A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
Binding - The
process of fastening loose sheets of paper together
Bleed - An image or printed color that runs off the edge of the
paper.
Bleeding increases the amount of paper needed, which may increase the
production cost of the job. Bleeds are created by trimming the page to
size
after the printing is completed.
Burn - Exposing photosensitive media to light, as in burning a
plate in
offset printing or making a dylux.
Camera Ready - The
stage in printing when the document is ready to be photographed or
scanned to
make plates for the press. All elements of the document are in their
final
position, and the proof has been approved.
Choke (Choking) - When a publication is printed with several
interacting
spot colors, gaps or color shifts may appear between objects. Choking
closes
this gap by slightly overlapping a dark color over the boundary of a
light
color.
CMYK - Printers use CMYK - representing the colors cyan,
magenta,
yellow, and black inks - when printing 4-color process work. These are
called
subtractive colors, as combining them all gives the color black.
Subtracting
one or more of these colors will yield any other color. When combined
in
various percentages, these four inks will create an entire spectrum of
colors,
including those used in color photographs.
Coated Paper - Paper with a layer of coating applied to one or
both
sides, such as gloss, dull and matte finish. Dot gain is significantly
less on
coated papers providing sharper images and they are used frequently in
4 color
process work as well as in black and white halftones.
Color Key - A printer's proof that consists of four sheets of
colored
acetate that represents the color separation process for a particular
job.
Color Matching - A color sample book is used to match colors
with
standard inks used by most printers. The printer will then prepare
separate
printing plates for each color. The colors are chosen from those
provided by a
color matching system, such as Pantone. Use of a color matching system
permits
consistency of the color over time and among different jobs.
Color Separation - The separation of full-color artwork or
transparencies into the four primary printing ink colors (CMYK).
Composite Image - A photograph or other image that is created by
a
combination of multiple images on a single sheet.
Computer to Plate (CTP) - An
imaging technology used in modern printing processes. In this
technology, an image created in a Desktop Publishing (DTP) application
is output directly to a printing plate.
Copy - The words (text) that are used in printed material.
Copyright - An exclusive right that has been granted by law to a
particular creative product.
Copywriter - Someone who writes copy for advertisements or other
promotional material
Cropping - To reduce in size - to remove unwanted elements
Desktop Publishing -
The use of a computer to create documents that can be printed.
Specialized
software is used to add copy and graphics to the document, which is
then
outputted to a printer or typesetting equipment.
Die-Cutting - The use of a sharp, formed piece of metal to cut
out
specific shapes in a piece of paper.
Digital - Data processed using the numbers 0 and 1 through
on/off
impulses.
Digital Camera - A type of camera that stores the photographed
images
electronically rather than on film. The images are downloaded into a
computer
where they can be manipulated in a manner similar to scanned images.
Digital Printing - New printing technology in which electronic
files are
used to create images on press. Typically used for on-demand printing
and to
personalize documents. Generally used for short runs.
Dot Gain - The spread of ink on paper, causing the dots which
make up
the image to print larger than they were on the film or plate. The
images may
become distorted, appearing darker with less clarity.
Dots per Inch (DPI) - A measure of computer screen and printer
resolution that is referred to as the number of dots that a device can
print or
display per inch. The more dots per inch, the sharper the image.
Duotone - A two-color halftone of the same image created by
using two
screens, two plates, and two colors.
Dylux - A printer's proof made by exposing light sensitive paper
to the
film that will be used to produce printing plates.
Emboss - The
creation of a raised (embossed) image by pressing a shape into a sheet
of paper
with a metal or plastic die.
Emulsion - The chemically treated side of photographic film.
Engraved Printing - A printing process using recessed plates.
Ink sits
in the recessed wells of the plate, and when pressure is applied,
raised
letters and images appear on the front of the page.
EPS (Encapsulated PostScript) - A computer graphics file format
developed by Adobe Systems that usually contains object-oriented
files.
File Transfer Program
(FTP) - Computer software that permits the exchange of information
between
computers.
Foil Stamping - The application of foil to paper. May also be
combined
with embossing for added interest.
Four(4) Color Process - A method of printing that uses dots of
cyan,
magenta, yellow and black to recreate the continuous tones and variety
of
colors in a color image.
GIF - A graphic file
format commonly used by computer bulletin boards, not appropriate for
printing.
Graphic - An item to be printed that is not copy (text);
includes
photographs and illustrations
Graphic Design - The use of graphic elements and text to
communicate an
idea or concept.
Graphic Designer - The person who develops the graphic
designs.
Halftone - The method by which photographs and other images are printed by using cells of dots to simulate the tones between light and dark. A printing press is not able to change the tone of ink, therefore dots of color are used to trick the eye into seeing a continuous tone image. To accomplish this, the photo is processed with a screen that breaks the image into tiny dots. The closer the lines of the screen, the smaller the dots and the more dots per inch, leading to a crisper image.
Illustrator -
Someone who develops original artwork for use in commercial
applications.
Imagesetter - A high resolution output device for producing film
used to
create plates for a printing press.
Imposition - The process of arranging the pages of copy so that
when the
sheets are printed and folded for binding the pages will be in the
proper
order.
