A press check is the last moment you can change anything, and the first time you see the real thing. For issue 04 of Fieldnotes I spent six hours at a printer in Malmö, next to a four-colour press and a very patient press operator called Lars.
What I bring
Everything fits in one tote bag.
The approved proofs, marked up with the colours that matter most.
A loupe, a small torch and a printed colour bar for reference.
The previous issue, so we can match the cover stock and the violet.
Something to eat. Make-ready always takes longer than planned.
What I look at
The first sheets off the press go under a daylight lamp next to the proof. I check the violet on the cover first, because readers will judge the whole issue by it. Then skin tones in the photography, then registration on the small type, then the solid areas for streaks.
The colour bar along the edge of the sheet tells the operator what to adjust. I describe what I see, such as “the violet is a little red”, and let Lars translate it into ink settings. He knows his press better than I ever will.
What I sign off
When a sheet looks right, we both sign it and it becomes the reference for the rest of the run. Every few hundred sheets one is pulled and compared with it. I stay for the start of each section and then let the press do its job.
What I learned this time
The violet was harder to hold on uncoated stock than the proof suggested. We ran it with a touch more magenta and slightly less ink overall, which kept the dots from spreading. Without the press check it would have printed muddy on 3,000 copies.