WONDERTIPZ

Alexa Blog: In toolbar reviews

2009-10-02T11:16:00.000-07:00

Graphic Designer: How to make HIGH PAYMENTS and EXPENSIVE

9 Amazing Resources for Free Vector Graphics

2009-09-29T00:24:00.000-07:00

Your search for free Vector graphics is over. Below we have compiled a list of the best free web sites to freely download Vectors, very useful for graphic design jobs you have, we’ll call them general, but in the second half of the post you will find specialized resources dedicated to vector logos, brands, cartoons and icons.

Vecteezy!

I Heart Vector

QVectors

GoMediaZine

VectorVault

Vector4Free

Open Clip Art Library

CoolVectors

Vector Portal

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PRINTING INKS - Standard Types

2009-06-10T22:41:00.000-07:00

Many printing inks used by any purposes produced by printing ink manufacturers. These printing inks commonly used for small business to high-scale printing business activities, from small home business printer to the large printing machine usage.

Web Offset Non-Heatset Ink
The non-heatset variety of web offset printing ink is a common type of ink used on web presses for newspaper and business forms printing. Non-Heatset ink is printed on absorbent, uncoated paper stock. Coated stocks should not be used with this type of ink because the paper will not completely absorb the ink, resulting in excess smudging and smearing.

Web Offset Heatset Ink
The heatset variety of web offset ink contains special varnishes that help the ink dry when heat is applied. Heatset presses are equipped with drier units for this purpose. Due to the varnishes, the ink printed on the paper is highly flammable, so the drying units must be specially built and properly maintained to avoid potential hazards. The main advantage of heatset ink is a printed product with a higher degree of quality.

Quickset Ink
Quickset ink contains a special varnish to speed the drying process. Unlike heatset ink, quickset ink does not require a heat source for proper drying and curing. The ink will not dry out on the press, but will dry quickly after it has been printed onto the substrate.

The are four basic processes that allows quickset ink to dry depending on the formulation: evaporation, absorption, oxidation, and polymerization. Newer types of quickset ink have a greater proportion of antioxidants and higher boiling-point distillates, which evaporate more slowly, so the absorption process plays a greater role with the newer inks. All four processes share equally in the ink curing process with older ink types.

Uncoated paper stocks are best suited for quickset ink. This is because the low viscosity distillates and antioxidants are quickly absorbed by the substrate, which leaves the remaining pigment and vehicle to dry quickly on the surface.

Sheet-fed Ink
Sheet-fed ink is manufactured specifically for sheet-fed presses and usually has a higher tack than web offset inks. The reason for this is that most sheet-fed presses run at slower speeds than web presses and a higher tack is necessary to provide the necessary quality.

Rubber-base Ink
Ink formulated with a rubber base is a good choice when flexibility in the printing process is important. Rubber-base ink can be printed on coated and uncoated paper and it dries quickly. It is most often used on small sheet-fed presses.

Soybean-base Ink
Soybean-base ink is becoming a popular alternative to petroleum-base ink because of the ease in which it is used and because it is environmentally friendly. Soy-base ink prints and handles similar to petroleum-base ink, but it is much less toxic because of the soybean oil. The soybean ink is biodegradable, meaning that it is eventually broken down and is much less hazardous to the environment. Some soy inks may contain petroleum additives, so if a client requires 100% soy-based ink for a print application, it is important to be fully informed on the type of soy ink that is used.

Water-base Ink
Water-base ink has been around for awhile, but it is still not as popular as other ink types. The usage of water-base ink may increase as environmental laws get tougher on the acceptable VOC (Volatile Organic Compounds) emissions generated from petroleum-base ink. Water-base ink emits no VOC's. It is safe to work with and the print quality is comparable to other ink types. Water-base ink is used mainly in flexography and gravure printing. It is a good choice for printers and customers who want their projects manufactured with nontoxic materials.

Laser Ink
Laser ink is specially formulated to withstand the extreme heat of the laser printer. If conventional ink is used for the preprinted portion of a document (such as an invoice or statement), the ink will melt in a laser printer because of the excessive heat produced by the laser printer. This results in damage to the preprinted document and possible damage to the laser printer because of ink adhering to the internal parts of the printer.

UV (Ultraviolet) Ink
Ultraviolet ink is formulated to cure and dry when exposed to a UV light source, unlike conventional ink, which dries through evaporation and absorption. Instead of being absorbed into the paper, the Ultraviolet ink remains on the surface until it is exposed to the UV rays, which instantaneously transforms the ink into a hard film. Ultraviolet ink can be applied to many types of substrates including paper, metal, vinyl, and glass.

Process Ink Colors
Process ink colors are used in Four Color Process Printing. Cyan, magenta, yellow, and black are the colors necessary for this process and are formulated differently for different types of printing processes.

High-Fidelity Ink Colors
High-fidelity ink colors are use in an advanced form of color printing, combining the standard four process colors of cyan, magenta, yellow, and black, with two more colors - usually orange and green. This allows for a greater color range, increased subtlety in the gradations of color, and additional vibrancy..

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Printing Ink Problems – FULL BRIEFS

2009-06-10T22:47:00.000-07:00

Sometime you have to meet some of printing ink problems in your printing business works. You should know about printing problems related with inks to solve your problems and continuing your printing jobs smoothly.

Setoff
The transfer of ink from one sheet to the next sheet is known as setoff and is usually caused by too much ink being applied to the substrate and/or ink that is slow drying. The ink can be transferred from the front of one sheet to the back of the next and vice versa.

Slow Drying
One of the most common printing related problems is ink that dries too slowly. When ink dries slowly it may smudge and smear on the printed surface. The ink may also transfer from the front of one sheet to the back of the next one (setoff) and vice versa. Setoff is usually the result of too much ink being applied to the printing paper because of improper press settings. Both high humidity in the production area and high moisture content in the printing paper affect the ability of the ink to dry properly.

Poor Binding and Rub
This condition is sometimes confused with slow drying. With poor binding and rub, the ink is actually dry but the pigment can be easily rubbed off the surface. This can be caused by ink that does not have adequate bonding properties for the type of printing paper on which it is being printed. An excessive amount of the vehicle soaks into the paper leaving all of the pigment on the surface with nothing to hold it there. It is possible to salvage a print application with this problem by applying a coat of varnish to seal the pigment.

