I am working on a line art illustration which will use 4 different spot colours (so 4 printing plates). Not an easy job, since lots of problems occur. I hope to discuss comprehensively each of the (four) main problems by a short overview of the components my final illustration will consists of.
[1] A background all-over pattern. I designed a basic element that I saved as a 1200 dpi black-and-white TIFF image (1-Bit). Since ID (1.5.2) doesn't seem to allow tiling the element in e.g. a rectangle object, I used Photoshop to do the job. Because my final background will have to cover the whole of my page, the canvas in which I tiled the element, has the same size as the ID document (+ extra 'bleed'); result: an 8 MB file! (= PROBLEM 1, badly solved) This pattern must be printed in, let's say, PMS 1 (grey) [see 2.b].
[2] A cross-formed object with a stroke on the outside edges [2.a], filled with a second pattern, to be printed over a continuous colour fill that needs to be visible [2.b]. This cross-formed object will be on top of [1]. Same problem here with the pattern (tiling!): 3 MB. But anyway, I got used waiting while my machine is processing my over-killed images... Leaving me with another, unsolved problem: How to create a cross-formed object in ID that I can fill with my pattern [2.b], and give a stroke [2.a].
[2.a] I drew two boxes using the 'rectangle tool', filling them each with PMS 2 (red). These both boxes being selected, I applied successively 'Object>Compound Paths>Make', then 'Object>Compound Paths>Release' and finally 'Object>Compound Paths>Make' again (curious indeed, but this complicated action is necessary, otherwise there will occur a 'gap' where both boxes cross...). Now I got my cross, conceived as one object, I can place the pattern image [2.b]. Next step is applying the stroke: simply applying a stroke, doesn't work: the stroke doesn't follow the edges of my cross, but instead it is running over the pattern! (= PROBLEM 2)
[2.b] The pattern I created must be printed in PMS 3 (yellow) over the colour of the boxes that compose my cross, i.e. PMS 2 (red). As long as my pattern is black (black and white TIFF, remember!), ID recognises the white background to be transparent, leaving my PMS 2 (red) background visible. But since black should change here in PMS 3 (yellow), I thought of switching in Photoshop the mode of the image into CMYK (instead of the 1-Bit image), colourising the black as Y (yellow), deleting the white background, turning it into transparent, and finally saving it as EPS. Alas, back in ID, updating the linked pattern file to my new colourised, transparent EPS image, the transparent background is lost and replaced by white, making invisible the PMS 2 (red) fill of the cross. Things would be much easier, if ID would allow to colourise a line art black and white TIFF image, not by giving the white background a colour, but by changing the black into whatever colour of the swatch palette. Does this possibility exists in ID 1.5.2? If not, how can I solve the above described PROBLEM 3?
[3] A line art drawing, using 1 new spot (PMS 4, 'blue') for some lines, and the 3 already used spots, each for different lines and surfaces in the remaining parts. This drawing is placed on top of the cross pattern [2.b], using an ID generated clipping path around the outside edges. The difficulty will now be how to apply four different spots to the drawing, so that they will match with the already used spots in the ID document, adding a fourth one as well. Surely, the job needs to be done properly, since each of the four spot colours used, must separate into four and only four different plates. Besides that, converting every component into a CMYK mix, will not solve our problems, since we need to print in pantone colours, without rasterising the clear and crisp lines of the drawing. Using the pencil tool will solve the problem neither: the line art drawing is too complex to manually retrace the different parts. Would working with different colour channels in Photoshop be a solution? Or are there simpler ones? (= PROBLEM 4)
So, I hope to have explained my problems briefly, but scrupulously enough. I summarise in short:
PROBLEM 1: Is it possible to tile a simple element?
PROBLEM 2: How to create a complex formed object, so that added strokes only afflict the outer edges of the object?
PROBLEM 3: How to import (place) images, using only one colour (e.g. PMS or even process yellow) and a transparent background, in an object that has already another colour fill? Put in other words: Is it possible to colourise a line art black and white TIFF image, not by giving the white background a colour, but, by changing the black into whatever colour of the swatch palette?
PROBLEM 4: How to give different parts of a line art drawing, scanned as a 1200 dpi bitmap, different spot colours, that can be imported in ID properly?
