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production printing
print order
The order the inks are printed can heavily affect the outcome of a print. This is known as print order. Print order can be manipulated to achieve different outcomes.
CMYK is an acronym for the four colour process. It is the standard print order, when overlaid in the order that the acronym is spelt, reproduction of photographs and the range of colours in the CMYK colour space can be achieved.
There are other print processes or extensions to the standard such as CMYKOG, which adds orange and green to the process. Similarly, spot colours can be added to the process and used instead of CMYK or to aid CMYK.
The printer will have input as to which order colours are printed, if there are better ways to have the ink printed the printer will usually notify the client or at least advise them. Overprints require a different order of the process, dependent on the colours involved. Sealing an image can be achieved by the printer who will print the yellow after the black.