could mess up your
carefully achieved calibration.

Choose one or several of the options listed at the link below to calibrate your monitor. These test involve looking at several squares of
color ranging from white to black. Using the Contrast and Brightness controls on your monitor you'll adjust your monitor so that you can
see various shades of gray plus bright white and black. Some of the methods also include simple adjustments for other colors.

Visual Monitor Calibration Tests

For many users, a few simple adjustments to contrast and brightness are sufficient for their color management needs. These tests and
instructions offer a variety of options for calibrating a monitor without calibration tools or custom profiles.

Software and Hardware Calibration and ICC Profiles

ICC Profiles provide a way to insure consistent color. These files are specific to each device on your system and contain information
about how that device produces color. Tools for calibrating monitors, scanners, printers, and digital cameras use ICC profiles so that all
these devices "speak the same color." With software calibration you go through a series of on-screen displays similar to, but much

3
more detailed than those seen in the simple calibrations above. You'll make precise adjustments and create a specific ICC profile for
your monitor. Or, you may get adequate results using generic ICC profiles. Hardware-based calibration utilizes light monitoring and
measurement devices along with software to achieve the more exacting results needed for high-end work.

ICC profiles
Get an ICC profile for your monitor as well as your printer, scanner, digital camera or other equipment.

Calibration Tools
Color Management Systems include tools for calibrating monitors, scanners, printers, and digital cameras so they all "speak the same
color." These tools often include a variety of generic profiles as well as the means to customize profiles for any or all of your devices.

Color Management Systems

Choose the calibration tools that match your pocketbook and your needs for accurate representation of color on screen and in print.

4
Printer to Match my Screen
I get to hear first hand what many of you are struggling with when you call for help, so I thought I'd answer a question we often hear:
getting your monitor to match your printer.
(Wait a minute. Wasn't there a ColorNews article on this topic a long time ago?) Well, yes. Issue #2 of CHROMiX ColorNews from April
of 2001 was on the topic of "Screen to Print Matching." However, in our daily business of answering customers' questions here, a shift
has occurred in the past 5 years. You may not have noticed, but a lot has changed in the digital world in the past 5 years.)
In the past, a fair number of the people interested in color management were involved in the press industry, digital photofinishing, and
maybe on the cutting edge of digital camera development. These days we've seen a great increase in the number of digital
photographers out there. There is a steady stream of photographers who migrate over to digital, only to find themselves scratching their
heads over how to achieve these stunning results (in color control) they keep hearing about.
A lot of times, a newbie will have picked up a few pieces of the puzzle, but won't have the whole picture put together.
"I just bought a new $1000 monitor; why doesn't my screen match my prints?"
or
"I just bought a new printer; why doesn't my screen match my prints?"
So I have in mind the private photographer who is working in Adobe Photoshop to get his on-screen image to match his inkjet printer.
You veterans of color management may find this article to be something of a review, but I'd bet you know someone who needs to
understand this topic, and you could hand this on to them. Plus, I'd like to put a special emphasis on soft-proofing, a sometimes
forgotten and often-times misunderstood aspect of this process.

Among the items needed to match a digital image from a computer screen to an inkjet printer are:
 A properly calibrated monitor
 A properly applied printer profile
 Soft proofing procedure
 Lighting
 Eyes and a brain.