Ink Adhesion
Ink adhesion is actually the result of setoff and slow drying ink, which in turn are usually the result of poorly adjusted press settings. The quantity of ink applied to the sheet or web can be so excessive that the ink acts as an adhesive, causing the sheets stick together. A printed document with any of the printing from the front showing up on the back and/or the printing from the back showing up on the front, is a definite sign that the press settings were not adjusted correctly for the type of printing surface, the type of ink used, or the coverage area.

Mottling
Mottling is a condition referring to an uneven appearance in the solid portions of a printed document, which can be caused by uneven absorption of ink, nonabsorbent printing papers, the wrong ink for the particular printing paper used, or faulty press adjustments.

Fill-in
Fill-in can cause a muddy look in printed screens and halftones and a speckled appearance in highlight areas. Areas of detail may disappear entirely. The causes of fill-in are contamination of the ink with paper fibers, lint, dirt and dust; substandard ink; the wrong choice of ink for the job; and/or improper press settings.

Misting
Misting occurs when an ink with too much length is used on high-speed presses. Poorly adjusted ink rollers also contributes to the problem. The ink actually turns into a fine mist and if the problem is significant, the mist may create a fog in the press area. The mist makes contact with everything in the area, including the surface of the printed application. Misting can give the finished product a speckled and dirty appearance and create health hazards for press operators.

Piling
If a printed document has blotchy areas that are outlined by a non-printed line, it can be the result of piling. Piling is usually caused by faulty paper or ink. The printing paper may contain excessive paper dust or a poor coating. The coating may be partially removed as it passes through the press, adhering to the printing blanket and plate, causing the blotchy appearance. The vehicle in the ink may not carry the pigment properly, which allows the pigment to pile on the plate and blanket of the press.

Color Matching
Occasionally, a color that is printed does not match the color that was intended. As with many printing related problems, improper press settings can be the cause, but other variables may also contribute to the problem. The color and texture of the paper changes the printed colors, so the choice of printing paper must considered early in the planning stage of the project. Some of the ink colors can change slightly as they age, which may cause large color shifts, especially when older inks are mixed together to produce other colors. Lighting conditions influence the appearance of color, which is why it is very important for the customer and printer to have a good proof to work from.

Trapping
Trapping refers to the alignment of colors on a printed document, such as a document printed with four-color process printing. Trapping may be required to correct the registration of colors on a print project. Successful trapping depends a great deal on the tack of the ink. The first color printed on the sheet should have a higher tack than the second color printed, and so on. This will greatly improve the trapping abilities.

Show Through
Show through is a term used to describe when the printed area of a document shows through to the other side of the sheet. Show through is especially annoying when there is printing on both sides of the document. This is usually caused by the use of printing paper that is too thin or transparent or ink that is applied too heavily on the printing surface.

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Low Cost Printing with Black Plate Technique

2009-06-10T22:57:00.000-07:00

This printing tips could be the cost savings on doing printing matters by choosing black plate optimizing. This technique only well-handed by the expert graphic designer or experienced printing companies to be tight on printing cost. When designing a piece for translation or other variety data, the main trick is to keep anything that changes on the black plate

, or key plate only.

By doing this you will be able to keep the other three plates when you change over from one language to the other, and you will only have to pay the cost of the black plates. If you were to translate a flyer in 5 languages and you used this method, you would be paying the cost of 8 plates instead of 20. The more pages your design has, the more you save.

When dealing with any languages, the most obvious element that changes is text. Any text that is going to change once translated, should only appear on the black plate and not on any other plate. Avoid using blacks which are formed by any percentage of cyan, magenta and yellow, because they will appear on all 4 plates.

Make sure you also set the trapping of your black text to overprint color. This is usually the default in layout applications. There are a couple exceptions to this as explained below:

Lock Everything That Doesn't Change
Lock all your pictures and other colored elements on your page so that they don't move. If you mistakenly move them and you don't realize you did so, it will be a disaster when you try to print your job. The new black plates of your languages (or other text variations) will not fit onto the other plates.

If by any chance you do move objects around which shouldn't have been moved, make sure you undo it. If you nudge a picture towards the right, for example, don't nudge it back to the left. Undo the nudging so you are sure that your picture is back to its original position.

Using Knock Out Black Boxes for Better Visibility
There are times where very colorful backgrounds make it tricky to simply use black text, as your text tends to get lost. A way to get around it is by drawing a black box and makes your text white. See this illustration of using a knock out and black box.

When you use reversed or knockout type, you need to set the trapping of your text box to knockout. If you leave the trapping set to overprint, the picture behind the box will be printed entirely and when you change the black plate, the image will show through the white text.

Using Overlay Trapping for Colored Text
There is a way to used colored text even when you are restricted to only changing the black plate. You will still have to use a black box, but this time, instead of laying the black box right on top of the picture, you put it on top of another colored box.

Let's say you want your writing to be red. Draw a red box wherever you want your text to go. Then put a black box containing your text on top of it. The text in this black box needs to be of the same color of the box which you have underneath. So if the box at the back of your black box is red, then also the writing inside the black box is to be red. Now set the trapping of the black box to overprint. This will result into a black mask which will cover the red box entirely, a part from where your text is.

When you change the black plate, the black box will still be there untouched, and you will put another black mask on top of it. The red will again only show through the letters. If this is not clear, look at this animation of overprinting. Putting everything that changes on the black plate doesn't have to limit your design possibilities. Discover how to be creative with your layout even while saving money.

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Printing Lamination – FAMOUS METHODS

2009-06-10T22:33:00.000-07:00

A Lamination in printing business works is laminating of printing matters surfaces to make them look exclusively. The printing lamination could give you more fine results and durability of printing matters. It is widely used for finishing works in printing brochures, flyers, business cards, catalogs, etc.

Here are the famous methods of printing lamination used in printing business activities:

Thermal Lamination
The laminate in printing business usually consists of 2 plies with each ply made up of an overlaminate film and an adhesive, which is dry and not tacky to the touch. A heat source and pressure are required during the lamination process. The document is placed between the two plies of the laminate film and then sent through equipment where the dry adhesive is made tacky by heat and is pressed onto the document under high pressure. After cooling, the adhesive solidifies and provides a permanent bond between the document and laminate film.

Cold Lamination
Cold lamination is a process in which only one side of a document is laminated. This cold laminating process is required when the ink and/or paper used for a document is too sensitive to the heat required with thermal lamination. The laminating film used for cold lamination is much more costly than for thermal lamination, but the equipment is less expensive.

