At kor group, we recently encountered the printing and proofing challenges of gradients, and thought we could share the information we gained. It all began with the Beth Israel Deaconess–Needham Annual Report, which kor group designed again this year.

The design incorporates several gradients that shift in color subtly over a long distance. When we received printer’s proofs, the gradients showed banding. Although the printer thought the banding would be less evident once printed offset, we weren’t willing to take chances on the print quality and chose to make adjustments to the gradients in the file.

There is no mathematical formula for the best gradient percentages over a measured space, because each color reacts differently. However, the banding becomes an issue when there is minimal change over a long distance, so by shortening the area of gradation, or starting with a darker tone, we were able to adjust the file for smoother printing.

Another option, which our printer recommended, was creating the gradients in Photoshop and adding 1-2 points of noise.

Having a good quality printer, who is willing to troubleshoot and run press tests for you, is key to the success of the printed piece, and luckily, that was our experience with Kirkwood Printing in Wilmington, MA.