Let’s say it’s your first time working with a commercial printer, and you’re excited to see your designs come to life. You send over your files, confident that everything is perfect because it looks great on your screen. But when the proofs come back, your heart sinks—colors are off, images are blurry, and some fonts were changed completely. How can this be, you saved it as a PDF, wasn’t that enough? Not to mention those proofs weren’t free, so now you’re out of time and money, and you may have to start all over again. 

This scenario is all too common for businesses new to the world of commercial printing. Small errors in your digital files can lead to big problems once ink hits paper. The good news is that these issues are entirely preventable.  

Enter Preflight—the unsung hero of the printing process with commercial printers. 

What is Preflight, and what does it do? 

At its core, Preflight analyzes your file for any errors or inconsistencies that could cause problems during the printing process. It’s like having an expert set of eyes reviewing your work, catching potential errors that could derail your project, and in some cases even correcting and adjusting your file. These issues might seem minor when you’re working on your computer screen, but they can have a significant impact when transferred to paper.  

Here are the key areas Preflight examines: 

• Fonts and Text: One of the most common issues in printing is missing fonts. If a font used in your design isn’t embedded in the file, it may be substituted or simply not appear at all. Preflight checks that all fonts are properly included, ensuring your text looks exactly as intended. 

• Images and Resolution: Low-resolution images can look fine on your computer screen but appear pixelated or blurry when printed—a problem that’s hard to fix after the fact. Preflight checks the resolution of every image in your file, flagging those that might not print clearly. 

• Colors and Color Spaces: The colors you see on your screen often look different when printed. Preflight checks for issues like incorrect color spaces (such as RGB instead of CMYK), ensuring your printed colors match your expectations. 

• File Specifications: Different print jobs have different requirements, such as bleed, trim marks, and page size. Preflight ensures your file meets these specifications, so there are no surprises when it’s time to print. 

• Transparency and Layers: Complex designs often involve layers and transparency effects that can cause unexpected results when printed. Preflight reviews these elements to ensure they’ll translate correctly from digital to print. 

By running a Preflight check, you can catch and address these issues before they cause delays or additional costs. Some Preflight tools, including those in Foxit PDF Editor, even offer automatic fixes for minor problems like fonts, colors, and layers.  

How To Access Foxit PDF Editor’s Preflight 

Preflight can be found under the Convert tab in Foxit’s main toolbar. Clicking on it will open a new menu window with options for various profile tasks like PDF analysis, fix ups, version compatibility, and conversion. Sometimes just running a quick analysis to list any potential font or overprint problems can save you a lot of time and effort going back and forth with your printer.  

If you’re working with a commercial offset printer, consider using PDF/X. This version of a PDF is made specifically for printing. We’ll cover PDF/X, color profiles, and embedding vs outlining fonts for printing in other articles, so be sure to sign up for our email newsletter to get notified.  

Check your PDFs to make sure they’re print-ready. Download Foxit PDF Editor and start Preflighting your documents today.