One method of cold lamination utilizes a process where no dry adhesive is used as in thermal lamination. The surface of a document is flooded with a water-soluble adhesive. It is then sent through a set of rollers with the laminating film rolled onto the top of the document and the adhesive. Pressure is applied which evenly distributes the adhesive and bonds the film to the document. The adhesive takes a bit longer to cure than thermal lamination and lighter stocks can wrinkle or warp because of the water based adhesive. Cold lamination may not be as permanent as thermal lamination.

General Tips:
- Allow several days for laminated sheets to cure, since the adhesive takes time to fully adhere to the stock. Use caution when applying a lamination film to varnished sheets.
- Use a varnish that dries quickly, contains minimal residual solvent, and contains no wax additives.
- Do not laminate printed materials containing metallic inks since air bubbling adhesion problems may occur.

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Printing Inks - SPECIALTY TYPES

2009-06-10T22:17:00.000-07:00

Metallic ink provides a distinctive look to a variety of print applications. The ink is produced by blending different types of metallic powders into the ink mixture, such as aluminum powder to create a silver appearance and bronze powder to create a gold appearance. Some metallic inks can nearly duplicate the look of foil on some applications without the need to purchase the additional equipment required for foil stamping.

Metallic ink is more challenging for the press operator to control than conventional ink. One reason for this is that the metallic powder blended into the ink mixture cannot be ground as fine as other pigments because the metallic ink will lose its luster. The larger particles create problems on the press, especially with the offset lithography process. To overcome some of the special print problems, some printers do a double hit (running the piece through the press a second time to apply another coat of ink to strengthen the coverage).

Most printers require an upcharge for the use of metallic ink on an application because the ink is more expensive to produce and makes the print job more time consuming. Metallic ink tends to have a much shorter shelf life than standard ink.

Magnetic ink
Magnetic ink is comprised of a petroleum-base ink blended with magnetic iron oxide particles. The magnetic iron oxide particles allow documents printed with this type of ink to be read and sorted by electronic scanning equipment. Checks are an example of a document printed with magnetic ink. The MICR (Magnetic Ink Character Recognition) number at the bottom of the check is the only portion of the check printed with the magnetic ink. The remaining copy on the check is printed with standard ink to ensure that no other printed area on the check interferes with the ability of the scanner to read the magnetic MICR number.

Non-porous Ink
Non-porous ink is used for printing on substrates, such as metal or plastic, that do not allow ink to be absorbed into the material. Because the printing surface of these materials is nonabsorbent, the ink dries solely through oxidation rather than absorption.

Fluorescent Ink
Fluorescent is another type of ink that can provide a distinctive look for a variety of print applications. Fluorescent ink colors are most often printed on labels, posters, and signs that are used for alerting people to hazards or attracting their attention to advertising pieces.
There are several points to consider when using fluorescent colors. The ink tends to fade quickly, so they should be kept out of direct sunlight. Because of their tendency to fade, fluorescent inks have a short shelf life. Another point to consider is that fluorescent ink is very transparent, so it may require a double hit (a second run through the press) in order to achieve the desired results. In spite of this potential problem, fluorescent ink is a good choice for creating emphasis and increased visibility.

Phosphorescent Ink
Applications printed with phosphorescent inks acquire a "glow in the dark" property after the phosphorescent area has been exposed to light. The length of time that an application will glow in the dark depends upon the ink ingredients and the length of time that the application is exposed to light. In some cases, a 10-30 minute exposure to light can yield an afterglow of up to 12 hours. The ingredients of phosphorescent ink are nontoxic and are free of radioactive additives. It is very useful for road signs, sporting goods, exit signs, safety products, toys, and novelty items.

Pearlescent Ink
Pearlescent ink is a specialty ink that is used to add highlights and depth to the printed area of an application. It is able to provide an almost 3-dimensional effect to some applications.

Edible Ink
Edible ink is used on print applications that may come into contact with food or the ink may be part of the food product and therefore it must be made of totally nontoxic ingredients. An example where edible inks are used would be in the monogramming found on some confectionery items. Because the inks are used on food items, they are strictly regulated by the government.

Scratch and Sniff Ink
Also known as a microencapsulated ink, scratch and sniff ink releases a fragrance when the microcapsules are broken. The scratch and sniff ink is commonly used in magazines for perfume advertisements. When the consumer scratches the surface of the designated area of the ad, the capsules are broken, releasing the fragrance.

Medical Device Ink
Ink used for printing on medical devices is made of nontoxic ingredients so that direct printing on noninvasive surgical and medical disposable items is possible.

Moisture Resistant Ink
Moisture resistant ink is most often used for different types of packaging or for applications that may be used outdoors.

Security Ink
There are a variety of inks that provide added security features to print applications. Some security inks allow documents to be created that are tamper proof, while the use of other types of security inks prevent documents from being copied. Security inks include the following varieties:
Coin Reactive, Bleeding, Erasable, Heat Reactive, Visible Infrared, Optically Variable, Pen Reactive, Penetrating, Photochromic, Solvent/Chemical Reactive, Thermochromic, Water Fugitive, UV Invisible Fluorescent

Desensitizing Ink
Desensitizing ink is a transparent ink that is applied to the face of CF (Coated Front) and/or CFB (Coated Front and Back) carbonless paper in order to deactivate the CF coating. The use of desensitizing ink is important when an application requires that handwritten or imprinted data not be transferred through the various pages of a carbonless form in specific areas.

Electronic Ink
Electronic ink can be transformed from bright white to dark and then back to bright white again with a small electrical charge. The ink consists of plastic microcapsules that contain both dark dye and white ink chips. The microcapsules are sandwiched between thin layers of flexible material, which substitutes for traditional paper. When an electrical charge is applied, some of the white chips float to the top of some capsules to create a white surface and in other capsules, the white chips remain at the bottom allowing the dark fluid to remain visible.

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Printing Coating – FAMOUS TYPES

2009-06-10T22:07:00.000-07:00

Coating of printing matters surfaces could provide the best surface properties and protection for printed surfaces. When coatings are applied as an off-line process over dry ink, they create a bold effect, but when applied as an on-line process, they create a much more subtle effect over ink that is still wet. Among the most popular coatings are overprint varnishes, aqueous coatings, UV coatings, and EB coatings.

Overprint Varnish
Applied during the printing process or as an off-line process, overprint varnish is much like a solvent-based ink. The different varieties are usually colorless, but sometimes they are tinted to achieve a desired effect. Varnish can be applied as an all-over coat or in spots to highlight a specific area of a printed piece.

