PRINT MANUAL
WHAT IS DESIGN FOR PRINT?
CLAUDIA GRIFFIN
Useful Resources ‘This is a print handbook’ - printhandbook.com ‘The production manual’ - Gavin Ambrose/Paul Harris For web links go to: http://c-griffin1013-dc.blogspot.com/2011/10/colour-for-print-links.html
Contents Page Page Page Page Page Page Page Page Page Page Page
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2 Dealing with clients 3 Production Methods 4-6Colour Systems - CMYK + RGB 7Colour Systems - Pantone 8 Formats 9 Stock Considerations 10 - 12 Using Software 13 Commercial Costings 14 Finishing Processes 15 Proofing 16 - 18 Glossary
Dealing With Clients Giving excellent service to your clients is important to ensure that they come back. Your goal is to be known as a reliable designer who produces what is needed. Some clients may be more difficult to deal with than others, so here are some tips to ensure everyone is satisfied: 1. We all see different colours, so when discussing colours, take a pantone matching system, so you can both agree on the colour choices. 2. Discuss stock choices early on, as these can really effect the final outcome. Also, specialist stocks may need to be ordered in. 3. Keep the client informed with costing early on, so there are no nasty surprises at the end of the project. 4. You will need to produce lots of design ideas to show the client, as they are bound to be picky, and no doubt will have a different opinion to how something should look than you do. 5. Get the client to sign the proof before printing, as a form of insurance. You will find more information about each of these subjects throughout this handbook. Being an expert in print production will help you to avoid any disappointment from the client.
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Production Methods There are a different methods of commercial printing, each suitable for a different use. The quantity of prints you require will be the main factor when choosing which method to use. * Offset Lithography - using metallic plates to print sheets in large quantities at high speed. Commonly used process. * Web offset - print on a roll, for newspapers. * Rotogravure - sturdy plate made from copper allows for a bigger print run. It is not offset. * Flexography - quality isn’t as good as lithographic printing, as the plate is made of silicon. It is used for printing onto packaging such as crisp packets. * Digital - printed from code to raster image processor to paper. Useful for small quantities. * Mechanical screen print - many colours printed at once. * Pad printing - transfer a 2d image onto a 3d object. Lithographic and digital printing at Team Impression, Leeds
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Colour Systems Understanding how to use colour correctly is the most important part of the print production process. Colours represent different things and can provoke emotions, so chose colours wisely. The way colour is generated in print is completely different to screen models, so, you should never sell a job based on what is on screen as it won’t come out like that, Also, colours vary from screen to screen, and they can look different when printed on to different stocks, so bear these things in mind when designing. Red, green and blue are primary colours. Cyan, magenta and yellow are produced by mixing the primary colours Cmyk (colour for print) is subtractive, meaning the colours get closer to black as you blend them, They use ink to display colour. Black is the key plate when printing, hence why it is known as Cmyk. Rgb (colour for screen) is additive, so the colours get closer to white when blended. They use light to display colour.
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Colour Systems The human eye can see nearly ten million colours, where around 4,000 can be printed with using cmyk. This colour gamut shows the limitations of colour. This means that you can’t print all the colours on screen with cmyk, you would need to use special spot colours.
Image from printernational.org
Cmyk is known as the four colour printing process, as four plates are used to create colour. It is economical to print with less colours, as this limits the number of printing plates used and the number of passes through the press.
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Colour Systems When you use a linen tester to look at a printed piece, you can see the halftone dots the image is made up of. These dots are a mechanical process used to convert tonal values. For each colour plate that is to be printed, there will be a different colour separation. Images can be edited on software such as photoshop. You could make your image monotone, which is just one colour, or duotone, which is created with two colours, and so on.
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Colour Systems It might not be possible to print the same vibrant colour in cmyk as it would be to print it as a spot colour. For example, for a metallic or fluorescent colour, you can’t get anything near this using cmyk, so you would need to add a spot colour, to give your piece the extra impact. Spot colours can be found in pantone swatch books, which you can also find in software such as Illustrator. These books can are available to suit the different stocks that can be use, such as coated and uncoated. Spot colours are applied as flat colours rather than being made up of halftone dots. Official colours used in brands logos will always by a spot colour, so that everything using that logo is always exactly the same colour. These colours have reference numbers so you can easily locate them.
