Icefields gets soft-proof option; Version 3.0 is more accurate

MacWeek, Feb 16, 1998 by David Morgenstern

Isis Imaging Corp. recently added soft proofing to the repertoire of its Icefields 3.0 screening and color-correction application.

The company released Icefields Soft-proofer, a $275 Icefields 3.0 plug-in that provides RGB display of screened EPS and Desktop Color Separation (DCS) files. The on-screen images use the dot-gain, gray-balance and color-correction information from the screened file, according to Isis.

Color Scientist Stephen Herron said the software offers a more accurate display than standard previews or other soft-proofing schemes that simulate print images by simply reducing gamut. By using the screening and color-correction data, Herron said, Soft-proofer lets users uncover unexpected color shifts.

Icefields 3.0 offers three frequency-modulated stochastic screens optimized for a variety of presses: a Standard screen for offset printing and a Fine-Res screen for waterless offset, priced at $650 each, and a $450 Low-Res screen for silk-screening and flexographic applications. Any two modules cost $960; all three are $1,200.

The batch-processing application lets users create a list of TIFF images and set controls for color transformation, scaling and screening. It can also run several effects plug-ins; the package comes with a CMYK monochrome/duotone effect.

Isis said Icefields 3.0 supports Adobe Photoshop clipping paths and lets users apply different screening algorithms to different portions of an image. Images are saved in EPS or DCS formats.

The software supports Apple's ColorSync color management system and provides a three-level interface for color correction. It also ships with a trio of prebuilt color curves: Free-form for offset and web presses; Power-Function for flexographic, inkjet and laser printers; and Gamma for photographic output.

Herron said Icefields 3.0 can also trim RIP processing times by attaching flags to files that signal the PostScript RIP to ignore the prescreened images.

Isis Imaging Corp. of Vancouver, British Columbia, is at (604) 323-0033; fax (604) 325-8406; isiscorp@axionet.com.