THE MONITOR
Usually the best place to start in getting a color-managed workflow is with the monitor. In the old days a CRT monitor would come from
the factory with its RGB color guns blasting at full force. This would result in a white point of somewhere around 9300 degrees Kelvin
which looked very blue. Out of the box, modern LCD monitors make at least a reasonable attempt to have their back-lights put out
something close to daylight color. On my desk I have a nice LaCie 321 with a very respectable white point of about 6100, and next to it,
a bargain-basement LCD with a native white point of almost 7000 - rather blue. We don't often notice when a monitor is off-color
because our eyes have a way of automatically adjusting to whatever color shift they see. But we want the monitor to be more
dependably white. What the sun gives us in normal daylight is around 5000 Kelvin, which is what is normally assumed in a printer
profile. 6500 Kelvin is a happy medium that is usually recommended for computer monitors to simulate normal white. Some people end
up choosing a point between 6500 - 6000 or less to get a white that works in their workflow, but the recommended starting point is 6500
Kelvin.
How to Calibrate the Monitor
Adobe Photoshop comes with a small utility called Adobe Gamma that can be used to adjust your monitor "by eye" in order to get close
to the correct color and brightness/contrast. On Mac systems you also have the Display Calibrator Assistant. Of course, these methods
are "by eye" and, as I said already, our eyes have a way of "white-balancing" themselves to whatever colored light is prevalent. So our
eyes can be fooled, and it is best to depend on something that will give you a dependable, consistent correction of your monitor's
peculiarities: a colorimeter.
Variously referred to as a "puck," a "spider", a "thing that hangs on the screen" - these colorimeters have come up in quality and down
in price enough so that they are attainable for the serious photographer. A colorimeter is a hardware device that will allow you to
calibrate and profile your monitor so that the white point and every color point along the spectrum is consistently and dependably
adjusted to be where it should be. These can be purchased from a number of reputable vendors, including CHROMiX.
The procedure is similar with most modern colorimeters:
1. Install the software & plug the colorimeter into a USB port on your computer
2. Launch the software and run through the procedures given.
3. Place the colorimeter on the surface of the monitor.
4. The software presents colored patches for the colorimeter to read. It compares the colors given to the measurements received
at the colorimeter.
5. The video card in the computer is changed to produce the desired colors on the monitor.
6. An ICC profile is created which the computer operating system and image manipulating applications (like Photoshop) can use
to properly represent color to the viewer.
Now you have your monitor all adjusted and giving you an accurate presentation of what your digital image "really looks like" - at least
as far as your monitor is capable of producing it.

THE PRINTER
Your inkjet printer will print colors differently than will your neighbor's printer - just as your toaster will toast bread differently than your
neighbor's toaster. An ICC color printer profile will characterize how a printer handles color, and makes it possible for color input from
all different situations to be handled intelligently when it gets printed.
"Canned" profiles
Each printer driver comes with ICC color profiles that are specifically designed for the papers that the printer manufacturer sells. For
example: An Epson printer will come with profiles like "Epson Premium Luster". These are designed to correctly print color onto this
5
same kind of paper in your printer. If you are printing with Epson Premium Luster paper, then you would choose this profile when you
print.
If you are printing on other brands of paper, you will find there are few profiles supplied for alternate media and, since they are
"generic", you may not get the perfect color you are looking for. Also, there can be minor differences in consistency between different
printers even if they are of the same model. So, even with manufacturer-supplied profiles with manufacturer paper, a precise color
match might not be achievable.
Custom Profiles
Custom profiles are made specifically for one printer, with one ink set, with one paper type (and one lighting condition). These present
the highest level of accuracy that can be achieved with printer profiles.
Software and hardware packages are available whereby users can print up their own profiling targets, measure them, and create these
custom profiles themselves. These packages usually include software that generates ICC profiles, and a spectrophotometer that is
capable of reading reflective measurements. The cost of these packages runs from $600 to several thousand dollars depending on
quality and extent of features.
As an alternative to "doing it yourself" there are service providers who supply custom printer profiles over the web. There is a cost
advantage to using a service provider, especially if you only need a small number of profiles. In addition, many people find that allowing
a service provider to do their profiling makes life simpler for them. Finally, it is possible to get a better profile from a competent profiling
service than one can make oneself - without investing in several thousand dollar's worth of equipment.
The usual procedure is:
1. Download instructions and a profiling target image.
2. Print the profiling target image on your printer, following very specific instructions.
3. Mail the target print into the profiling service.
4. The service provider measures the target using their spectrophotometric equipment
5. The service provider uses the target measurement to create the profile, and emails the profile back to the customer.
RGB or CMYK
It is useful to know whether your printer will be considered an RGB device or a CMYK device. This cannot be determined merely by
reading the color names of the print cartridges, or by counting the cartridges. Most inkjet printers will use at least four standard inks:
Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, and Black - yet most inkjet printers will need to be profiled as RGB devices. Generally, if a driver is used to
submit images directly to the printer, then it should be profiled as an RGB device. If you are printing through a RIP, then you might be
looking at a true CMYK process. CHROMiX provides a test image which you can print and use to determine which arrangement you
have.
ColorValet Client
CHROMiX has just created a new service which makes this process even easier. Our ColorValet service now features a "Client"
application that you can download onto your computer. The Client walks you through target printing and shipping, and even the profile
installation process once we've finished the measurement! It's easy and fun and almost impossible to make a mistake! (Steve keeps a
proper reserve when writing ColorNews articles and holds back on promoting CHROMiX services, but I HAVE NO SUCH
COMPUNCTION!)
Target Requirements
Here are important points to watch for when printing your profiling target:
 The printer must be in top working order when printing the target.
 Ensure that there is sufficient ink to complete printing.
 Ensure that all nozzles are working perfectly (Do a nozzle check and nozzle cleaning if necessary.)
 Ensure that the target does not get bent or creased when delivering to the profiling service.
 Any printing irregularities (dust spots, streaking) which change the density or color of the colored patches will affect the
measurement of the target.
 Targets must have NO COLOR MANAGEMENT:
o First, ensure that the target image is not converted to a working space when it is opened in Photoshop.
 At the "File > Print with Preview" dialog box,
 choose "Document" in the Print region,
 and choose "No Color Management" in the Options region.
 In the printer driver, navigate into the 'Custom' or 'Advanced' section of the driver and turn all color
management off.
Before you send it, inspect your target for any type of imperfection. A quick review and, if necessary, reprint at this point in the process
could save lots of time and effort, and get your color matching issues resolved that much more quickly.
OK. I have a custom ICC printer profile. Now what?
WHERE TO PUT THE PROFILE
Windows
C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM32\SPOOL\DRIVERS\COLOR
Macintosh
Your ICC printer profile can be placed in several locations:
If you want system-wide access to the profile (i.e. all users), it belongs in
HD>Library>ColorSync>Profiles
If you would prefer to make your profiles available only to one user,
User>Library>ColorSync>Profiles
HOW TO PRINT WITH YOUR PROFILE
When you are ready to print your image in Photoshop, you will:
1. Open it in Photoshop
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 2. Go to File, Print with Preview
3. Under "Color Handling", choose "Let Photoshop determine colors"
4. Choose your new printer profile
5. Choose your rendering intent (usually relative colorimetric or perceptual)
6. Click print
7. Ensure that any color management is still off in the printer driver
You want the conversion to the printer profile to happen in only one place. And Photoshop is the most dependable place around.

