Blurb Forums

Terrible color cast on black and white photos plus blocked blacks inside

I got my books yesterday…what a disappointment! There cover and back cover are printed to dark there are chuncks of blocked black all over the cover book, and what is worse, I have the same photo inside and you can see in the inside one the file was worked to have details on the black…

But what is unacceptable is that the cover and back cover have a very noticeable green-cyan cast that ruins the book completely and makes it look cheap and badly printed. Inside, there is also a green-cyan cast AND blocked blacks all through the book. I worked my photos precisely to avoid this, and even though, some of them are very dark. Also, the fonts are gray and they look pixelated and slightly cyan!

The worst part of all this: this is my thesis project for my MFA in Photography. I met my comitte and they are so disappointed with the quality they would not pass me!!! So pretty much my graduation is at stake here!!!! I trusted this company and it has become my worst nightmare. Fellow students and professors saw the book and are surprised about how bad the quality is…

They have been very polite so far, I sent them photos of the cover and some of the pages, but haven’t got back from them yet….this has been terrible! :-(

Thanks Steve. Things are getting even worse: now my cover is curling up! CURLING UP! I can’t believe this! Color cast, pixelations and now the cover is curling up badly. Blurbs bad quality is costing me not only the $500 I paid them, I’m reprinting with a printer here in Atlanta plus using a professional binder and it’s all going to cost me $ 1,100 more! Unbeliavable! Can you imagine? I had a budget of $700 for all the project and I ended up spending double thanks to Blurb. I don’t want to ever use them again! The printers looked at the book and told me the quality is really questionable…so it’s my professors, my fellow student and now a professional printer who also say this book is terrible…

Thanks Blurb! I have my book signing and thesis presentation next week and you made my life a living hell.

Valen,

You should appeal your case to the thesis committee for the following reasons. You are not responsible  for the quality of Blurb’s printing. (Although it was very high risk to not do a test printing before the thesis was due.) But you are responsible for the originality and content of the thesis, the photography and the quality of the photography. With the printed book and photographic prints in hand you should be able to support your position. I would hope the committee members can make a judgement that does not include the capability of Blurb to reproduce high quality B&W photography. You might also point out the great leason learned about getting a test book etc. Part of the whole thesis process is learning life lessons that will be useful as you transition from student to practitioner in your craft.

Good luck 

Len 

Hi Len and Brian,

Thanks for your kind words. Yes guys, I learned the hard way, and I know I made a couple of mistakes. Call it excess of trust, or naivite. This is my first book experience and has been an absolute nightmare. I had to run to a printer today, and printing and binding is going to cost me $1,200!!! apart of the $500 Blurb costed me already.

It’s not only that I have to pass my thesis, I have a book signing next Thursday, where a bunch of people is already invited!!! A 10% of the sales of the book are for a non-profit, so I’m also comitted to an organization…yes, I can’t believe I made such mistake not going directly to a professional printer.

Also, that I have a friend who tested the book, was ok with it and then received the rest, and they were different than the first she got. Needless to say, she was fuming!

So, cross your fingers my proof will be great and I will have a great, beautiful book in mu hands to present and sign next Thursday!

Thanks guys.
Best,
Valentina

Dear Brian,

Yes, I’m beginning to feel really uncomfortable with this discussion, too. I just want to ask you one thing. Stop and think. I know you work for this company and I understand you have to stand by it, and I respect that. But please, do respect my right to be extremely disappointed and furious as well, and express that. It is my right. There is a First Amendment that allows me to freely express my opinion, especially if it has to do with a product I fully paid for and didn’t deliver. I had to show the book to professors and fellow students because it was a requirement for critique and quality assurance by my committee. I’m NOT the one who printed this book. It was Blurb. I did work my files to perfectly fit any printing standards. I was so astounded with the results, I just brought the book and let people judge without saying a word. They saw the book and the book gave them room to make their own conclusions. As I told you, I didn’t even say a word. You’re wrong when you’re saying I have been pointing my finger at Blurb. Your product speaks for itself.