Overprint varnish is available in glossy, dull, or satin finishes. Gloss varnish creates a smooth surface over the paper, filling in any voids or irregularities that may be on the surface. Dull varnish also fills in irregularities to form a smooth surface, but it diffuses light that reflects back to the eyes, which creates a dull appearance. A nearly 3-D effect can be created by applying gloss varnish to a subject and dull or satin varnish to the background. The subject will appear to jump off the page. In addition to applying varnish as a solid coat, it can also be printed as a halftone (series of dots) in order to provide subtle effects and to provide printed objects with an increased dimensional appearance. The effects that can be achieved are endless when using different combinations of varnish, paper, and ink.

Besides design effects, another important aspect of varnish is the protection it provides. A coating of varnish over a printed piece protects it from the wear and tear that is part of every day handling, allowing the document to remain intact for a longer period. An all-over coat of satin varnish will protect the printed surface without drawing attention to the fact that varnish was used for protection purposes.

A disadvantage of varnish is that many of them are solvent-based. Solvent-based means that they emit VOCs while they are being applied, which can be a health hazard for the press operator unless the proper safety precautions are followed. Another disadvantage is that varnishes tend to yellow over time if they are formulated with tung or linseed oil. Varnishes with alkyd formulations will not yellow, but they are not as glossy or as hard as tung or linseed oil.

The use of varnishes on print applications should be planned early in the design process. They should not be applied as an afterthought in order to try to cover-up a poor choice in paper, ink, or design.

Aqueous Coating
An aqueous coating is usually applied during the printing process and can be applied as an all-over coat or in patterns or spot coatings. Like varnishes, an aqueous coating offers protection for the printed document and provides numerous effects for print applications. Aqueous coatings are available in gloss, matte, and satin finishes. Among the advantages that aqueous coatings have over solvent-based varnishes is that they will not yellow over time and they are less toxic and emit fewer VOCs.

UV Coating
UV coatings come in a liquid or paste form and remain as a liquid or paste until exposed to ultraviolet light. The printed page is covered with the UV coating and is then exposed to the UV light, which causes photoinitiators within the coating to immediately react, creating a hard protective finish. Ingredients called monomers give the coating its gloss and hardness characteristics. UV coating, which is also known as an Energy Curable coating, provides the best surface properties and protection for printed surfaces. Some benefits of UV Coating include:
- Greater opacity, Color stability, Deeper and more vibrant colors and color tones.
- Sharper graphics, Higher gloss, Uniform surface to give labels a more vibrant look.
- Scuff resistance, Instantaneous curing, Allows for in-line die cutting.
- Chemical resistance, Better outdoor endurance.
- Environmentally safe - No VOCs (Volatile Organic Compounds) are produced.

EB Ink / Coating
Like UV inks/coatings, EB (Electron Beam) is an energy curable coating, but it is hardened with the use of a concentrated beam of high energy electrons. EB inks/coatings do not contain photoinitiators because the high energy electron beam is all that is necessary to cure the surface.

Other Coatings
Other types of coatings include clay coatings to add strength and gloss to paper, whitewash coatings which are used as a finish coat for such items as Kraft paper, and grease resistant coatings used on applications for industrial and scientific uses.

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PANTONE Color Matching Sample

2009-06-10T21:18:00.000-07:00

Pantone Matching System® uses 11 basic colors to achieve over 1000 color mixtures that are used by printers and art departments. The basic printing colors that are used are: yellow, warm red, rubine red, rhodamine red, purple, violet, reflex blue, process blue, green, black, and transparent white, which appears clear.

Each of the mixed colors are assigned a PMS number. The first number assigned for a mixed color is 100 and the numbering proceeds up from that point. The instructions for mixing the color are listed below the color swatch.

The mixing instructions include the number of parts of the specific base colors that are necessary to mix a particular color, as well as a percentage of the total volume for each of the colors that are required. For example, to mix the color, Pantone 198 (a red color), the mixing instructions are listed as follows:

6 parts (37.5%) Rubine Red
2 parts (12.5%) Yellow
8 parts (50%) Trans. White

By using the various ink formulas found in the swatch book, ink manufactures and printers can mix colors to exact specifications. Pantone also issues a digital color guide for electronic publishing which lists the color formulas in a format necessary for the colors to be displayed on a computer screen.

Note: Pantone Color Guides should be replaced after one year because the printed colors in the swatch book will shift or fade and will no longer be a true representation of the actual colors.

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Famous Printing Processes

2009-05-25T08:46:00.000-07:00

There are many printing processes and methods to finish your printing project. Discover the range of printing methods and when to use which type of printing process that fit with your printing cost. Sometime you must choosing a way for your printing business works or for your own printing need.

Digital / Desktop Printing
Desktop printing is important to desktop publishing. It was primarily the introduction of both the Apple LaserWriter, a PostScript desktop printer, and PageMaker for the Mac that kicked off the desktop publishing revolution. Inkjet and laser printers are the most common type of desktop printers and are generally used for personal small volume printing and proofing.

Laser / Digital Printers
Speed and lower operation costs make laser printers attractive to many businesses. Color lasers can be found at service bureaus and printers and are often used to produce high-resolution color digital proofs. Adobe PostScript capabilities found in many laser printers make them popular with graphic designers and desktop publishers who often utilize EPS images and PostScript files.
For quality comparable to a high-end laser printer, the Xerox DocuTech printer offers toner-based digital printing for short runs and print-on-demand projects. There are both B&W and color DocuTech printers.

Digital Ink-based Printing
Some digital ink-based printing processes are used for desktop printers and others are normally used for higher volume business printing or by quick printers, inkjet being the most common. Currently, inkjet printing is the primary printer technology for home, home offices, and many small businesses.
Inkjet printers are inexpensive and produce good color output but can be slow. Best results are normally achieved when printing to specially coated inkjet or photo papers.

Dye-sublimation printers use high heat and solid dyes to produce photo lab-quality images and are favored by some graphic designers for high-end proofing and by some businesses who want to produce the best possible color materials in-house.

Solid ink printers are generally low-cost to operate, not requiring the more expensive inkjet papers to achieve good results. However, solid ink printing output is still not as high-quality as laser or inkjet printers.

Offset Lithography
Offset lithography is the most commonly used commercial printing process for the bulk of desktop publishing on paper. Offset lithography is used on both sheet-fed and web offset presses. The three primary differences in offset printing and desktop printing (such as inkjet and laser) are the colors of ink and the way the ink is placed on the paper as well as the type of printing machinery used to accomplish the task.