(Editor's note: The following are updated instructions for printing through Photoshop CS4:)
When you are ready to print your image in Photoshop, you will:
1. Open it in Photoshop CS4
2. Go to File, Print
3. Under "Color Handling", choose "Photoshop Manages Colors"
4. Choose your new printer profile in the drop-down list
5. Choose your rendering intent (usually relative colorimetric or perceptual)
6. Click print
7. Ensure that any color management is still off in the printer driver
As of Photoshop CS5, there is no long an option for "No Color Management" in the Photoshop print dialog window. There are a few
ways to handle this. The easiest solution is to download the Adobe Print Utility and use it to print a target without color management.
http://kb2.adobe.com/cps/834/cpsid_83497.html
SOFT PROOFING
You've got a monitor profile for your recently-calibrated monitor. You also now have a well-made printer profile that you are printing
through. Your profiled monitor is presenting to you your image as accurately as it can, given the limitations of the color gamut of the
monitor. Your printer profile is printing your image in an intelligent way so that it looks as good as it can, given your intents, and given
the limitations of the printer. Anybody see what's missing? Monitors are capable of showing colors that printers cannot print (like
saturated reds, blues and greens.) And printers can produce colors that are out-of-gamut for most monitors (like some cyans.) Soft-
Proofing allows you to look at your image in Photoshop THROUGH the printer profile, so you can see what your image will look like
when it gets printed through the profile.
1. Open the image in Photoshop
2. Choose "View: Proof Setup->Custom"
3. Profile: Select your new, custom profile
4. Intent: Perceptual or Relative Colorimetric (whichever you used to make the print)
5. Use Black Point Compensation: checked
6. Simulate: Paper White (unchecked), Ink Black (checked)
7. Leave "Preserve Color Numbers" UNchecked (in most cases - see below)
8. Click OK
The monitor now shows what the image will look like when it gets printed, with all the limitations and color adjustments that the printer
and its profile will accomplish. This "soft-proof" should match fairly closely to what gets printed through the same profile.
You can also save this whole setup as a "proof setup file" with a name you choose, so you can quickly view an image through this soft-
proof any time you want to see what your image will look like when printed.
Preserve RGB/CMYK Numbers
No ColorNews article is ever complete without a little bit of Geek Talk, so let's talk about the "Preserve RGB/CMYK Numbers" check
box. (In pre-CS2 versions of Photoshop this is just the "Preserve Color Numbers" box.)
Some of you will want a printer profile to print through when you are printing. I'm thinking of a professional photographer who has an
inkjet printer connected to your computer directly. You are doing this soft-proofing so you can see what your image will look like after
you go to the Print with Preview window and print your photo using the custom profile. When you are at this proof setup stage, you will
want to leave the Preserve numbers box UNchecked. You don't want Photoshop to keep the numbers that make up your colors the
same. You want them to change; you expect the color numbers to change because you are sending the image through a profile, and
that's what a profile does - it changes the color numbers to something else.
Some of you will want to use a printer profile to merely view what a printing system is going to do when you hand off your image to it.
I'm thinking of a press operator who is going to send something through your press, or a minilab operator who has made a profile of
their Fuji Frontier, or just a photographer who is going to send his image to a lab to be printed. In this case, you have a printer profile
(perhaps supplied to you by the out lab, or a custom profile made by someone like CHROMiX for your Frontier) and you are going to
hand over your image to this printing system, and no profile conversion is going to happen downstream from where you are. In this
case, you would CHECK the Preserve RGB/CMYK Numbers checkbox, and Photoshop will display what that printing system will do to
your image when you hand it straight over (without converting to that profile.) With this box checked, you ARE going to keep the device
numbers that make up your color the same, and then hand it over to the downstream printing process, and that printing process is
going to do whatever it will to your image. The profile you are using has captured that effect, and you are bringing that profile to bear to
display what that downstream effect is going to have on your image. Have I said this enough times? I try to say the same things in
different ways in the hopes that one of them will make sense!
____
Still doesn't match? Here are some finer points to consider:
LIGHTING
This is not really a minor point, but it is one that many overlook easily. An image displayed on a monitor that is balanced to a daylight
white point cannot be expected to match a print viewed under normal household lighting conditions. You can't hold your print under
your 65 watt GE table lamp and expect it to look like your calibrated monitor. And you can't trust your eyes to tell you what light sources