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Formats Understanding format options and limitations will help you to be more creative and economical. It is a decision which should be made early on as it effects other factors, such as cost. - Consider different paper sizes (envelope, newspaper etc...) And consider different measuring systems (USA- imperial, rest of the world- metric) - SRA sizes are slightly bigger to allow for bleed and chopping - A sizes are used for printing, B sizes are used for books, and C sizes are used for envelopes.
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Stock Considerations Your paper choice can have a huge impact on the overall effect of your design. Learning the printing characteristics of different stocks will ensure you get the best results, as stocks can vary by weight, colour, texture, and finish. (Paper is measured in gsm - grams per square metre) Examples of popular stock choices: Gloss - shiny finish Matte - non-gloss finish Acetates - clear plastic Team Impression book feauting a variety of stocks Uncoated - duller colours Coated - hard-wearing stock
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If you or your client is concerned about the environment, you may want to source recycled papers to print on. The printers will provide you with swatch samples to help you make your choice. Ask the printers to make a dummy book so you can get a feel of what the finished piece will be like. Remember to be careful, as there are many shades of white!
Using Software It is important to get your document set up right, to ensure that what you see on screen is what you get when your design is printed. Here is some advice for using Adobe software to print with. - Make sure the format is correct, and that the document is set up in 300ppi CMYK colour for best results. - Use the swatches palette to ensure application of correct colour. Produce a specific colour palette before designing. Illustrator Advice - If you have been provided with artwork to use, click on the ‘add used colours’ in the swatches menu. - These added colours have a box next to them on the palette, which means that they are global, so any change of this colour effects all of that colour used on the page. - In the colour palette menu, open swatch library, then colour books, and you can view pantone colour references.
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Using Software Photoshop Advice - To convert an image from RGB to CMYK, go Image-> Mode-> CMYK - You can work in RGB so there are more options on photoshop, then save as CMYK when you are done - Here is an example of the same green in RGB then in CMYK, there is a dramatic shift in colour - When working with RGB images, click view -> gamut warning to get a grey overlay which obscures the colours that aren’t printable. You can make adjustments with this overlay on. - One way to edit these colours to make them printable is to alter the hue and saturation. - Another way is to go image -> adjustments -> replace colour. (This is a good way to just change the part of the image that needs changing instead of the whole image) - Go view -> proof colours. This means you are still working in RGB, but you see the duller colours, which are what gets printed. - Unprintable colours come up with a warning triangle
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Using Software Indesign Advice - The page size you choose in Indesign is the final printed, trimmed size of the completed design - You apply colour the same as you would in illustrator - All colours in indesign are global, so you can make tints of that colour - Images need to be prepared in photoshop or illustrator before they can be placed in Indesign, ensuring that they are cmyk and the correct size and file format - What you look at on screen is a low-resolution preview of the high quality illustrator file. You are placing a link to the illustrator file, not the image. This is why the images need to be kept in the same folder as the indesign file. You can see these links on the links palette. - File -> package. Gathers all images, fonts, everything in to one file. It shows mistakes like missing images, and the use of RGB colour. It saves documents and creates a text file where you can put contact details and specific instructions. (These need to be already discussed with the printer)
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Commercial Costings Here are some tips to prepare you for dealing with costings:
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- Get 3 quotes to see who is providing the best deal. All need to be given exactly the same specification. - Get a quote early on, before you start the job if possible, to give the client a rough idea of how much it will cost. - Be aware that finishes add greatly to the cost - Learn what each unit (singular item) would cost. There are different stages in print production, such as preparation, setting up the machine costs, labour and stock costs and more. So if you were only printing 5,000 copies, a unit would be more than it would cost if printing 10,000, as it is the setting up which is the most expensive part. - Extras cost more, such as if the client changes their mind about something, or if something needs correcting. - Do what you can to save money where possible, such as limiting the spot colours and finishing processes used. - Delivery costs will also add to the final bill.
