There are many processes beyond printed colour which can be used to embellish or finish a printed piece. We often do these non-print processes separately after completeing the print. The most common embellishments are a print coating, foiling, embossing and die-cutting. GSM takes a look at print coatings… Clear Print Coating Print coatings are clear finishes with the primary purpose of protecting a printed piece from smudging, scuffing and general wear and tear. However, some coatings can also be part of the overall aesthetic. Here are the most common print coatings: Acrylic Varnishes Primarily used in Offset Lithography, Flexography and Rotogravure,...
Print Processes – Letterpress Printing
Letterpress printing is a form of relief-printing. It dates back to the 1450s, when Germanborn Johann Gutenberg famously printed 180 copies of the Bible on his new invention. Letterpress was the dominant form of mass printing for 500 years, until superseded by Offset Lithography in the 1950s. Whilst no longer viable for producing long-run quantities, Letterpress has made somewhat of a comeback in recent years as a bespoke form of short-run printing. This is largely due to it’s unique tactile, debossed, crafted look and feel. You can’t beat the luxurious aesthetic of Letterpress on quality paper for invitations, business cards...
Print Processes – Digital Printing (Dry/Wet Toner)
The term ‘digital printing’ is a generic name applied to processes whereby an image is printed directly from a digital source onto the media, without an intermediary process (such as pre-press or platemaking). This equates to very low initial set up costs and quick turnaround times. Consumables however, tend to be expensive—hence digital printing is generally used for short-run over long-run volumes. The two main forms of ‘digital printing’—Laser (dry and wet toner) and Inkjet— have different strengths and weaknesses. Dry & Wet Toner Printing (Laser-Printing) Commercial toner-based print systems work on the same principles as their smaller office or...
Print Processes – Other Forms of High-Volume Printing
Other methods of high-volume/long-run printing are Flexography and Rotogravure. Both are similar to Offset Lithography in that they are CMYK (plus PMS Spot colour) based. The predominant difference is how the inked image transfers to the substrate. GSM takes a look... Flexography Flexographic printing (‘Flexo’) is a form of high-speed, high-volume, web-fed relief printing, meaning the image area is raised. Like offset lithography, flexography also uses printing plates. However, flexo plates are rubber or plastic and feature a raised image area. During printing, the raised area on the plate is inked and directly contacts the passing substrate. There is no...
Print Processes – Offset Lithographic Printing
Offset Lithographic Printing Following on from the prepress stage, where the operator has transferred the artwork onto metal plates, comes the process of Offset printing. This is where the image transfers (offset) from metal plates to rubber blankets or rollers and then onto paper. This is how the actual ‘printing’ part of the project takes placce: The Process The press operator sets up the press by loading and fixing the printing plates onto the plate cylinder, and a new rubber blanket onto the blanket cylinder. The press operator fills the ink trays (note that larger presses may run off a...
Print Processes – Prepress, Imposition & Platemaking
Prepress Prepress is the first step when artwork arrives at the printery from the designer and involves the following processes: Reviewing & Preflighting Artwork In this process a specialist Prepress operator will check the supplied artwork to ensure it has been set up correctly. It is important to note that this is a technical check—and not a content check—a printery will not spell check or proof read your artwork. The Prepress operator will be specifically looking at the following: The supplied format is correct (high resolution PDF) The artwork document trim-size is correct The artwork document includes crop marks The...
Print Processes – Long Run Versus Short Run Printing
The term ‘commercial printing’ refers to any print service offered by a print supplier (a printery) to another party, such as a designer or business. There are many forms of commercial printing—Here, we take a look at Offset Lithographic Printing: Long-run versus Short-run Printing Commercial print methods can be split loosely into two categories: as being more (or less) suitable for large (Long-run) versus small (Short-run) quantities. Long-Run Print Methods Long-run commercial printing methods create large volumes of identical reproductions as cost-effectively as possible. As a general guide, long-run methods tend to offer the best economy when printing in volumes...
CMYK Colour
Colour is one of the most critical assets within a designers toolkit. Colour allows us to create epic visual communication full of expression and emotion. However, when it comes to print, colour is also an area that requires some technical understanding to ensure that results match expectation. GSM takes a look at Colour - CMYK, RGB and PMS... CMYK Colour Most commercial print processes are based Cyan (C), Magenta (M), Yellow (Y), Black (K) colour model—otherwise known as CMYK or ‘Process’ Colour. Here’s how it works: If you did art at school, you likely did an exercise where you...
Setting up Artwork Files for Print
In this Education article, we take a look at some basic considerations for setting up print artwork... Some Artwork Basics A common cause of hold-ups in print work is artwork files set up incorrectly. This article covers some basics around setting up artwork to avoid the most common mistakes. For this article, we will assume Adobe Illustrator, InDesign (or QuarkXPress), and Photoshop are used to construct the artwork. And that the dispatch file to the printer is a high-resolution PDF (the industry norm for print artwork). We strongly advise against using office-level apps (such as Microsoft Word or Apple Pages)...
Pantone Swatchbooks
Supporting the Pantone Matching System is a range of swatchbooks. Understanding the different versions and their intended uses ensure you will use the right tool for the job. GSM takes a look: Formula Guide: Two x books (C & U): Formula Guide swatchbooks show the base range of 2,400 PMS colours, along with the corresponding ink formula. Printers use these formulas to mix Pantone colours. Bridge Guide: Two x books (C & U): The Bridge Guide swatchbooks show the same base range of colours as the Formula Guide—but instead of showing the ink formula, the Bridge Guides show each Pantone...