I’m on a student budget, I trusted your company because I researched in photo blogs and overall people was more satisfied with Blurb than with your competition. I saw a couple of books by Blurb that I thought they were a little dark, but fine. I already said I made a mistake not ordering the proof, BUT I also know that some people has gotten a very different product after getting their proof. Someone even said to me that the proof wasn’t a guarantee for the final product as her book showed considerable differences between the proof and the final product.

Bare with me: I spent $500 on a product that is not of good quality, has color casts all over and now, the cover is completely curled up. I’m sorry, but there is a thing called “keep your promises” and I read Blurb’s promise is high quality book printing. You guys didn’t keep it with me. Despite the fact I made the mistake of not getting the proof (I have some people that bought the book as well and got them shipped form different locations than mine, Seattle) I will be able, for sure, to see if the quality is consistent from book to book. If it’s not, that will confirm the doubts and experiences other had had with proof and final product. There are posts in this very forum where people express their disappointment on this, too.

The printer that is taking care of the book now saw it not because I’m going around showing the book to “point out fingers” at Blurb. As Blurb has a template, I needed to have an opinion on the new layout and the one I used with Blurb. Blurb templates are terrific, and I was SO thrilled to see the book finally layed out and so happy to send it and buy it. I know what you see on screen is not what you get on print, but you have to work out hard in order to give the closest to what you get. Actually, the most I’ve talked about with Blurb has been regarding how easy and great the Booksmart software is. I’m still so impressed with the results, and now with your post, I haven’t mentioned much about your company. You could say I’m speechless. I rather come here, and be honest (which you also questioned) and direct to this company, and make my claims here and not anywhere else.

I do agree with you on my lack of experience on the book making process. I DID NOT come from an art background, it was upsetting you made assumptions on that. I’ve been to art school roughly two years now, and been a wet darkroom printer pretty much until a few months ago. That has made things a little more difficult to me with digital matters, but never as this experience. I’ve developed very good skills as a digital printer now, but it required a lot of hard work, not hard time. Also, I have to disagree on Blurb trying now to put all the responsibility of this failure on my shoulders. I accept my mistakes, but I cannot accept that a Blurb representative is now putting all this problem on my side. That is unacceptable. I’m the client, Brian. I think some of your comments go to the point of being aggressive. I don’t know when things changed, and the person who is paying for a product gets to be censored by that company even when she’s being given a bad one. I paid and I wasn’t delivered what I was promised, a well-printed, good-quality book. So, I think I’m entitled to make all the claims that I want. And yes, this has cost me a lot of money and emotional pain.

If you feel so uncomfortable with this discussion and my right to make claims, I suggest you ask to have someone else to talk to me. I don’t want you to feel uncomfortable. This is a free country and you also have your rights.

Have a good rest of the weekend.
Valentina

Valentina,

Tony is correct about me, that I do not work for Blurb. I am one of those passionate customer, like Tony says so.

I’ll just leave the rest set aside and move on. Again, good luck with book signing and to your future wherever you pursuit.

Valentina,

One other thing, I certainly understand how students’ budget being limited – because everything is expensive at university. Book costs, supplies, tuition and board are expensive these days. I certainly do.

You know. Valentina, as I said only if you did a test book, that itself will help you to discover cast and color problem. Test proof book itself can save you lot of money, you don’t have to spend too much money on proof book, you can only, for example, with twenty (20) pages of some black and white – that can be either darkest, or lightest and the rest on the level the way you want it to be. Once you get the proof book, you’ll find out with the result.

I agree with you that book making process is lot of work. It also presents some learning experience for everyone.

All in all, with my first post that shows that I feel bad for your situation, and about what you had gone through. I really do and still.

With my second post, it is just that some of your statements caught my perspective and thought into different approach for some reason. It is just that it is my perspective and based on what I know, and I know it is not just me, it is what all creative professionals go through.

I believe that you are very fussy and very detailed about quality. I am with you on that one. If you read my postings on other forums, I am very fussy and am very thorough with workflow production.