Flexography
Frequently used for printing on plastic, foil, acetate film, brown paper, and other materials used in packaging, flexography is also known as flexographic printing or flexo. Some typical applications for flexography are paper and plastic bags, milk cartons, disposable cups, and candy bar wrappers. Flexographic printing may also be used for envelopes, labels, and newspapers.

Gravure Printing
Gravure printing is commonly used for labels and packaging, competing against flexography. Photogravure is a process used mostly for fine art prints

Thermography is often used in place of the more expensive engraving process to produce wedding invitations, business cards, and letterhead with raised printing.

Letterpress printing is still used for some newspapers, books, and limited edition prints. Letterpress may also be used for printing business cards, letterhead, posters, and some forms but mostly replaced by offset printing and other processes.

Screen or silkscreen printing is popular for t-shirts but works for many other non-textile projects as well such as CDs, vehicle billboards, signs, and posters.

Stochastic printing may be used for some fine art prints.

Thermal autochrome printers are aimed primarily at digital photographers.

Thermal wax printers produce vibrant color but require very smooth or specially-coated paper or transparencies for best output. Thermal wax printing technology works well for businesses that need to produce large quantities of transparencies for colorful business presentations.

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UNIQUE MENU RESTAURANT by Digital Printing

2009-05-23T09:32:00.000-07:00

How unique your menu restaurant looks like? Digital printing techniques provide wonderful advertising for your own business such as: fast food restaurant, cafe, etc. Your menu restaurant printing made faster, clearly, and of course low cost printing. More food related business are branching out into the take out world to give more choice and options to their customers and therefore increases their sales.

Here are digital printing tips for your menu restaurant printing:

1. Create special deals on your menu that customers can quote when they order.
Meal deals, special take out prices and low delivery costs including in your menu printing, are all great tempters for people when choosing where to get their quick food. Even if you are a high end restaurant, giving people the choice to get a full meal to enjoy at a special rate can make the difference when they are in town and feeling hungry. They will remember this special offer they saw on your menus and actively seek out your business.

2. Menu printing itself is a great idea for advertising your restaurant's take out services.
You can supply a copy of your menu to everyone in the locality you can deliver to. This shows potential customers exactly what food you do and when they feel in the mood they'll pick up your menu for ordering.

3. You don't need to just hand out the menus at doors, remember to include one of your menus with every order.
This is simple yet a highly effective method of advertising for your restaurant. Menus may get misplaced, damaged and get food on them very easily so you need to ensure that customers have a replacement menu when they order so the next times they want take out they'll go back to you. More often than not, if a customer is choosing a restaurant to purchase food from, they'll simply choose the one they have a menu for.

4. When considering menu printing services you should also consider student discounts. Students have very busy and hectic lifestyles and many of them do not have the time or money to spend on expensive food and cooking. Applying a special student discount when designing for menu printing will encourage young students to choose your restaurant over competitors. If they have a collection of menus to choose from, special advertising rates can really appeal and make your menu stand out above the rest.

5. Find a company you can rely on for consistent menu printing quality, bulk orders and continuous custom.
You will always need a large supply of menus to keep your business growing and growing as well as maintaining current customers. Professional menu printing is a must have ingredient for your restaurant business so make sure you find a reliable and quality professional menu printing service.

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Corporate Clothing for Advertising Tool

2009-05-23T09:29:00.000-07:00

Yourcorporate clothing describe what your company's business. Advertising by corporate clothing is one of marketing tools that very effective promotion. Corporations may have to meet very rich clients, international clients or prominent celebrities. Your company’s workers should appear highly professional and impeccable in their tastes. Men are expected to wear a quality suit, and women should be attired in a similar, professional manner. You may not be able to find corporate clothing at a casual retail store.

You can find suits anywhere, but are they really industry standard when you’re talking about worldwide communication?

In business it is important that you dress for success. When customers see the company you represent they want to know that it is professional, outstanding in service and successful in all of its endeavors. It may be vain, but it’s true: clothing can project failure or success. This is why companies invest a lot of money into casual corporate clothing.

If a new client were to walk inside an office of your company but found a bunch of casually dressed, unkempt people who were chewing tobacco and playing video games, what kind of impression would that leave? They may be having fun, but is work their first priority? The client may wonder if his or her business would be their first priority. It’s easy to reassure someone of this notion, but actions speak louder than words, and a strong visual results from the action taking place.

Hence, when clients see a well-managed office with happy people, busy people and a clean environment, their confidence is reassured without the need for persuasion. This should emphasize to you the importance of corporate clothing.

All of this is true of professional attire, but you may know notice that sometimes corporate people are dressed casually, such as when they are out in public or going about a more laborious task. This manner of corporate clothing may be casual but it is still very clean and professional in appearance. Some corporations create casual wear for their employees for more strenuous work activities. They may even encourage employees to wear them outside the office in an effort to promote the company name and logo. Proudly advertising your company by casual corporate clothing that you wear. This is a great promotion in brand building!

You can have corporate clothing made for your company and have the insignia printed on a hat, shirt, pants or jacket. This also goes a long way in promoting positive employer-employee relationships. Employees can then feel like they are a part of a company family. Furthermore, wearing this company-branded clothing can help workers to retain their professional demeanor and always be accommodating to potential clients. Remember that corporate clothing doesn’t have to be cheap stuff. Some of the top companies of corporate clothing producers are partly affiliated with major manufacturers like Nike, Hanes, Champion and Anvil.

Whether you are looking to improve your appearance or just have a friendly game of golf among your employees then your answer is in corporate clothing. You can find corporate clothing online for discounted prices, and of course, completely customizable for all of your promotion and marketing tool.

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Packaging Boxes Printing BENEFITS

2009-05-23T09:16:00.000-07:00

APackaging Box Printing is the technology of surrounding or protecting products from external hazards for distribution, storage, sale, and use. Boxes are mainly used for packaging of goods and materials. In the dynamic environment, people are often busy in the process of moving houses, apartments and offices.

They always plan their move in an organized manner through packaging in boxes. Packaging also refers to the process of production, evaluation, and packaging design. Packaging serves a number of purposes including protection and description of the contents inside packaging, theft prevention, and product promotion.

If you are doing a business that involves in transportation of goods, you need shipping boxes. Boxes make the first impression for your business, so your boxes must reflect your professionalism. Customers always appreciate their shipments arriving in great condition with the packaging intact, so your mailing boxes should be strong enough to take the attention of your customers.

