Pdf 2.0 / pdf/x-6

arossetti

arossetti

Well-known member
Anyone have additional information as to how this may change file handling/prepress? I see that spectral data can be used as opposed to LAB. This mimics what ICCMax did with allowing LUT's to be left in spectral data instead of LAB. Sounds like it will also allow you to have multiple output intents per file.

What else can it do for print?

What advantage does spectral data have vs LAB? Is this the answer to OBA's that the industry needs? Will this open the door for all sorts of non-standard viewing conditions?
 
 
arossetti said:
Anyone have additional information as to how this may change file handling/prepress? I see that spectral data can be used as opposed to LAB. This mimics what ICCMax did with allowing LUT's to be left in spectral data instead of LAB. Sounds like it will also allow you to have multiple output intents per file.

What else can it do for print?

What advantage does spectral data have vs LAB? Is this the answer to OBA's that the industry needs? Will this open the door for all sorts of non-standard viewing conditions?
Click to expand...

On behalf of ISO TC130 WG2/TF2, the committee of which I am the chair and which is currently defining PDF/X-6, some notes and observations:
  • PDF 2.0 is now undergoing its FDIS (Final Draft International Standard) vote that if passed, will proceed to ISO for editing and publishing. If all goes right, we can expect publication of PDF 2.0 during the latter part of 2017.
    .
  • The fact that PDF 2.0 is published does not mean that all existing or even new RIPs and especially content creation/editing and PDF workflow software will instantaneously support some or all PDF 2.0 features.
    .
  • Some of the PDF 2.0 features associated with print, such as per-page Output Intents and use of DPart data (both of which aid in use of a single PDF file with multiple page types destined for either different print devices, paper types, etc.) are really dependent upon the completion and publishing of the PDF/X-6 standard which itself will be based on PDF 2.0. The PDF/X-6 standard is still in active development and will likely be published no earlier than late 2018.
    .
  • In terms of transparency, PDF 2.0 better defines the process of transparency blending and the hierarchy of transparency blending color space inheritance. This tightening of the specification will mean that there will be less if any contention as to whether various industry test files are testing for compliance correctly. In reality, though, the vast majority of existing PDF files created with standard graphic arts tools with live transparency and color management (such as provided for with PDF/X-4) will render exactly the same with PDF 2.0-compliant RIPs as with earlier PDF 1.7-compliant RIPs.
    .
  • One of the interesting features of PDF 2.0 and subsequently PDF/X-6 is official incorporation of Black Point Compensation (BPC) into the PDF imaging model. Prior to PDF 2.0, BPC was a vendor-specific feature that if available was either enabled or disabled. With PDF 2.0, BPC is part of the extended graphics state that can be selectively turned on or off within a PDF file. That implies that one could conceivably control by individual object which objects should be managed with BPC and which not! This of course will require support of all components of the workflow from authoring through the RIP to allow setting of BPC on or off, passing through the BPC settings through the workflow, and the rendering software (both on screen and RIPs/DFEs) to honor same.
    .
  • PDF 2.0 does not replace LAB with spectral data. What it does is that if officially accommodates use of CxF for additional, spectral colorant information and it is not required. In fact CxF could be used prior to PDF 2.0 if one had workflow software to insert such data into a PDF file and rendering software to interpret and use the CxF data. The primary value of the CxF data is to simulate spot colors for soft and hard proofing and moving forward for digital printing of spot colors where the spot colors aren't actually available but possibly more than 4 colorants are used to expand gamut. One further little fly in the ointment is that to take advantage of CxF, not only do you need workflow components that are CxF aware, but you also need spot color definitions that provide CxF data.
    .
  • iccMAX was mentioned. It is absolutely not part of either PDF 2.0 or PDF/X-6.
All this having been said, although rolling out PDF 2.0 and PDF/X-6 will have its challenges, the bigger challenge is the vast majority of the print industry that acts like Luddites and insists on remaining with PDF 1.3-based PDF/X-1a workflows that support neither color management nor live transparency. Ironically, there hasn't been a RIP based on either Adobe or Global Graphics PDF technologies for which content with live transparency and color management (i.e., PDF/X-4) won't yield at least as good if not much better results faster than equivalent PDF/X-1a content that is pre-flattened and converted to its final rendering color space.

