Underbasing the opacity mask distress pattern inside AI

[tse1990]

I wanted to ask the community: how do you like to underbase distress patterns in AI?

I'm assuming I can turn down the opacity of the pattern by 20-30% to shrink the halftone dots to fit under the top color? Anyone see any problems with that or have better ideas?

Thanks!

[Dottonedan]

Underbasing the distressed pattern and decreasing the opacity in the program does do what you are indicating, but I'm not sure you need to cut back on opacity and reduce dot size (under) the top color. It all depends on the color needed and vibrancy.

More importantly, you will need to choke the distress pattern so that the white base does not peak out. This part can often be challenging for many and is where many fall short.

Choking and halftoning the base... is probably the key to a successful distress pattern.  If indeed you are looking for two tones of that color, such as a toned back (30% opaque) distress pattern, then yes, do exactly as you indicated.  Make the top ink color maybe 40% ink color and 20% base  white color.   The percentages all depends on your color and ink type but it gives you a good reference.  I like a lot more ink going straight to shirt (almost double) the base tone.

[tse1990]

I attached a screen shot to illustrate what I'm asking. Note the opacity settings on the underbase distress and top distress.

Dan, do you mean to halftone the UB within illustrator or with rip software?

Choking the UB is definitely the goal here, but how would ya'll do it?

[Colin]

Is that fill a raster image?

[tse1990]

The paths and fills are vector spot colors. They have an opacity mask with a raster tiff inside creating the distress pattern.

[Colin]

You need to take the image into a program like photoshop to control your halftones then.

Illustrator does not allow you to play with the raster greyscale info.

[tse1990]

You need to take the image into a program like photoshop to control your halftones then.

Illustrator does not allow you to play with the raster greyscale info.

What would this entail once in PS? What would I be adjusting? Levels?

We have a RIP program that controls our halftones. Assuming you aren't talking about a halftone filter?

Sorry if these questions are basic, just want to make sure I understand what you're saying.

Thanks

[Dottonedan]

Look in this area on your pallet.   Both Transparency and COLOR enable you to print halftones or percentages of a spot color.


Your RIP will convert the % data to actual halftone dots based on the lpi you assign.  While in Illustrator, it just looks grey or toned down.


I don't want to confuse you, but Transparency behaves a little different in that you can apply modes to an element such as multiply (showing the bend translucency between two colors.

[Dottonedan]

I attached a screen shot to illustrate what I'm asking. Note the opacity settings on the underbase distress and top distress.

Dan, do you mean to halftone the UB within illustrator or with rip software?
Within Illustrator, you do that by toning down the pantone (via COLOR window or Transparency window).

Choking the UB is definitely the goal here, but how would ya'll do it?

If the distressed effect is vector (like auto traced) as I've seen some of them, then you can select it, then stroke with a process white. Then be sure your color art stays on top.


If in Photoshop there are a few steps to it so that you don't affect the inner area that you want to remain. Seems like a video is in order. Anyone wanna do a short vid on that?

[Dottonedan]

Just looked at your images. You've already got the COLOR and transparency I see.
Seems like you would be best to take it into Photoshop and choke there. Adjust levels or curves to your liking.

[tse1990]

If the distressed effect is vector (like auto traced) as I've seen some of them, then you can select it, then stroke with a process white. Then be sure your color art stays on top.


If in Photoshop there are a few steps to it so that you don't affect the inner area that you want to remain. Seems like a video is in order. Anyone wanna do a short vid on that?

A short video is a great idea!

The distress is a greyscale tiff laying on top of the vector inside Illy. From what I'm reading elsewhere on TSB, people are saying that the end result is taking the distress texture into photoshop to knock it back using curves or levels. Does this sound right? How much do you recommend knocking back the curves/levels of the distress in PS? How is that different than lowering the opacity of the texture inside Illy?

[Squeegie]

Not sure how others wold run this, but I would print the gray first as the underbase and the white on top.

I also print this from within Photoshop.

[tse1990]

So what I ended up doing was taking the distress pattern (located inside the opacity mask) on the UB layer, copy/pasting to front on top of the existing distress, then setting the new distress to multiply so it essentially doubled the distress on the underbase. Probably not the textbook solution to the problem but it worked.

PS The original art posted is different from this art but the problem was the same. How to successfully underbase vector art that has a raster distress in AI.

[Dottonedan]

Nicely done.  I like how the ink seems to stain the print with green doing directly to the shirt in some areas. Nice opacity control.

[tse1990]

So an update on this:

Sometimes the underbase is too distressed. Still easy to register but the art gets lost in some areas. Still experimenting with how and when to mess with the opacity of the distress itself. Anyone else tried it the way we're doing? 377 views somebody's bound to have experimented since the original posting.