do print templates from xara resources (365) come in pantone and bleed?

Hi there folks

so my first brochure is going to the printers and I am feeling a bit nervous:eek::eek::eek::eek::eek:...I've used an A5 print template from the XARA online resources which automatically makes everything this gorgeous grey scale colour and on screen it all looks fabulous, but I am wondering if the template, since it is a print template, from Xara's online resources, actually defines the colours then as pantone or if I need to do that seperately?

Also do I need to set a bleed margin even though it's a template or are bleed margins included?

and lastly, can I use an image filter to make the pictures go black and white or will that not be adequate for professional printing?

I am using xara 365

Hope someone can help me?

thanks in advance
Linda

Hi Linda

Are you printing Pantone colors or just trying to match the colors?

You can check for bleed in Page Options > Page Size

If you have images or objects that extend beyond the page then you do want this enabled (which will show a bleed margin outside of the page. Your content should extend to that border unless your printing company specifies otherwise.

As for grayscale. Xara STILL does not support grayscale. So even if you create a black and white image, it will be exported as RGB or CMYK.

I use Photoshop just to make a true grayscale image.

I have moved this thread to Xara Design Chat.

From what I recall, the print templates use named colors, not spot color.

If spot color is what you want, I also do not believe Xara products can use spot color in an image or at least correctly.

As Gary mentioned, grayscale images are also not possible in an Xara product.

You can add Pantone colors to your document from the Color Gallery. They appear on the Color Line palette as circles.

And I think you can select all instances of a Theme Color in the Names Gallery and then change the theme color to the Pantone color.

I have not done this for a long time though and I may be missing something.

Pantone colors will export to PDF as spot colors. But any color such as an outline that is not a Pantone color will export CMYK. As I recall it is kind of tricky.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by gwpriester

Hi Linda

Are you printing Pantone colors or just trying to match the colors?

You can check for bleed in Page Options > Page Size

If you have images or objects that extend beyond the page then you do want this enabled (which will show a bleed margin outside of the page. Your content should extend to that border unless your printing company specifies otherwise.

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Hi GW,
I've never really looked at this before and it so happens that I am currently working on an A4 bleed menu that will be printed on A4+ paper - so I've allowed 5mm bleed as requested by the (digital) printer. What exactly is the outer margin? in my document this is set at 200mm - this was "automatic" as I never specified it - is this the equivalent of the "old fashioned" type area - where one allowed at least a 5-10mm "margin" inside the page to ensure that any text or images didn't land up being to close the the trimmed page size?
I changed the measurement to 190mm but can't see any guide frame or difference in the document.

When you check the Bleed Margin box Xara automatically adds a red border outside the page. This is the amount of space your images need to extend beyond the page if they are bleed images. You can change this distance in the text box to the right.

Leave your page size as is and not change it.

My example shows Live, Trim, and Bleed areas.

Live is used more for magazine work and indicates a safe area in which all type and graphics should be unless the graphics bleed.

Trim is the size the page will be trimmed to. If you page is A4 then this is the trim (or actual) size.

Bleed is the margin for graphics to extend if they print off the page. The portion of the graphics that extend off the page will be trimmed off to trim size.

The live area applies to any design whether there is bleed or not. No important aspect of a design should be in the live area. This applies to text but also any logo or other design element. The live area is typically the equal of the bleed amount. This helps insure any elements that are desired not to be trimmed is not too close to the trim.

And, btw, in order to get bleed to actually hit the PDF, Xara still requires one to visit the Print dialog, click on the Options button, click on the Imagesetting tab, click on the checkbox for Output Printer's marks, make one's choices, click OK, then click on the Cancel button, then export to PDF.

And if you need to export with bleed but without any marks, like I need to do some times, you need to revisit the Print dialog, uncheck all the marks but leave the checkbox checked for Output Printer's Marks, then OK, then Cancel, then generate the PDF.

What a bunch of crap. This all should be in the Export to PDF dialog.

The only redeeming grace, as it were, is that the choice(s) one makes in the Print dialog are saved in the file. Even so, one should save a template for print work unless ya want to go through that each time. The page size can be altered on such a template and retain the bleed.

Oh, and if one needs asymmetrical bleed? Not possible.

Hi there folks :)

So my brochure went off and it came out really beautifully :) :) I set the bleed margin to 3mm as the printer required and then dragged the images etc to go beyond the bleed margin, was a bit fiddly, BUT came out very pretty :) My ONLY problem was that it had to be in pure black and white and I didn't know how to do it, so had to hire a freelancer :( does anyone here know how to set pantone colours to pure black and white?

thanks in advance
Linda

thanks a mil for this :) :) professional printing and Pantone colours are not my strong suit so this is of great help :)

Ah ok so there is a good reason why I couldn't find any settings for pure black and white then :( what a shame...here's hoping it'll be added soon :)

You can do black and white in Xara for professional offset print.
Only bitmaps can't be converted in greyscale in Xara. For this You need Photoshop, Affinity Photo or an other Bitmapeditor with color management.
In the video You see how I did it.

