Print Terms

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ANALOG COLOR PROOFS
Proofs created using film to carry and transfer the image to the proofing sheet

ANALOG PRINTING
Use of a "plate" to apply the printed image to paper. In offset printing, the plate has an ink-receptive image on its surface. The image is transferred to the paper's surface. One printing plate is required for each ink color printed.

AQUEOUS COATING
A water-based clear coating that overprints press sheets. It protects the printed surface from scratching and fingerprinting, reduces drying times and adds a glossy finish to the printed item. Aqueous is most often an overall coating.

AUTOTRAP
A software program that automatically applies trapping to output from imagesetters or platesetters. Trapping is the precise relationship between two ink colors when they butt together on a printed sheet. If no trap is added, a white gap may appear between colors. If too much trap is added, a dark line will appear where the colors overlap.


BLUELINE PROOF
A DuPont film-based proof that shows type, graphic images, page layout, folding, and color breaks-but not in color. Bluelines are most often used for one- or two-color printing orders. While the images on the proof appear only in shades of blue, they still show extensive detail in image contrast, shading, and halftone resolution.

BOUND SIZE
The dimensions of a book or folded piece after it has been bound or folded into its finished state.


CMYK
The acronym for the four basic ink colors used in four-color process printing: Cyan, Magenta, Yellow and Black.

CHROMALIN PROOF
A DuPont film-based proofing system using colored powders put into solution that create colored dyes. A layer of the colored dye is applied to a carrier sheet, exposed to light through a film negative and transferred to white proofing paper. The carrier sheet is then removed and additional color layers are applied as called for in the printed piece. CMYK dyes are used for four-color process proofs. The major advantage to Chromalin proofs that PMS match colors, custom ink color mixes and formulas using metallic powders can be accurately shown on proofs.

COLOR KEY PROOF
A Kodak film-based proof that uses colored acetate overlay sheets to show four-color process printing and 21 other custom ink colors. Each colored overlay sheet is exposed to light using a film negative to control where the printed image will fall. Each overlay is registered with the other colors to be printed and laminated to white proofing paper. Color Keys are not as accurate as other color proofing systems because the color is being viewed through plastic carrier sheets rather than as color directly applied to proofing paper.

COLOR SEPARATED LASERS
The process of printing a black and white laser for each color found in a document. E.g. a four-color process document will result in four lasers when color separated: cyan, magenta, yellow, black./p>

COLOR SEPARATIONS
Color separation is the breaking down of a full-color image into the four basic colors used in process-color printing. Color originals are exposed to laser light scanning that, through the use of four color filters can “read” and record the amounts of cyan, magenta, yellow and black that is present. The recorded data is converted into digital form and saved to a computer for further processing and placement into page layout programs.


DIGITAL COLOR PROOFS
Proofs created directly from digital art files-not film. Examples of digital proofs are toner-based black and white or color lasers, phaser wax proofs, dye sublimation, IRIS, thermal and ink-jet prints.

DIGITAL PRINTING
Direct printing by plateless imaging systems that are driven by digital data.

DTP
Originally the acronym for Desk Top Publishing-now it also stands for direct-to-plate in the platemaking process.

DUOTONE
When a single photograph is printed using two ink colors it becomes a duotone. The most common two-color combinations for duotones are black plus a color. Duotones can also be created using two PMS ink colors.

DYE SUBLIMATION PROOF
A digital proof that uses CMYK colored dye solutions to create a color image. The dyes are selectively applied to a paper carrier to show the color images.

DYLUX PROOFS
DuPont’s Dylux is a brand name for a non-color proof. See “blueline proofs” and “silverprints”


ELECTROSTATIC PRINTING
An electrically charged process that draws colored powder (toner) from a storage cartridge and applies it to paper as directed by digitally driven data.


FILM
Film is photo-sensitized acetate sheet that is exposed to light to capture an image. Film is solid black before exposure. After exposure and processing, film image areas become transparent or clear. Film is used to make “film-based” proofs and printing plates.


