Last month, we published an interview with one of our clients who we referred to as “Jane.” She shared how she used SpotOn Color in her color management workflow and what she considered essential features. You can read that blog post by clicking here.

Benefiting From Features

We discovered during our interview that while Jane is a frequent SpotOn Color user, we had the opportunity to help her with her workflow. There were some features in SpotOn Color that she either wasn’t aware of or wasn’t using to her benefit.

For example, we realized Jane was exporting her results into an Excel spreadsheet so that she could share the data with multiple facilities in her company.

We were able to show her through a Zoom meeting (Zoom really is popular right now, isn’t it?) that SpotOn has a reporting module where you can view a Verify Device Report. It’s easier to read visually and using this feature would save Jane some steps in her color management workflow.

The Bonnie And Clyde Scenario

In addition, we told Jane the store of Bonnie and Clyde, two identical inkjet printers that were originally calibrated to match the GRACoL® specification. Over time, both printers drifted away from the GRACoL target and then later the two printers were no longer printing the same as each other. The same file printed on both printers turned out very differently and it was quite noticeable.

However both printers were still technically passing the GRACoL specification so how could they be printing so differently?

We showed Jane our bullseye visual. The printers did drift, and they drifted in different directions. So while they both were within tolerance of the GRACol specification, they were far apart from each other visually.

 Above: Both printers compared to GRACoL.

Above: Printer 2 compared to Printer 1.

SpotOn Color has many features in both Analyze and Verify. And as we have seen, even our most robust users aren’t necessarily aware of all of those features or how they can be of use in your color management strategy.

If you are a SpotOn Color user who would like to learn more about the program’s features or if you are considering incorporating SpotOn into your workflow, contact us to schedule a demonstration.

It’s easy for the developers and dealers of color management software to talk about the advantages and disadvantages of that software. We are always looking for better ways to explain our features; such as Visual Match Scorecard.

What we can’t do is tell you about the software as it is experienced by someone who decided to invest in it and use it as part of their daily color management strategy. So, we found someone who could.

Jane* is a regular user of our SpotOn Color Analyze and Verify software. She also incorporates our Visual Match Scorecard feature into her everyday profiling.

During a recent conversation with her, we realized that no one could tell her personal story but Jane herself. So, in a traditional question-and-answer style, we interviewed her.

The Interview About SpotOn Color Visual Match

What kind of processes, substrates, printers, etc. do you use?

My company prints grand format dye sublimation prints on textiles. We use both the transfer and direct method of printing. Our company also uses UV and latex printers. We have the capability to print on any rigid substrate as well as soft signage.

What are your color management pain points or what issues do you run into most often?

One word: gray. To be more specific, neutral gray.

People have multiple opinions about gray and throw out the term without actually realizing what they are asking. Gray, by definition, is neutral. This means that there are no colors in it. Many people think that a color that does not have much chroma is gray, when in reality, it is a color.

One of the other problems I have run into is people are stuck in the dark ages of printing where relying on eyes and memory was the way to color manage. We have tools, like spectrophotometers, and software, like SpotOn Color, that are driven by data as a means of measuring and analyzing colors, profiles and consistency.

Being A Regular SpotOn Color User

You’re a regular SpotOn Color user. How do you use it most?

Regular might be an understatement. Not only do I use it every time I profile, but also when verifying profile validity. SpotOn Color has been a game changer for me as a color manager. I use it to see how close our profiles are within different tolerance sets as well as how the profiles measure over time.

Editors Note: The image above is an actual report from one of Jane’s verifications. Step one is to get as close to an industry specification as possible, using Verify to compare to published specifications like G7 Targeted.

Visual Match Scorecard

How does the Visual Match Scorecard fit into your color management strategy?

The Visual Match Scorecard is critical for my position. I measure the profile once I complete it to see how we compare to the tolerances set by Idealliance. Then I make that my reference with the plant, machine, substrate, resolution and a date stamp.

I use this reference to compare the machine/profile/resolution combination to itself and to different machines across the company’s different locations. I have set up a profile verification program for each facility in our company to send me a control wedge along with other control prints and a nozzle check every two weeks. The visual match score is recorded in a simple spreadsheet to track the degradation of each printer/substrate/resolution combination. It helps us visualize possible issues.

Editor’s Note: The Visual Match Scorecard excels when it’s time to compare today with weeks or months ago when the baseline print was created. In the world of grand format dye sublimation there can be significant drift but maintaining a good visual match score has proven to be sufficient for the work Jane’s company produces.

Color Management Challenges

What’s the biggest color management challenge you have solved using SpotOn Color?

Before I was hired, the most color “management” was having one profile that was created during RIP training many years ago. Our team members used their eyes and many workarounds to create an acceptable output. By managing the color and proving by numbers/science that we are now within industry standards, which they did not know about, was one of my initial challenges.

One of the biggest challenges has been using the data and visual match of our profiles over time to see if we have shifted and are within tolerances. We have been using the data I am able to pull from SpotOn Color to prove when I need to re-profile, anticipate potential issues and confirm shifts we are seeing visually through data. I wouldn’t be successful in my position without SpotOn Color.

The Advantages of SpotOn Color

What are the biggest advantages in using SpotOn Color and Visual Match?

The biggest advantage of Visual Match is being able to see the consistency of a printer/substrate/profile combination. By tracking the performance of the printers, we are able to understand what variables are causing problems with data rather than relying on our eyes. Managing color across three facilities across the United States is not an easy task. This feature has allowed me to visually see how far the printers have drifted and when to get them back into tolerance.

Editor’s Note: During our interview, we discovered that Jane was exporting her data into an Excel spreadsheet to share with her different facilities. Since SpotOn Color has powerful reporting tools that Jane either wasn’t aware of or just wasn’t using, we realized we had an opportunity to help a client with their workflow. The results of that opportunity will be published in our next blog post.

Best Feature of SpotOn Color

In your opinion, what is the best feature of SpotOn?

Visual Match Scorecard, without a question. It allows color management to go beyond tolerances and actually analyze profiles across multiple platforms. Two printers can hit the same tolerance but not visually match between the two. The human vision is limited and is different for each individual, but the data does not change and is not subjective.

Jane’s Journey

Tell us about your color management journey.

During my junior year, my school offered a class for printing and photography. I learned L*a*b* and printing techniques. Then in graduate school, I worked at two sister print facilities. Not long after graduation, I had the opportunity to work at a fast-paced fine art printing company to run their print department. Three years later, I took an SGIA Color Management Boot Camp with ColorCasters and decided to pursue color management. Now I am the color manager for three grand format printing facilities in the U.S.

*Editor’s note: Jane is a real person working with SpotOn Color in a real-world printing environment. While she does prefer to remain anonymous for this post, we conducted the interview via email by asking questions which she replied with her answers. While her answers were lightly edited for grammar, spelling and punctuation, the answers given here are genuine.