Why do I need an Impress and an Epson?
The reality is that all output devices are not created equally. They each interpret the data / information contained in a file in a different manner. That’s why when you output your file on your printer it may be just right but when it’s output on another printer it may come out with the colours shifted – sometimes to the point where it looks like another file has been used. This is critical when a full colour piece is meant to go to press. You don’t want to discover the shifted colours when the job is printed.
Epsons and Impresses are created from the same ripped data as the CTP plates and show the exact information that will appear on the press sheets. The Epson Inkjet Printer has been calibrated so that it produces a cmyk proof which is exactly the same, dot for dot, as it is recorded on the CTP plates. The colour you see on the Epson is the colour you will see on the printed piece.
An Impress is a lower res proof, the purpose of which is to show how the same information that is ripped to plate, will ‘back up’, will be imposed and serves as a final check for missing fonts etc. Both Impresses and Epsons serve as a final check of the information that will be recorded on plate. They ensure that “what you expect to see is what you get”.