FILM PROOFS
Film-based proofs are created using printer’s film negatives output from an imagesetter. Film-based proofs are highly accurate representations of what the final printed product will look like and are shown to clients for final review and approval. After approval. the film negatives are used to make the printing plates. Examples of film proofs are Dylux, Silverprint, Blueline, Chromalin, WaterProof, Color Key, Pressmatch and Matchprint.

FLAT SIZE
The dimensions of a book or brochure before it is folded into its final bound size.


GRAY SCALE
The tonal range from very light gray (1% dot) to solid black (100% dot) in increments of 1% ink coverage.


HALFTONE
The reproduction of continuous-tone artwork, such as photography or pencil sketches, through a digital screening process that converts shaded images into solid ink dots of various sizes and concentrations. A few, tiny dots produces highlight areas. A heavy concentration of large dots produces mid-tone and shadow areas.


IMPOSITION
The planned arrangement of multiple pages or printed items on a single press sheet.

INK
Liquid or paste imaging material used in offset printing. Printing plates apply printing ink to the paper.


LAMINATION
A plastic film bonded by heat and pressure to a printed sheet for surface protection or appearance.

LASER
The acronym for Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation. A laser is an intense beam with very narrow band width that can produce images by electronic impulses from digital data.

LASER PROOFS
Laser proofs are black and white or color digital proofs. They can be printed as composite or color-separated sheets. Composite laser proofs show all colors that will print on one sheet. Color-separated laser proofs show each ink color to be printed on its own separate sheet. E.g. a four-color process document will result in four lasers when color separated: Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Black.

LITHOGRAPHY
The printing process based on the theory that water and oil will not mix. The lithographic printing process uses a planographic plate to control where the printed image will appear. This plate is sensitized to be ink-receptive in the image areas and water-receptive in the non-image areas. After the plate is placed on the printing press, ink is applied to the surface of the plate and stays in the image-designated areas. A miniscule amount of a water solution is applied to, and stays in, the non-image areas of the plate. This process of keeping the ink area separated from the water area has an accuracy of 1/1000 of an inch.

LOOP-STITCHING
An alternate saddle-stitch binding method that results in an extended wire "loop" where each staple falls. Loop-stitched books do not require drill holes. The loops are positioned for standard 3-ring binders or can be custom-placed for any 2-hole or 3-hole ring system.


MATCHPRINT PROOFS
Kodak’s film-based system for proofing four-color process printing orders.


NEGATIVE-PROCESSED
Printing plates that are created with printer’s film negatives are negative-processed printing plates. Negative-processing is also used to make film-based proofs for clients to review before printing begins.


OFFSET PRINTING
The term offset is often used interchangeably with lithography. In fact, lithography is the whole printing process (based on the theory that oil and water don’t mix). Offset is a step used within the lithographic process. When a printing plate transfers its inked image onto a rubber blanket before it transfers the same image onto paper, it is called an “offset” printed image.

OUTPUT
Output is the end result of converting digital art files into prepress materials used for printing production. Imagesetters output film negatives or film positives (used to make printing plates). Platesetters directly output printing plates without the film intermediary.


PAGE LAYOUT PROGRAMS
Computer software that allows a graphic designer to create page layouts using digital data. InDesign, Quark, Pagemaker and Publisher are examples.

PANTONE MATCHING SYSTEM
A system of color communication and measurement tools developed by Pantone, Inc. The system allows graphic designers, printers and clients to accurately communicate color targets and outcomes as ink is put on paper.

PDF
Portable Document Format. A format for the transfer of designs across multiple computer platforms. PDF is a universal electronic file format that is device- and resolution-independent. Documents in the PDF format can be viewed and printed from any computer, regardless of the fonts or software programs used to create the original. It is the preferred file format to submit to printing companies for digital printing. It is important to make sure all fonts are embedded in PDFs.

PHASER WAX PROOFS
Phaser proofs are digital, non-film proofs that use liquified colored crayons to create color images. Phasers normally cannot exceed a 300 dpi resolution.