7
are "white". (Yipes! Who can you trust?!) Many colorimeters have software that will allow you to take ambient light measurements. Look
into getting some form of daylight-balanced lighting.
Issue #5 of the ColorNews newsletter deals with metamerism and lighting in great detail.
<http://www.colorwiki.com/wiki/Metamerism_Article> <http://www.colorwiki.com/wiki/Color_Management_Myths_16-20>
The White Paper Test
Open a blank image in Photoshop (with a white background) and hold up a sheet of your printing paper. If the white of the screen does
not match the white of the paper, you will not have success getting the actual monitor image to match the print. You can change your
lighting to match the monitor, or you can adjust your monitor to match your lighting. It is easier to do the latter, but it is more proper to
do the former.
EYES AND A BRAIN (perception)
I'm actually not trying to be insulting. I just want us to keep in mind that color is not a THING, but the result of a PROCESS of
perception - and a rather complicated process at that. Light from the sun shines on an object. The light that is NOT absorbed by the
object bounces off of it and enters the eye, and the eye INTERPRETS that visual signal in the brain as a certain color.
If you have waded through all the above and something is still not matching, then (how do I say this diplomatically) you might want to
consider whether you are falling victim to one of many common optical illusions. Maybe your brain is playing tricks on you.
We underestimate how easily our eyes can be fooled. Our eyes adjust to the available illuminant, so you can think you are looking at
something of neutral color that actually is not. Our eyes are very good at noticing the subtlest change in color when two samples are
viewed side by side, but we don't have a very good memory for color. We can't really remember what particular shade of color was on a
flower we shot yesterday, and then successfully compare it to the picture we're looking at today.
Even the colors in our environment (the color of the walls, etc.) will affect how we perceive what we're looking at. People who are
serious about accurate color perception go to the point of painting the walls gray, and wearing gray lab coats over regular clothing,
when making decisions about images. (They probably are not much fun at office parties, but I'm sure their mothers love them.)
Also, when we are used to looking at a favorite picture and seeing it a certain color, we notice any change and tend to think that the
change is "wrong". Consider the possibility that what you have gotten used to is wrong, and now what you are looking at is right for the
first time. This is a tough thing for a lot of people to believe. "Seeing is believing," right?
Optical Illusions
At CHROMiX we like to collect examples of optical illusions. Here is a link to a website that features many interesting optical illusions
concerning our color perception.
http://www.michaelbach.de/ot/
Hopefully this shake your confidence in believing everything you see.
If you are still thinking that YOUR eyes aren't susceptible to these kinds of illusions, here is an excellent example of an optical illusion
from our ColorWiki:
http://www.colorwiki.com/wiki/Image:Pink_green_dots.gif
If your eyes follow the movement of the rotating pink dot, the dots will remain only one color, pink. However if you stare at the black "+"
in the center, the moving dot turns to green. Now, concentrate on the black "+" in the center of the picture. After a short period, all the
pink dots will slowly disappear, and you will only see only a single green dot rotating. It's amazing how our brain works. There really is
no green dot, and the pink ones really don't disappear.

