Rant: Paid $200 for a proof that looked fine on screen but printed totally wrong

Last month I sent a brochure to a local print shop in Lincoln. I checked the proof on my monitor, everything looked perfect, colors were bright and the images popped. I approved it and paid $200 upfront for a run of 500 copies. When the boxes showed up, all the blues had turned into this gross muddy purple and the photos had this weird green tint. Turns out the designer exported everything in RGB and the shop's RIP converted it to CMYK in the worst way possible. I learned the hard way that you gotta request a hard proof before you pay for a full run. Has anyone else gotten burned by trusting a soft proof that looked nothing like the final print?

2 comments

2 Comments

paul_burns15d ago

Yeah I gotta be honest I used to think hard proofs were a waste of money. I figured if it looks good on my calibrated monitor it should print fine right? Then I had this exact same thing happen with a batch of postcards for a client back in March. The proof on screen had these nice warm oranges but when the boxes arrived everything looked like it had been dipped in coffee. 200 bucks down the drain and I had to redo the whole thing with a different printer who actually gave me a printed proof first. That experience totally changed my mind about trusting soft proofs for anything important. Now I don't care if it costs extra I always ask for a physical proof before I give the go ahead for a full run.

the_aaron15d ago

Buddy of mine lost a whole wedding album order the same way.