Many box manufacturer and supplier of all types of boxes and packaging products can provide excellent boxes to ensure that your move is safe and hassle free. These cardboard boxes are ready for moving all of the time. We provide services for big box retail, box bag retail, box contact maker, Box Factory, box for wholesale packaging, box maker, box packaging, box packaging for cosmetic, cardboard packaging, Fancy Cardboard Boxes, gift box packaging, Manufacture Cardboard Box, box manufacturer, Paper Boxes, Retail Packaging Suppliers, Round Cardboard Boxes, small soap packaging box, Wholesale Stationary Boxes.

They will work with you to create a packaging solution that works for your business. For most shipping and packaging purposes, their standard cardboard boxes can be used. For small sipping items, you can buy small boxes. For additional protection of your items, you can use our heavy duty boxes.

The moving packing boxes can also be used in moving of your office, home, or apartment etc. We always struggle to meet and exceed your expectations; so they are always looking for new and innovative ways to offer an excellent level of service. Whether you need a single box or a bulk quantity of boxes, they can offer you all solutions.

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IMAGES Quality for Online Printing

2009-05-23T09:11:00.000-07:00

Your printing project could working with an online printing company. Always ask what your options: images quality or resolution are and work with the necessary experts to solicit much needed opinions from when you are doing online color printing works.

These are printing tips that you consider for images quality for doing online printing option:

• Good resolution is directly proportional to the amount of pixels or dpi. This state is first time asked by an online printing company of your printing order.
• Getting high resolution is important when acquiring the image. It is essential to scan images at high resolution, or take pictures using large file formats.
• But when these files are transferred in the computer, the most important consideration is to maintain the original resolution. Some data can be lost along the way when resizing and saving the prints. Loss of data results to poor quality images. Thus, it is best to save in lossless files such as .eps or .tiff.
• Always be aware in the file formats you save your files in. Sometimes, certain file formats may compress your image which may not be good as it can affect the quality of the resolution.
• When other people recklessly resize their design or images, the images quality and resolution becomes low. By not viewing the file too in the "actual image" size, it becomes unnoticeable that the print has become pixilated.
• On another angle, people resize their design print to have more dpi or more pixels, where the image resolution or quality may still suffer. Although there are more pixels, what this simply does is that it copies the data of the surrounding pixel or simply breaks up a pixel in more pieces. This does not make the image clearer, just as slicing the pizza in more pieces doesn't make it larger.
• Sometimes, the problem of resolution starts with taking the picture or scanning the picture. The discussion for this may be quite lengthy, but if you do plan to use the image for your prints, always start with a resolution in a high setting.
• Always observe designing in CYMK mode rather than converting your RGB designs later into CMYK for color printing. If you do the latter, you will risk adjusting the color levels once again to acquire the colors you originally had. You had to exert twice the effort and time for nothing.
• If you had original images in RGB which contains bright colors, printing them out in CMYK would only give you dull and even flat prints. Do not risk this for your full color print jobs. Always remember to upload images in CMYK mode.

Pre-press experts would and can advise you on the right file formats, resolution and even colors. Technical service representatives would help you work out sending your files, converting them in the right manner and such. Graphic Designers too would help you or advise you in maintain the image quality and color accuracy of your prints.

The best way to ascertain the validity of some claims is to call the printing service provider. They should be able to walk you through the four color printing process, that will enable you to have the best quality print at the lowest price. Ask them for printing tips, and for your color printing options.

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PLASTIC CARD Printing - Tool TIPS

2009-05-23T09:08:00.000-07:00

APlastic card is necessary for your school or for a small business you own.Printing ID cards with your own card printer is a simple task. It just simply connects your printer to your computer and it will print out the same way like your paper printing machine. Plastic card printer prints your image on plastic instead of printing it on a piece of paper.

Learning to print your own plastic card is truly an advantage. You can have a great deal of this anxiety and stress out of the printing process. If you print them yourself, you can control over your cards directly, according to your desire styles, their size and more. If you have been paying another company to print your ID cards, then you probably understand how costly this procedure can be. It’s also demanding to obtain the cards printed precisely based on your desire. It can be an exasperating process if the cards turn out to be inappropriate or with even a small flaw.

Here is some of that useful hardware for your own plastic card printing project:

Ribbons
It is the same as your paper printer needs ink ribbons or ink cartridges, and so your card printers as well. Ribbons for your card printers are created uniquely for printing on cards, and help you obtain the job done in a precise manner. In this way, you can have professional quality cards, printed right in your own home or office.

Laminates
Laminating is very essential in protecting your card, especially with ID cards or badges that are used on a regular basis. There are different ways to achieve lamination however one of the simplest is buying laminates which is appropriate for the cards like sleeves and help to protect them and make them lasting.

Cleaning Kits
Proper maintenance is very important to keep your card printer working accurately and help to last for a long time. To achieve the best from your machine, you should purchase cleaning kits that will help to keep it operating at utmost performance.

PVC Cards
You can buy PVC cards for printing on. There are many different designs, colors and qualities to choose from, but you have the liberty to find the perfect ones for your demands.

These are just some of the main pieces of card printer hardware you will need for printing your own ideal cards. However, this is not a comprehensive list and there are many other products that can help you reach your desire output in a simpler and easier process. It can also help you add other varieties of fashion and details to your printed cards.

So, grab your own plastic card printing tools for your perfect plastic cards! Do your own thing and style and be more creative and stylish through your own plastic printing machine.

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Woodcut Printing - How to Make it

2009-05-23T09:02:00.000-07:00

The woodcut printing has a long tradition particularly in the Chinese and Japanese cultures. Woodcut printing is capable of a wide range of effects from the subtle, poetic, multicolor, detailed prints of the Oriental artists to the bold, expressive, graphic, black and white prints of the German Expressionist artists in the early twentieth century.

Making a woodcut or wood block printing is simple, does not require expensive material and can even be done without a printing press.
Materials required for creating a woodcut print are as follows:

• Block printing ink – either water based or oil based
• Wood block – soft wood like pine or linoleum
• Ink roller – rubber
• Woodcutting tools – V-shaped, U-shaped and straight edged
• Printmaking paper – acid free printmaking paper – either standard white or handmade papers of any type
• Wood spoon or printing press – large wood spoon with a broad flat back surface or an etching press
• White pencil – conti or pastel pencil

STEP 1. Preparing the Block
Once you have your wood block and your cutting tools, you are ready to begin the creative process. One important factor to keep in mind when you begin is that the print will be a mirror image of the image you cave into your wood block. You should sketch out your idea on paper first, then coat your wood block with a thin layer of black ink using your ink roller and some black printing ink. Let the ink dry and then draw your image on the plate with a white pencil or a white ink pen. The coating of black ink on the wood block will make your image more visible while you are carving the image into the wood block.