The overprint part in Xara works only with text and vectorelements. Bitmaps or some effects like shadow will be flatend to Bitmaps and are seppareted in 4C in the PDF.
With no named color 100% black in the CMYK-Palette the overprint doesn't work.

Hi again Ernie, this video is also showing "This video is unavailable" either within TG or on YouTube.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Egg Bramhill

Hi again Ernie, this video is also showing "This video is unavailable" either within TG or on YouTube.

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Hi Egg,
now it may work.

100% Black works fine. If you move the K slider down a skosh, then back to 100%, you'll find the black is indeed 100%. No need for a named 100% Black color (unless one plans on using it as an actual named color).

Or, make one's own default palette like I have. Oh, and if 100% K is desired now that there are text styles, update all the text styles and save the template...and have a backup of the palette and any templates that use it for when XDP is updated.

As for overprinting a gray bitmap, just set the transparency to Multiply. It is exactly the same as being able to overprint K in an image.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by mwenz

100% Black works fine. If you move the K slider down a skosh, then back to 100%, you'll find the black is indeed 100%. No need for a named 100% Black color (unless one plans on using it as an actual named color).

Or, make one's own default palette like I have. Oh, and if 100% K is desired now that there are text styles, update all the text styles and save the template...and have a backup of the palette and any templates that use it for when XDP is updated.

As for overprinting a gray bitmap, just set the transparency to Multiply. It is exactly the same as being able to overprint K in an image.

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Hi mwenz,
we got this in a further thread.
And no: black unnamed don't print pure black and does not overprint. A greyscale bitmap set to multiply in the transparency made a 4 color flatten thing but not an overprinting grey image.

Right-click on the text, Imagesetting, overprint fill for the black text.

Files attached.

Your output is PDF/X4. In this case all transparencies saved like native.
For my Print-Work I need PDF/X1a and there will be all transparecies flatten to 4C.

The great problem is that only a few printer shops have the new stuff to use the Adobe PDF Print Engine (APPE). An older Raster Image Processor (RIP) can't handle PDF/X4 and will flatten them to 4C. There is a workarround to make two exposed films and than print with 2 colors where black overprints.

I don't know where the mistake is, but I don't got the unnamed black from Your file as pure black in output PDF. If I name the color it works.

Thanks for Your efford.

Yes, that's true (re pdf/x-4 with transparency).

But the overprint on the image produces a similar (but not exact) result whether one is flattening transparency or not. Going with PDF/X-1a will produce a slightly darker image (in the darkest regions mostly). But I would expect and it can be compensated for on an image with high contrast.

But the main point here is that overprinting a gray image on a colored background will always produce a 4-color image in that all required inks are used.

It is only an issue if the panel/colored area is on a black/percentage of black region. In any case, though, you can export to PDF/X-4 and use Acrobat (which you have) or pdfToolbox to do the conversion to PDF/X1a and the results are identical as if you are using PDF/X-4 but with the requisite flattened transparency.

Yeah, thats all possible. Calas I own to. If I do Print-Designs for my personal purposes I can choose the print shop I like. So I havn't problems with PDF/X4.

For the publish companies I work, I must hold there requirements and they say: PDF/X1a, 4C. Some booktitles will be print on Digital-Print-Machines like Xerox or HP-Indigo in only 100-1.000 Ex.
There is no matter to get black to overprint or be pure.

For the big pad heights it looks different. Most of the Printingcompanies are in China, Czech Republik or other states and they work not all with our industry standards.

You know like me, there are several ways to get there.

Servus Ernie

The different output needs, sometimes for a single job, is exactly why I use PDF/X-4, including using RGB images. They can, with Acrobat or pdfToolbox, be repurposed, even with different profiles (or none) to fit the printing equipment requirements at anytime. Most of the time it is myself that needs to change the PDF, but most all the print establishments I use (one exception being large format) can use PDF/X-4 themselves. Lucky Me!

I do wish to point out that Xara does need to take this grayscale issue further, as well as obviate the need for Acorbat/pdfToolbox to do any conversions. But it has improved in the last X number of versions. It should be possible to do this right in XDP. But then, it also still needs color management, etc. So...

Best regards, Mike

Quote:

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Originally Posted by mwenz

The different output needs, sometimes for a single job, is exactly why I use PDF/X-4, including using RGB images. They can, with Acrobat or pdfToolbox, be repurposed, even with different profiles (or none) to fit the printing equipment requirements at anytime. Most of the time it is myself that needs to change the PDF, but most all the print establishments I use (one exception being large format) can use PDF/X-4 themselves. Lucky Me!

I do wish to point out that Xara does need to take this grayscale issue further, as well as obviate the need for Acorbat/pdfToolbox to do any conversions. But it has improved in the last X number of versions. It should be possible to do this right in XDP. But then, it also still needs color management, etc. So...

Best regards, Mike

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Yeah I agree.
Colormanagement is a must have for a design aplication that called it self „Professional”.

Deleted to bump up. Need urgent answer. xx