One other thing, the term you use “aggressive”, I am not sure if I understood you. Maybe it is just that you don’t like the tone of my words or all. You might not realize that I am Deaf, and I know my being Deafness itself has nothing to do with the discussion. It is just that it might be something I could say a little differently than able-bodied individual. Not that I label you or other individuals as “hearing”, but you get a better idea when I meant me as “Deaf” and you as “Hearing”.

I am usually known for being very very direct and straightforward person, as I know that is the case with Deaf individuals in my community. Silly to say that now, but it is just that I am comfortable to “speak with my mind”.

I don’t know what else to say right now, nor can’t think of anything else. I am hoping that you don’t get the impression that I am attacking you. It is just that I look at certain things into perspective and opinion. Everyone have different perspective and opinion.

I notice you didn’t mention one other thing, but did you contact at Blurb about your quality of book and curled cover. I trust and believe that they will be happy to work with you.

I have no idea where did you get the idea that I am an employee of Blurb. I am only just one of those participant and passionate customer. I design my own custom full-bleed layout in Adobe InDesign CS3 and work with images around Adobe Photoshop CS3 and then exporting the files into BookSmart.

Uhm, as you might know, or may not know, but BookSmart is still a beta software. And, that Blurb still is a start-up company. I believe that Blurb have unique niche in POD book making market, and is unique with different audience of customers – or if you prefer the term “clients”, certainly.

I also just recalled one other thing, I don’t know if you had the opportunity to research on black and white-related topic at Blurb Forum. If you had the opportunity to conduct a search query, it is more likely that you will find pretty good many lengthy discussion about cast problem going on around working with black and white, and the Blurb’s subcontracted printers use 4 color technology.

I want to offer an apology to you, Valentina, if you don’t like my perspective or suggestion, or if you find some of my tone you don’t like, I apologize. It is just that I look at this rather differently. I view things differently and put things into perspective because of my being Deafness or Deaf, and based on what I know about book making related topic, and stuff.
I certainly know where you are coming from as student MFA in Photography. It is just that… I don’t want go into that again.

By now, I figure that you have learned something valuable lesson. It is good to know that NOW. That will make you a better printer or in any of your craft career as you go on after you graduate from your graduate school.

As I have express my apology and other set of sorry about what you have gone through, your book making experience and the printed book. I just wish and was hoping that you did this as a test book, rather than spent 500 dollars, you know.

Have a great weekend, too.

Valenvitols,

I want to also assure you I am not a Blurb employee (They identify themselves as "Staff" on a posting)  but a satisified customer since November of last year. That is not to say I never had quality issues. But to Blurb’s credit they have always responded to my "customer support" emails promptly. Meaning in 24 hours. The fix to my problem such as a couple of binding issues were corrected but it did take 2-3 weeks as Blurb’s printer(s) worked to solve the problem. If you have not contacted Blurb through their system by all means do. That should have been my first recommendation to you. I know you are upset with Blurb and your current predictament but you should balance that with keeping in mind that there are thousands of books printed by Blurb (My wife and I have 8 separate books plus 3 test books since November) with surely 100’s of satisified customers. Your problem is critical to you and I’m sure Blurb is interested in having you as a satisified customer.

The one thing I can’t address nor can Blurb is the critical time frame that some customers such as yourself are in. Your’s is not the first time I’ve seen where the first book is not acceptable and the individual is on an extremely tight schedule and can’t deliver the product. My only suggestion to others out there is that you never plan for a home run on the first book (or maybe any book) because if something can go wrong it will. (Where have I heard that before?). I have personally looked at the printing cycle for Blurb and found that once my book is transmitted to Blurb the maximum time it took to receive a book has been about 4 weeks. That means if there is a screw up of any type, even if Blurb wants to make it right it could take 2 months. (I just added my worse times.)  (Yes before anyone chime in on how they got their book in two or three days, so have I but it has taken as long as 4 weeks and since neither ship date or arrive date is gauranteed better to be conservative.

Again best of luck with completing your thesis.

Len