Test image
Use a neutral test image. And by neutral I mean an image with known neutral colors (this can be verified using the eye dropper in
Photoshop and reading 128, 128,128, for example). We like to use the Fuji Test image because it has a wide variety of saturations &
image scenes - and the background behind the pitchers in the Fuji Test image is truly neutral. You can find other test images on the
home page of the ColorWiki.
<http://www.colorwiki.com/wiki/Test_Images>

STILL DOESN'T MATCH??? (Well, I hope you figure it out soon.... this newsletter's getting too long!)

Rendering intent mis-match

Are you printing with the same rendering intent that you are using to soft-proof?
Is the color within your device's ability to reproduce?
Due to gamut differences between your image, monitor and printer, colors on the monitor may not be printable (e.g., saturated blues,
greens and reds), and colors not visible on the monitor may appear on the print (often cyans).
Profiling workflow vs. production workflow
When monitors and printers are not matching, the cause is frequently traced to some change between how the profiling target was
printed, and how the regular production work is now being printed with the profile. Ideally, these two paths should be identical - except,
of course, for the fact that while printing the target NO color management is used, and during production color management IS used in
one (and only one) place to convert the image using the profile as it goes to the printer. The profile captures the characteristics of a
printing process at a certain place in time. If something has changed, then your color might have changed. Sometimes, all you can do
at the end of the day is make a new profile.

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Create efficient Adobe Illustrator files

To create efficient Adobe Illustrator files, do one or more of the following:

 Save imported raster image files at a resolution optimized for the intended print resolution. Make sure that the files' resolution
in pixels per inch (ppi) or samples per inch (spi) is twice the line screen (lpi) of the printer. (That is, lpi x 2 = ppi or spi.)
 Use optimal resolution settings for rasterized objects and effects by doing one or more of the following:
o To specify transparency settings, choose File > Print, then choose Advanced from the menu on the left. Specify a
Line Art And Text Resolution Option setting from a Transparency Preset or from a custom transparency setting that
reflects the printer's resolution.
o To specify a resolution for a raster effect, choose Effect > Document Raster Effects Settings, and then specify 72 ppi
for resolution. Before printing a document, specify a resolution that reflects the printer's resolution.
 When printing separations, specify the appropriate screen ruling to produce 256 levels of gray. To specify the screen ruling in
Illustrator, choose File > Print, and then choose Output from the menu on the left.
 Limit the number of text transformations, type along a path, and typeface changes.
 Delete or move objects hidden behind other elements to a nonprinting layer.
 Copy and paste Illustrator elements between documents instead of placing them as EPS files.
 Use gradient fills instead of blends when printing to a PostScript Level 2 device.

