Daily Dose of DTP: 27. Stop the Presses! No, Start the Presses!

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Daily Dose of DTP 27. Stop the Presses! No, Start the Presses! From Jacci Howard Bear, your Guide to Desktop Publishing The printing press revolutionized publishing. And today there are numerous types of printing presses and technologies available for printing everything from business cards to billboards. In this lesson, we start by covering just a few of those key printing options. The descriptions may seem confusing and sometimes irrelevant - but what's the point of doing a great design if you pick the wrong way to print it? The printing plates are a key difference in each class of printing described below. Make a note as to: printing (image) surface of the plate is raised printing (image) surface of the plate is recessed printing (image) and non-image surfaces are flat Keep these differences in mind. It affects how the finished job looks (and it may show up on the test at the end of this course - hint, hint). Class Notes: This is not si mply a word-a-day course. The lessons follow a specific order in roughly the following groupings: General concepts > Things you need > Font specifics > Image specifics > Prepress & Printing > Rules & Tutorials (bold indicates the stage in which this lesson falls) Today's Definitions Relief Printing The process is similiar to using an inkpad and stamp. One form of relief printing - flexography - is a common printing method for packaging. Intaglio Printing Among other things it is used for printing U.S. paper currency and for other fine art printmaking. Engraving, one form of intaglio printing, can be found in fine wedding invitations and sometimes business cards and letterhead. Offset Lithography This is the biggie. This is the one that most desktop publishing projects utilize. This is the one you must learn about. Printing Plates The process and the material for the printing plates varies depending on both the printing process, the paper (or other material you are printing on), and how the piece was designed. Today's Trivia Ink All Over Why do some printing inks smudge easily (like newspapers) and others usually don't (such as books)? It's a combination of the ink, the paper, and the printing method. Printing inks are oil-based but they use different types of oil. Some oils dry faster than others. Some print jobs are heated or allowed to dry long enough to prevent smudging. When having something printed, talk to your printer about the type of ink, the paper, the printing method, and the "smudge factor." Learn more about printing inks Q&A How Can I Print the Color White? The short answer is that in most cases, you can't print white ink. But there are exceptions and alternatives you can explore. If You Want to Dig Deeper Now (Or, Save It For Later) Computer-to-Plate In the Computer-to-Plate or CTP process the image of the page from a digital file is recorded directly from the file to the printing plate instead of creating film and making the plate from the film. Although CTP is a printing process, in order to insure the best possible output it is important that the designer discuss CTP with their printer. The printer's familiarity with the process, their equipment, the type of plates, and file format and preparation all play a role in the success of the computer-to-plate process. Very Good Inexpensive Digital Printing Digital printing is one of the best-kept secrets in the business these days. Using this new, stimulating expertise, you can print full-color documents with crisp text and sharp and clear pictures - in very short runs, on-demand. This email is written by: Jacci Howard Bear Desktop Publishing Guide Email Me | My Blog | My Forum   Missing a lesson? Click here. About U. is our collection of free online courses designed to help you learn a new skill, solve a problem, get something done, or just learn more about your world. Sign up now, and we will email you lessons on a daily or weekly basis. You are receiving this email because you subscribed to the About.com 'Daily Dose of DTP' email. If you wish to unsubscribe, please click here. About respects your privacy: Our Privacy Policy Contact Information: 249 West 17th Street New York, NY, 10011 © 2010 About.com   Advertisement