Do Away With Proofs

Many printers and customers will use proofs as a crutch. Both use them as the bible for color, and in the time of Gutenberg that was the way to go. With that said, it is my experience that the best color reproduction and best press production overall is done when a proof is not at press side.

You may be asking, "Why would a publisher and/or printer want to run a job without a proof?" Well, for one thing, there are at least 19 different types of SWOP-certified proofs; that is a wide range of proofing systems. Which one do they choose? What happens if their edit pages are proofed using an ink-jet proofing system but their advertiser is using a continuous-tone proof? This will lead to confusion in the pressroom. Why would they want to do this to themselves?