Who can help me with either of the discussed problems? Thanks a lot!
Wsewdn
[1] A background all-over pattern. I designed a basic element that I saved as a 1200 dpi black-and-white TIFF image (1-Bit). Since ID (1.5.2) doesn't seem to allow tiling the element in e.g. a rectangle object, I used Photoshop to do the job. Because my final background will have to cover the whole of my page, the canvas in which I tiled the element, has the same size as the ID document (+ extra 'bleed'); result: an 8 MB file! (= PROBLEM 1, badly solved) This pattern must be printed in, let's say, PMS 1 (grey) [see 2.b].
[2] A cross-formed object with a stroke on the outside edges [2.a], filled with a second pattern, to be printed over a continuous colour fill that needs to be visible [2.b]. This cross-formed object will be on top of [1]. Same problem here with the pattern (tiling!): 3 MB. But anyway, I got used waiting while my machine is processing my over-killed images... Leaving me with another, unsolved problem: How to create a cross-formed object in ID that I can fill with my pattern [2.b], and give a stroke [2.a].
[2.a] I drew two boxes using the 'rectangle tool', filling them each with PMS 2 (red). These both boxes being selected, I applied successively 'Object>Compound Paths>Make', then 'Object>Compound Paths>Release' and finally 'Object>Compound Paths>Make' again (curious indeed, but this complicated action is necessary, otherwise there will occur a 'gap' where both boxes cross...). Now I got my cross, conceived as one object, I can place the pattern image [2.b]. Next step is applying the stroke: simply applying a stroke, doesn't work: the stroke doesn't follow the edges of my cross, but instead it is running over the pattern! (= PROBLEM 2)
[2.b] The pattern I created must be printed in PMS 3 (yellow) over the colour of the boxes that compose my cross, i.e. PMS 2 (red). As long as my pattern is black (black and white TIFF, remember!), ID recognises the white background to be transparent, leaving my PMS 2 (red) background visible. But since black should change here in PMS 3 (yellow), I thought of switching in Photoshop the mode of the image into CMYK (instead of the 1-Bit image), colourising the black as Y (yellow), deleting the white background, turning it into transparent, and finally saving it as EPS. Alas, back in ID, updating the linked pattern file to my new colourised, transparent EPS image, the transparent background is lost and replaced by white, making invisible the PMS 2 (red) fill of the cross. Things would be much easier, if ID would allow to colourise a line art black and white TIFF image, not by giving the white background a colour, but by changing the black into whatever colour of the swatch palette. Does this possibility exists in ID 1.5.2? If not, how can I solve the above described PROBLEM 3?
[3] A line art drawing, using 1 new spot (PMS 4, 'blue') for some lines, and the 3 already used spots, each for different lines and surfaces in the remaining parts. This drawing is placed on top of the cross pattern [2.b], using an ID generated clipping path around the outside edges. The difficulty will now be how to apply four different spots to the drawing, so that they will match with the already used spots in the ID document, adding a fourth one as well. Surely, the job needs to be done properly, since each of the four spot colours used, must separate into four and only four different plates. Besides that, converting every component into a CMYK mix, will not solve our problems, since we need to print in pantone colours, without rasterising the clear and crisp lines of the drawing. Using the pencil tool will solve the problem neither: the line art drawing is too complex to manually retrace the different parts. Would working with different colour channels in Photoshop be a solution? Or are there simpler ones? (= PROBLEM 4)
So, I hope to have explained my problems briefly, but scrupulously enough. I summarise in short:
PROBLEM 1: Is it possible to tile a simple element?
PROBLEM 2: How to create a complex formed object, so that added strokes only afflict the outer edges of the object?
PROBLEM 3: How to import (place) images, using only one colour (e.g. PMS or even process yellow) and a transparent background, in an object that has already another colour fill? Put in other words: Is it possible to colourise a line art black and white TIFF image, not by giving the white background a colour, but, by changing the black into whatever colour of the swatch palette?
PROBLEM 4: How to give different parts of a line art drawing, scanned as a 1200 dpi bitmap, different spot colours, that can be imported in ID properly?
Who can help me with either of the discussed problems? Thanks a lot!
Wsewdn