Finishing Processes Finishing processes can really make a piece of design work stand out, improving the final product. Use them with caution though, as they add cost to the process, and too many could look too much, so they should be considered early on. Trimming - excess stock is cut away Die-cutting - allows design to be cut into a shape Foil blocking - coloured foil adds a shiny finish Embossing - raises a surface which debossing indents Varnish - flood fills the whole page, where spot is applied to a selected part Binding - different methods to secure the pages together Folding - there are many different folds to choose from Duplexing - two or more stocks are bounded together Perforation - creates a cut that allows paper to be torn Lamination - adds The high-quality business cards of LCA BAGD graduates a plastic coating stand out due to the use of finishes.
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Proofing
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As printing is such an expensive process, its important that you are 100% sure of your design before sending it to the printers! - There are the obvious steps to take, such as spell-checking, and getting a second pair of eyes to look over the design, but there are also steps you can take on the computer to ensure your design is perfect, such as packaging your file on indesign to show any errors within the document. - A good piece of advice is to proof early and often, as things can look different on paper than on screen. - Check all the files are in the correct place, all fonts are included if need be, and that there are no missing links. - Check your printed design in the right lighting, (ideally a viewing booth), as standard light bulbs can make the colours look warmer. - And finally, make sure you get the client to sign off the proof, as a form of insurance for yourself.
Glossary Binding - Fastening of assembled sheets over one edge of a publication. Involves folding, gathering, trimming, stitching and gluing. Bleed - The portion of an image that extends beyond the trim area of a page Coated - Paper with a clay coated surface is smooth Colour separation - Separates the files into four colour cmyk layers for printing Die cut - Make cuts in printed sheets Dot - A single element making an image DPI - Dots per inch is a measure of resolution Dummy - A mock up showing the size, shape, form and folds of what the printed piece will be, without the printed design Duotone - A two colour halftone reproduction of a black and white image Finish - A general term covering finishes like trimming, folding, binding and varnishing Fold mark - Lines printed on the paper to indicate where to fold Gloss - Paper that reflects light
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Glossary
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Gradient - The smooth transformation of one shade to another Grain - The direction in which the paper fibres line up Gutter - Inner margins on two facing pages Halftone - An image that is produced by discrete dots which can be seen through a linen tester Image area - The area that can be printed Imposition - The layout of an individual pages on a multipage design, so when the sheet is folder, the pages are in the correct order Letterpress - A process that uses inked raised images on flat plates Linen tester - Magnifying lens used to examine printing Matte - A dull coating Monochrome - A one colour image Overprint - Print over an area that has already been printed Page layout - Assembly of elements on a page Page proof - A layout of pages as they will appear in the printed piece
Glossary Pantone Matching System - A system of inks and information for reproducing the colours Plate - Aluminium sheets that represent the image to be printed and are used to transfer inked images to the blankets and then on to the paper Proof - A representation of what the printed job should look like Registration marks - Marks that are applied to establish proper image alignment Scoring - Paper is compressed along a straight line to break the fibres and allow it to be folded without cracking Spine - The back of a bound book Spot colour - A single solid colour printed using on separation plate Spot varnish - A clear coating applied to a particular area of a printed piece that gives it a glossy finish Stock - Type of paper/material used for printing Tint - A solid colour that has been changed to a lighter percentage shade of that particular colour
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What is Design for Print? This is a basic handbook to give you an idea of how design production for print works, as the printing process is a very important part of a graphic designer’s work. This book contains the top ten tips to ensure your printing process runs smoothly, so if you’re an aspiring designer, this handbook is an essential read! What is Design for Print? Print Manual written, designed, photographed and illustrated by Claudia Griffin. (Unless otherwise stated) www.c-griffin1013.blogspot.com With Thanks: Photographs of printers taken at Team Impression Print, Leeds. www.team-impression.com