Are you sure you have the color you want? Are you sure it will look exactly the way you want it to? A drawdown is one way to make certain you know.
Every so often we have a customer who is particularly focused on getting perfect color. Perhaps they are using an unusual ink or paper. Perhaps they are printing their most important design ever. Or perhaps, they’re like us and just really want to be sure it’s spot-on.
Customers like this will look at a proof of their work and wonder if they can be sure the chosen colors will match the final project?
Depending on the nature of your project, a PDF proof could be perfectly fine. But when color is critical, and you’re uncertain how the color will look on your paper, then you may want to request a draw-down.
Simply put, a drawdown is a sample spread of ink that your print provider presses onto a paper. For offset printed jobs the drawdown is the best way to see exactly how the ink will look on a given paper. There are machines that will create the drawdown, but many shops still just hand roll the ink onto the paper. That’s what we do here, or we have one made by the color company we are working with.
The drawdown is the only truly effective way of seeing how ink will look on a given stock of paper, but it does have it’s drawbacks. For one thing, a drawdown just shows a single ink on a sheet. It won’t show you how it interacts with other colors. And if you know your color theory, then you know the colors nearby will each influence and effect one another.
Producing a drawdown also adds an expense to a printing project. If you look through a Pantone swatchbook and select your colors (appropriate to coated or uncoated paper), and then see a pdf proof that shows those colors, most often that is enough.
But, perhaps you are ordering a large run, and the paper or ink you are using is a concern. In those instances you might want to ask for a draw-down.
Of course, the best thing to do when color is paramount is talk with your printer early and often. Be certain they know what you need and that you know what they need from you or your designer.
Have questions? Need help with any other printing needs? Feel free to give us a call or stop by our shop.
