Opacity Simulation on Metallic Substrates in Prototype Proofing

Printing on metallic substrates not only offers many design possibilities, but often also brings challenges, especially when it comes to proofing the artwork. The use of printing inks with different opacities to achieve metallic effects in the design, as is mostly the case with beverage cans, is often difficult to simulate upfront. If you want it to be as realistic as possible while minimizing effort and costs, learn how GMG Prototype Proofing is solving this issue.

With the high-end proofing and profiling technologies of GMG ColorProof and GMG OpenColor combined, you can do this by printing standard inks on a metallic foil on an Epson SureColor SC-S80600. The opacity of a printed color is simulated by printing a white undercoat. The higher the opacity will be in the target print production, the more white is printed. You can define the opacity specifically for each color.

Prototype proofing of a beverage can

Prototype proof of a beverage can. Colors, which are more opaque like the white or the red are printed with a higher amount of white undercoat. The more metallic the colors should be, the less white is printed underneath.

You can use any metallic foil supported by Epson SureColor SC-S80600. You just need to create a custom calibration set for GMG ColorProof and an output condition for GMG OpenColor. The GMG Calibration Creation Wizard, for which GMG received the “Award for Innovation” at the Global Label Industry Awards 2019, will guide you through this process.

You then define your individual metallic spot color library in GMG OpenColor and you are ready to go!

Follow the guide to see step-by-step how to do prototype proofing with a metallic foil on an Epson SureColor SC-S80600.