STEP 2. Carving the Image
Using your carving tools, carve the image into the wood. If you want an expressive image, then cut and carve the wood aggressively using a broad cutting took and don’t worry about the details and, conversely, if you want a more realistic detailed image using a smaller V-shaped tool, slowly and carefully cut your image into the wood block.

STEP 3. Proofing the Image
At any point during the carving process you can make a proof of your image so that you can evaluate the way your print will look and so that you can adjust your process if necessary. You should be aware that proofing will make the lighter carved out areas of your wood block darker when you clean your wood block after proofing. This may be something you do not want because it will change the way you visualize your image on the wood block printing.

STEP 4. Inking the Wood Block
Ok, you have carved your image and it looks awesome! You are now ready to print your masterpiece. Squeeze some ink onto a smooth flat, non-absorbent surface like glass, and using your roller, roll out a very thin layer of ink. Do not use a back and forth motion with the roller; roll the ink one say, lift up the roller and roll it the same way repeatedly until you have a thin layer of ink on your roller. Several layers of thin ink is what you are striving for on your wood block. Too much ink on the block will overflow into the carved out areas and your image will not print correctly, and conversely, too little ink on your wood block will make for a splotchy print and the edges of your image will not be sharp and crisp. You will have to experiment through trial and error to find the right inking technique.

STEP 5. Printing the Wood Block
If you have access to a printing press, this is the best and easiest way to print your block. Ink your plate, place it on the press, cover the block with your print paper cover the paper with the press blanket, adjust the roller pressure and slowly roll the block through the press. Carefully lift the paper off the block and there you have it, your wood block printing masterpiece. Set it aside in a safe place to dry.

Limit your edition to about 50 prints because the image quality will deteriorate after about that many prints. If you do not have access to a printing press, you can use a wooden spoon or similar tool to make your print. Ink your block, place your paper on top of your block and using a flat wooden surface, rub the paper against the block in a consistent circular motion until you feel the ink has been transferred to the paper. If in doubt, peel back the paper on one corner and judge your technique and make adjustments in pressure if necessary. Obviously, effectiveness of this technique is more suited to smaller block prints.

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TIPS Job Hunting by Business Card

2009-04-27T11:18:00.000-07:00

For job hunting reaches, the business card could be a trademark of your style to another competitors. And when you print business cards, it is about making a contact and a connection. It makes you look professional, easily approachable and most importantly you will stand out among other applicants since people rarely give business cards away in job applications.

Besides this, there are many other strategies that you can employ with your business cards for job hunting. Read on, and see a few printing tips that we have for you.

Make contacts, make opportunities
When you print business cards, your aim is to make contacts. For starters, you don't have to give them only to employers. Chances are you will meet a lot of job hunters yourself, including ones in different professions and industries. If you are friendly in the unemployment cues and lobby waiting rooms, try to make some contacts. Strike up a conversation about anything and make a casual friend. If you somehow connect, try and ask for their business card and give your own color business card in exchange. Who knows? That casual encounter can lead you to better job opportunities.

Include it with your resume
This is rarely done, but it is the key to some recognition among other job applicants. You can attach your business card along with your resume as you pass it. It is simple but it conveys a lot of messages. First, it conveys your image as a professional. Having a color business card ready means you were a competent business professional before and that you are eager to make contacts. Second, a business card gives you that “unique factor”. Since it is rare for people to attach their business card along with a resume' employers will remember that particular applicant with the professional looking business card design. You will appear more competent than others, and it might just be the key to landing that new job.

Leave it everywhere and anywhere
Also, if you are open to working even for just some part time projects, business card printing can come in handy. If you visit offices, restaurants, clubs and other establishments try and leave your business card at the reception or front desk. You can advertise yourself this way. If you are a web designer, architect, lawyer or are like other professionals who work primarily with projects cases, leaving your business card is a good way to increase your chances of landing a new job. A lot of establishments are searching for people who can do a few simple projects for them without the hassle of a formal job hunt. So if they see your business card they might just take you up for a project or two. It is extra money for you, and it might pave the way for more regular employment later.

It is an affordable business investment
So as you can see, there are many ways you can use business cards for job hunting. One good thing about printing business cards is that it is a relatively affordable investment. For just 50 or 100 copies of your business card you can increase your job hunting success in a lot of dimensions. So try to print business cards for your job hunt. It is worth a try, and the benefits are definitely worth the investment.

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Short Run Printing USEFUL TIPS

2009-05-23T08:53:00.001-07:00

Quick short run printing is one of the most sought after online printing business services today. Short run printing will never replace offset printing. But, it is a valuable option that you can use, offset printing will always be the printing method of choice when it comes to bulk online printing jobs. However, it is the perfect compliment to offset printing since it covers all the printing options that are not available with printing offset.

Here are some of its unique characteristics and advantages:

• Save on printing cost
Since this kind of printing method is a direct printing method, you do not need to go through the tedious process of creating plates, color separation, film stripping, etc. Your files only need to pass through a computer which transfers your data straight to the printing machine. This allows you to print your materials with out paying for the materials mentioned above.

• Print only what you need
While offset printing allows you the advantage of paying less when ordering in bulk, short run printing allows you to place orders for small quantities of prints at an affordable price. Before the emergence of short run prints, you have no choice but to print in bulk because you would need to pay for your prints as well as the cost of producing plates and dies. Also, when printing short run, you can specify the number of prints you want. This means that you will never print anything excess again.

• Fast turnaround
Another advantage of not going through several printing processes is that you save time and allows your prints to be printed at a fast turnaround. Also, the way color is produced when printing short run is different from the way colors are produced in offset. When printing in short run, colors are sprayed directly on top of the paper and then coated with an aqueous finish. This makes the ink dry almost instantly without smudging. On the other hand, offset printing methods produces colors by running through 4 (sometimes even 5 or 6) rollers that contain different colors that when combined, produce the shade or hue that you want. This type of coloring process takes a longer time to dry. In short run printing way, you can pass printing process of creating printing plates, color separation, film stripping, etc. Never cost added in this way.