JPEG - A computer graphics file format that is not typically used in printing due to low resolution.
Leading - The space
between lines of type, measured from the baseline of one line to the
baseline
of the next. The quantity is measured in points, such as 6 point type,
8 point,
etc. Each point equals approximately 1/72th of an inch.
Lines Per Inch (LPI) - The number of lines or rows of dots there
are per
inch in a screen and therefore in a screen tint, halftone, or
separation.
Lupe - A magnifying lens used by printers to examine the details
of
printed materials. Use of a lupe permits an individual to see the
individual
color halftone dots used in process color printing.
Moiré - A blurry pattern created by printing several repetitive designs on top of each other. In 4-color process printing, this pattern is created when the halftone screen of each color is not properly aligned or a screen is applied to an already screened image.
Offset Printing - An
indirect printing process whereby ink is transferred to the paper by a
blanket
that carries an impression from the printing plate, rather than
directly from
the plate itself. This is the most common method of commercial printing
at this
time.
OCR (Optical Character Recognition) - Software that translates
images of
scanned text characters into characters that can be manipulated in a
computer
as text but not as images.
Perfect Binding - A
binding process whereby single sheets are stacked together, the binding
edge is
ground to create a rough surface, and adhesive is applied. A cover is
then
wrapped around the pages.
PDF - Stands for Portable Document Format. This is the next
generation
of files for the prepress workflow. PDF files are made by taking
postscript
files through Adobe Acrobat Distiller which embeds all fonts and
graphics and
can still be edited by a prepress department.
Photocopy - A reproduction process that uses a light sensitive
printing
element, toner, and heat to fuse the toner to the paper to produce the
copy.
Photo Illustration - An image produced by the use of one or more
photographs.
Pixel - Short for picture element. These are the dots that form
the
picture on a monitor. The smaller the pixel, the more detailed the
picture.
Pixel Depth - The amount of data used to describe the colored
dots on a
computer monitor.
PMS (Pantone Matching System) - An ink color matching system
created by
Pantone.
Point - Equivalent to 1/72th of an inch, points are the units of
measurement of type, such as 6 point, 10 point, etc.
Postscript - Postscript fonts have very smooth edges and are
used in
most printing applications. Writing Postscript is similar to sending
files to
an office printer, but the information is collected in an electronic
file that
can be read by prepress computers which RIP files prior to output.
Postscript
files can be converted into PDF format.
PrePress - The processes performed on a printing order prior to
its
going to the press to be printed. Examples are file preparation, file
modification, preparing film, stripping, creating proofs and making
plates.
Most up to date prepress operations have or are converting to all
digital
processes and work with customer provided electronic files.
Printing Plate - A thin object (plate) made of either metal or
paper
which is light sensitive and causes an image to be transferred to paper
while
on a printing press. The image is burned onto the plate by the use of
high
intensity light. The surface of the plate is treated or configured so
that only
the printing image is receptive to the ink which transfers to the
printed
object.
Proof - A method of checking for errors prior to printing an
order. A
press proof is used by the printing press operator to ensure the
correctness of
the finished product during the production of the order.
Process Color - One of the four colors (cyan, magenta, yellow,
and
black) that is used in producing full-color images, such as color
photographs.
Raster Image Processor (RIP) -
Hardware and software which translates data into a series of dots for
output.
Registration - Putting two or more images together so that they
are
exactly aligned, and the resulting image is well defined.
Resolution - The number of picture elements (pixels) per unit of
linear
measurement (normally an inch) on a computer monitor, or the number of
dots per
inch (dpi) in printed form.
RGB - RGB (red, green, and blue) are called additive colors
because
added together they may create all colors. Typically, RGB is used for
slide
presentations, computer software and games, and anything that is viewed
on a
video monitor.
Saddle Stitch - The
binding of sheets of paper to form a book by use of staples or
stitching
through the spine.
Score - To press a channel into paper to facilitate folding.
Service Bureau - An organization that provides specialized
graphics
services to printers. Service bureaus often provide film and proofs to
their
customers that are then delivered to printers.
Sheet-fed Press - A press that prints single sheets of paper, as
opposed
to a web press.
Spot Color - A single color ink or varnish applied to printed
material.
Primarily used when process colors are not appropriate. The effective
use of
spot color can add heightened interest to printed materials without
incurring
the cost of process colors.
Spread - When a publication is printed with several interacting
spot
colors, gaps or color shifts may appear between objects. A spread
closes the
gap by overlapping a light foreground object to a dark background.
Thermography - A
finishing technique applied after printing that raises the ink and
gives the
effect of engraved printing.
TIFF - A high-resolution graphics file that is commonly used
in
printing for photographs and illustrations.
Trapping - The deliberate overlap of adjacent colors, using
chokes and
spreads, to eliminate gaps between adjacent colors. Trapping is done
through
computer software and the overlap is minute, not normally visible to
the naked
eye.
Varnish - A coating added on top of paper to serve as protection, or enhance appearance. Varnishes are very effective in adding emphasis or eye-appeal to printed material. Gloss and dull varnishes are available.
Web Press - A high run, fast speed printing press that uses rolls of paper rather than individual sheets.