- Dov
 
Dov Isaacs said:
All this having been said, although rolling out PDF 2.0 and PDF/X-6 will have its challenges, the bigger challenge is the vast majority of the print industry that acts like Luddites and insists on remaining with PDF 1.3-based PDF/X-1a workflows that support neither color management nor live transparency. Ironically, there hasn't been a RIP based on either Adobe or Global Graphics PDF technologies for which content with live transparency and color management (i.e., PDF/X-4) won't yield at least as good if not much better results faster than equivalent PDF/X-1a content that is pre-flattened and converted to its final rendering color space.

- Dov
Click to expand...

That is a pretty wide brush you are painting the 'vast majority' of the print industry with. A lot of us kicked PDF 1.3-based PDF/X-1a workflows to the curb long ago.
 
I believe that if there was a PDF/X standard that forced CMYK/Spot only (like X-1a) however also allowed live transparency (like X-4) – then X-1a would have been left behind long ago by those that can handle live transparency but do not wish to be held accountable for colour conversions to final device space.


Stephen Marsh
 
Stephen Marsh said:
I believe that if there was a PDF/X standard that forced CMYK/Spot only (like X-1a) however also allowed live transparency (like X-4) – then X-1a would have been left behind long ago by those that can handle live transparency but do not wish to be held accountable for colour conversions to final device space.


Stephen Marsh
Click to expand...

There is nothing in PDF/X-4 that requires use of anything other than DeviceCMYK and spot colors and in fact some of the retrograde Ghent Workgroup standards use PDF/X-4 but prohibit anything other than DeviceCMYK and spot either for anything or for vector and/or text objects.

That having been said, many of us see print service providers who “do not wish to be held accountable for colour convesions to final device space” as having very much of a “blame the customer” attitude, an attitude that doesn't play that well given a shrinking market for print.

There are a number of very good reasons for encouraging use of ICC color management and maintaining content, especially digital raster imagery, in its original ICC RGB (or LAB) color space. The first is that it is less likely that the designer / end-user will know exactly what color space to convert to or how to properly do so. The second is that by leaving such imagery in the original ICC RGB (or LAB) color space, the print service provider has much more freedom to print content under a wide variety of print conditions taking advantage of the full color gamut of the target device without requiring a new PDF file with content converted to a specific print condition.

I know many (primarily old school printers) will not agree with this, but in our experience, printers who embrace full PDF/X-4 print publishing workflows are exceptionally satisfied with the results and don't go back to PDF/X-1a!

- Dov
 
Joe said:
That is a pretty wide brush you are painting the 'vast majority' of the print industry with. A lot of us kicked PDF 1.3-based PDF/X-1a workflows to the curb long ago.
Click to expand...

“A lot of us” regrettably is not the “vast majority.” If you look at the posted “print job submission requirements” of the largest print service providers in the United States, you would find a major preponderance of submission requirements that require PDF/X-1a. Some such companies will allow PDF/X-4 if they trust the customer, but many refuse! My “pretty wide brush” might actually not be wide enough unfortunately!

- Dov
 
Don't forget that some of us printers are Luddites not through choice but necessity. Up to six months ago we were using a HP Indigo 3050 with it's on-board RIP. PDF/X-1a was the best format for us for our non spot colour jobs. If management won't keep the equipment up to date then you have to work with the common denominator.

Looking forward to seeing PDF 2.0 coming out. With any luck I'll be implementing that in the last half of 2023. ;-)
​​​
 
Last edited:
Tim-Ellis said:
Don't forget that some of us printers are Luddites not through choice but necessity. Up to six months ago we were using a HP Indigo 3050 with it's on-board RIP. PDF/X-1a was the best format for us for our non spot colour jobs. If management won't keep the equipment up to date then you have to work with the common denominator.

Looking forward to seeing PDF 2.0 coming out. With any luck I'll be implementing that in the last half of 2023. ;-)
​​​
Click to expand...

What, you don't have half a million dollars to throw around on a new machine whenever software updates??!?
You Luddite! ;)
 
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