Did you know, color management is so important to us at Beeline and Blue that we have a corporate director of color? We do! Meet E.M. Leonard.

As Beeline and Blue's corporate director of color, E.M. oversees all color production and installs. And after 23 years with Beeline and Blue and 29 years in the industry, E.M. has witnessed the evolution of color printing from traditional dark rooms to modern digital printing. 

Get to know Corporate Director of Color E.M. Leonard

Q. How did you build your expertise in color printing? 

A. My undergraduate degree is from the University of Iowa in Fine Art Photography. I came to the industry through traditional film-based printing. I was a good photographer, but my passion (and talent) was really in the darkroom.

Q. How did you connect with Beeline and Blue?

I was recruited! When management was ready to start a digital darkroom in 1999, they reached out to me and asked me to build the department. 

Q. What does it mean to be a corporate director of color?

A. I oversee all digital production and installs. I also designed our color management system to follow G7 international color methodologies. Now everything we do is up to G7 stated standards.

Q. What else do you do?

A. I manage our printer procurement and the layout of the print shop. When we moved to our Ingersoll location I planned where and how all the printers would fit and I've coordinated every equipment install since. 

Q. I hear you've just returned from a big expo. Is Beeline and Blue getting a new printer?

A. I attended the Print United Expo. It's the first time the event has been held in person since the pandemic. All the major printer manufacturers were there showing the newest technology. I can't disclose what our plans are just yet, but I can say we've always been on the cutting edge, and that's not going to change.

MercyOne has opened the downtown Des Moines NICU, named the MercyOne Children’s Hospital William and Josephine Norkaitis Neonatal Intensive Care Unit in honor of a transformational gift by the Norkaitis Family Charities. We are proud to have played a small role in this important facility, having created and installed the colorful lobby wall graphics.

Dream Big. We’ll Print It.