Note: If you print to a PostScript Level 1 or to a PostScript-compatible device, choose File > Print > Graphics and select
Compatible Gradient Printing. Examples of PostScript-compatible devices include the Apple Personal LaserWriter NT and
Hewlett-Packard Series II or III printer using a PostScript Level 1 cartridge. PostScript-compatible devices (also called clones)
include older QMS printers, for example.
 
 Use the minimum number of steps when creating a blend.
 Ungroup elements and nested groups.
 Simplify paths by using the minimum number of points required to draw the path.
 Split long complex paths into shorter line segments using the scissors tool. Before you split paths, consider saving a copy of
the file; doing so allows you to use the original, unsplit file if needed.
 Use the Object > Path > Simplify command to remove unnecessary anchor points from complex objects.
 Transform (that is, rotate, scale, and skew) or crop raster image files in an image-editing application (such as Adobe
Photoshop) before importing them.
 Use clipping paths (masks) and compound paths sparingly.
 Use duplicated elements instead of pattern fills, or expand objects with pattern fills before printing. (Before expanding objects,
consider saving a copy of the file; doing so allows you to use the original, unexpanded objects if needed.)
 Eliminate any unused patterns, spot colors, gradients, brushes, symbols, or styles.
 Limit the number of complex elements in the document. For information, see the section "Complex Elements," below.
 Use the Cleanup command to delete stray points, unpainted objects, and empty text paths from the document.
 Whenever possible, link raster image files instead of embedding them.
 Use Symbols for repeating elements to ensure that illustrator saves and uses only one definition, which improves drawing
performance.
 Rasterize Bristle Brushes (CS5) paths to reduce the complexity and number of the Bristle Brush paths. Select the Bristle Brush
paths and choose Object > Rasterize.
Decrease print time when printing Adobe Illustrator files
To decrease the time it takes to print an Illustrator document, do one or more of the following:
 If you plan to place an EPS image in an Illustrator document, save the image in binary format instead of ASCII (hexadecimal)
format.
 Increase the flatness value, by doing one of the following:
o Set a lower output resolution for the Illustrator document. (Using a lower output resolution creates less accurate
curves, but improves print performance.) Choose File > Print, and then choose Graphics. Then drag the Flatness
Quality/Speed slider to the right.
o Set a higher flatness value at the printer.
 Use fonts that are available at the printer (that is, resident in the printer's hard disk or ROM). If you are using fonts that reside
on the printer, select None for font downloading in the Graphics pane of the Print dialog box.
 Specify the smallest paper size needed. Choose File > Print and specify a page size. Larger page sizes increase the amount
of memory required by the printer to image the page.
 Print through Ethernet connections.
 Print to a PostScript Level 2 or 3 printer.
 Print to a device with more RAM.
 Print at a lower resolution.
 Make sure you're using the most current printer driver for your printer. Contact your printer manufacturer for information about
which printer driver to use, or for driver updates.
 If you are printing to a PostScript printer, make sure you're using the correct PostScript Printer Description (PPD) file, or use a
generic PPD file. Contact your printer manufacturer for information about which PPD file to use.

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  If you are printing to a non-PostScript printer, and your printer driver includes a color optimization option (for example, Vivid
Color, Intelligent Color), disable that option. For more information, see the documentation for the printer driver.
 Set the Quality/Speed slider all the way to the left to flatten all transparent artwork as Raster instead of vector. Choose File >
Print, and then choose Advanced from the menu. Select Custom located to the right of the Preset menu and move the
Raster/Vector slider all the way to the left.
Complex elements in an Illustrator document
The greater the number or combination of elements listed below, the more memory-intensive the Illustrator document. Effects and
elements that have the potential to be memory intensive or complex include:
 Compound paths (for example, text converted to paths)
 Pattern fills
 Gradient fills
 Transparency and raster effects
 3D effects (Illustrator CS and later)
 Symbols
 Masks
 Paths with many points or curves
 Transformations
 Text on a path
 Stroked text
 Text with horizontal scaling, tracking, or kerning applied
 Large page sizes
 Downloadable fonts
 High-resolution printing
 Linked or embedded raster images
 Mesh objects
 Live Trace Objects (Illustrator CS2 and later)
 Bristle Brushes (Illustrator CS5 and later)

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