PLATES
Plates are the carriers of the images to be printed. One printing plate is required for each ink color printed. Metal plates are used to produce high quality, close-register printed images. Lesser quality plates can also be made out of plastic and paper.

PMS INK COLORS
PMS is the acronym for Pantone Matching System and was developed by the Pantone Company for color identification. The system assists clients, designers and printers to communicate about color. Each PMS color has a unique number and formula for ink mixing. PMS colors are also referred to as “spot” colors.

PRESSMATCH PROOF
Agfa’s film-based proofing system for four-color process printing orders.

PROCESS COLOR
The four basic ink colors used in process-color printing are cyan, magenta, yellow and black (CMYK). These colors are semi-transparent inks that “process” with each other when overprinted in predetermined amounts. E.g., When cyan overprints yellow, it produces shades of green. When yellow overprints magenta, it produces shades of orange. Controlled screen tint combinations of the four basic ink colors allow the full spectrum of colors to be produced on a printing press.

PROCESS COLOR SEPARATIONS
Color separation is the breaking down of a full-color image into the four basic ink colors used in process-color printing. The making of a color separation involves the use of a laser light scanner which, through the use of four color filterings, can “read” and record the amounts of cyan, magenta, yellow and black that is present in any particular area of a color original. The recording of this data is converted into digital form and saved to a computer for further processing and placement into page layout programs.


REGISTER
The process of fitting two or more printing images in exact alignment with each other on the press sheet.

RESOLUTION
The quantification of output quality designated in dots per inch (dpi) when applied to paper output, and in lines per inch (lpi) when applied to film or plate output. Laser printers commonly hold resolutions from 300 to 1200 dpi. Film output units (imagesetters) use a resolution specified based on the surface type of papers to be printed. Newsprint can hold a resolution from 65 to 100 line screen. Uncoated papers typically use 133 to 150 line screens. Coated papers can hold resolutions of 175 to 200+ line screens.


SHEET-FED OFFSET PRINTING
Sheet-fed printing sends pre-cut sheets of paper through the printing press rather than paper fed from rolls.

SILVERPRINT PROOFS
Silverprints are film-based proofs that show type and images, page layout, folding, and color breaks-but not in color. Silverprints are most often used for one- or two-color printing orders. While the images on the proof appear only in shades of gray or “silver,” they still show extensive detail in image contrast, shading, and halftone resolution.

SPOT COLORS
Another name for PMS ink colors. PMS is the acronym for Pantone Matching System and was developed by the Pantone Company for color identification. The system assists clients, designers and printers to communicate about color. Each PMS color has a unique number and formula for ink mixing.

SPOT COLOR SEPARATIONS
The process of printing a black and white laser for each spot (PMS) color found in a document. E.g. A document designed using PMS 185 red and PMS 286 blue will result in two lasers when color separated.

LITHO STRIPPING
The process where printer’s negatives are positioned or “imposed” to create a press sheet layout. Litho strippers place negatives on carrier sheets called “flats,” make proofs for client approval and then use the same negatives to make the printing plates.

SUBSTRATE
The material on which ink is applied. A brochure's substrate is paper, and a T-shirt's substrate is cloth.


TONER
Powdered color imaging material used in plateless printing.


VARIABLE DATA PRINTING
Printing letters, flyers or any document with unique data on each one. Offset presses cannot print variable data.

VARNISH COATING
A clear ink that is applied to a printed sheet for protection or appearance. In addition to overall coverage, press sheets can be "spot" coated with varnish. A combination of two varnishes on a sheet, such as glossy varnish in one area and dull varnish in another area, creates a unique visual effect.


WATERPROOF
DuPont’s Waterproof is a film-based proofing system for four-color process printing. It employs the same color pigments used in printing inks and is processed using water rather than chemicals. Using color pigments instead of dyes or colored acetate overlays, makes a WaterProof’s color more accurate than other film-based proofing systems.

WEB OFFSET PRINTING
Web printing feeds paper through the printing press from a roll rather than using pre-cut sheets.