Lecture on Printing Techniques and Technology

Introduction

• Comparison of historical and modern printing technology
  • Techniques used for reproducing images are similar across times
  • Importance of understanding terms and concepts in the design industry

Key Printing Terms

• Web vs. Sheet Fed Printing
  • Sheet Fed: Uses individual sheets of paper, common in home and commercial printers
  • Web Press: Uses continuous rolls of paper, ideal for high-volume printing
• Substrate: Material on which printing is done (e.g., paper, plastic)
• Plates, Cylinders, and Screens: Methods for transferring ink
  • Plates: Engraved surfaces for ink transfer
  • Cylinders: Metal cylinders for ink application
  • Screens: Used in screen printing, ink scraped through a stencil

Color and Printing

• Colors/Ink
  • Number of colors refers to physical inks used
  • CMYK: Four-color process for mixing to create numerous colors
  • Importance of setting up jobs correctly with specific ink quantities
• Resolution, Dots, and Quality
  • Higher resolution and dot density leads to better quality
• Printing Techniques
  • Letterpress: Manual, antique method, niche use today
  • Flexography: Used for packaging, capable of printing on films
  • Gravure (Rotary Gravure): High-quality printing for magazines, art
  • Digital Printing: Common in home and low-quantity prints
  • Screen Printing: High-quality prints for apparel, involves resource-intensive setup
  • Offset Lithography: Common for large volume prints, uses an offset cylinder

In-Depth Look at Printing Methods

• Letterpress
  • Historical significance, resurgence in niche markets
  • High cost and setup
• Flexography
  • Ideal for packaging
  • Uses web method, high fidelity prints
  • Commonly prepared in Adobe Illustrator
• Gravure
  • Similar to flexography, higher ink use, better image quality
  • More common outside the US
• Digital Printing
  • Inkjet technology, efficient for low quantities
  • Quality can vary based on speed and ink usage
• Screen Printing
  • Best for apparel, vibrant results
  • Not suitable for one-off prints
• Offset Lithography
  • Most widely used for general graphic design projects
  • Cost-effective for large volumes

Printing Technologies Commonalities

• All printing methods involve applying each color separately (separations)
• Additive vs. Subtractive Color
  • RGB (Additive): More light added equals white
  • CMYK (Subtractive): More ink added equals black
• Pantone Colors: Specific ink colors, often used as a standard

Understanding Pixels and Resolution

• Pixels: Digital dots of light on screens, behave like paper dots
• DPI (Dots per Inch)
  • Misunderstandings about DPI, not always indicative of quality
  • 72 DPI for digital, 300 DPI for print often taught, but context matters

Summary and Final Thoughts

• Commonalities in Printing
  • Many issues in digital imaging mirror traditional printing problems
• Two W's: When and Why
  • Knowing when and why to use certain methods is crucial
• Project Identification
  • Identify project needs (quantity, colors, substrate) to determine printing method