• It makes creating prints for your direct mail marketing campaigns easier
You can make your direct mail campaigns more efficiently since you can print different materials for different target audience. Short run prints allow you be more specific in the way you market to your target audience by letting you specify the number of prints you produce for a specific marketing are.

• It gives you options when publishing your books
Book publishers and authors are the ones who benefits most from having short run prints. Authors can now publish their books even with a limited budget since you can specify the number of prints that you want. Also publishers can now store large volumes of back copies of books and have them printed whenever an order comes. All they have to do is store a digital copy of that book in their database. It is a better option than printing bulk orders of these back copies and storing them in their inventories.

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More Benefits of T-shirt Printing

2009-02-24T10:25:00.000-08:00

AT-shirt printing is an art which needs to be done tastefully. Shabbily printed ones would send out a negative image to onlookers. Gone are the days when people were satisfied with what is available in the stores. Now they want to be their own bosses and send out loud messages via their T-shirts.

A message of love inscribed on your T-shirt during a date with your beloved would definitely make him or her stand up and notice. Such inscriptions would send out loud messages on your character and tastes too.

It is a fact that it is difficult to find such fitting T-shirts in the market. The only solution is to get one designed by yourself. But the problem here is about how to get them designed and printed. But do not get disheartened. There are several businesses dealing with T-shirt printing. One option is to screen print the image on the shirts. Other viable options are embroidery, fabric printing, iron on etc.

For screen printing first thing you have to do is to purchase the shirts at an online bulk supply company and a simple screen printing press. A CD or book on screen printing is a must to understand the procedure. You can make your own custom T-shirts at a much reduced price than you get from a local screen printer. This would make a highly profitable business also.

If you think embroidery is the way to make custom T-shirts buy embroidery equipment and set it in your garage or even kitchen table. If you decide to pursue, it can turn out to be a real money making venture.

Fabric painting comes under the home made or crafting category. The kids can design T-shirts for grand parents; the family can make it for a get together so on and so forth. Iron on or transfers are the simplest of the four methods discussed. Here you have to get a pre-made iron on transfer for the shirts from any craft store. However, programs are there which allow you to make them on your computer also.

If you want to get it done from outside, look for people who would finish your order the same day itself, that also without charging exorbitant prices. Some of them can print any font styles, colors or sizes. You can select every aspect of your order through their internet sites itself. These sites would help you design your won T-shirts step by step. The end result would definitely boost your self confidence.

It is better to go for the leaders in the business as they tend to be more reliable than others. Go for the one that offer free delivery on all orders, does not insist on bulk ordering, have the good heartedness to offer massive discounts on big volume orders, treat the customer like kings and most importantly, can do quality printing.

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Digital Printing Company - HOW CHOOSING

2009-05-23T08:37:00.000-07:00

There are many advantages to choosing a digital printing company. You can fit your digital printing needs by reviewing their service. Not only are their services readily available online, but also they have the dynamism and speed most people relate to these days. They are faster, easily adaptable or adjustable and increase in their quality.

Offset printing may still offer the clearest prints available, but the digital printing machines on a digital printing company uses these days are quickly catching up to that level of quality. To fully realize the advantages of digital printing, read through the list below and see how you can benefit from this modern phenomenon.

Customizable sizes
Offset printers typically have set standard sizes. Be it for posters, brochures, booklets, catalogs and other print media, there is always a set dimension or size. This is because the whole printing machine has a set limitation on its dimensions at a given moment. It takes time to reset an offset printer for another task and size. Digital printers however do not have this limitation. You can print almost any size and shape using a digital printer and change its settings immediately. All the limitation a printer has is its actual physical size. With the increasing size of digital printers however, this is hardly a limitation anymore.

Faster production period
Digital printing offers incredibly fast production times for color printing. They can print anywhere from two or three days to a mere overnight rush printing. This faster production time is thanks to a more sped up process when compared to offset printing. Equipment can be adjusted quickly from one printing task to another within a few moments. In addition, the nature of quick drying inks today makes digital color printing immediately distributable.

Versatility
Next, digital printing is versatile. Besides printing the usual standard print mediums like flyers, posters, booklets, brochures, catalogs a digital printer can make anything you can imagine that has to be printed in paper. In addition, it can do this without have to adjust any particular major thing in the equipment. You just have to enter the right kind of dimensions and settings to your software and it can print it. You do not even need professional setters to move components in the printer. It is all done using software.

Relatively lower cost
Lastly, digital printing can be done at a relatively low cost. In some offset printers, the first sample output is usually the most expensive since it takes effort to set the printer for the first production. For digital color printing the first sample printing is printed as easily as the others that will follow it. Therefore, a printing company can easily drop the increased cost for a sample printing. Some online printing companies even offer samples free. Because of this, you can adjust your designs before mass production begins. This saves you money in the long run.

Those are the advantages of digital color printing. So if this matches what you want for a printing company, then find a digital printing company near you and start printing those prints for your project or business. Good Luck!

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Photo Enlargement Printing TIPS

2009-05-23T08:30:00.000-07:00

Aphoto enlargement printing is an easy and fun way to display and enjoy your photos. A common mistake made by people in printing photo enlargements is the tendency to exceed the size capacity of their image. The result is a stretched image creating a blurry photo enlargement print. This printing tips will help you avoid common mistakes teach you to create excellent photo enlargement prints.

In order to maximize printing size, one must first understand the concept of dots per inch (DPI). A printing machine will place dots of ink onto paper to create an image and the quality of the image is determined by how many dots can be placed in a given amount of area. “Dots per inch” is the number of printed dots in a linear inch. To print photo enlargement, it is recommended that you do not reduce the number of dots per inch beyond 100 dpi. Professional photographers prefer to print their work at about 300 dots per inch, but the average point and click digital camera user would be satisfied with a print of 150 dpi. For the sake of this article, we will equate the pixels in a camera to a dot in printing and use the two terms interchangeably.

Most digital cameras that can be purchased in today’s retail electronics stores will produce between 6 and 12 megapixels. For demonstration purposes, we will choose 8 megapixels as our guideline. A standard 8 megapixel camera will produce a digital image that has the dimensions of 3456 x 2304 pixels (7,962,624 square pixels) at an aspect ratio of 3:2. (Aspect ratio is the ratio of the width of the image compared to the height of the image.) To calculate the maximum print size of this digital photo at 150 pixels per inch, we would divide the dimensions by 150 pixels.

Example:
3456 pixels/150pixels = 23
2304 pixels/150pixels=15.4

Using the example of an 8 megapixel camera, we see that 23x15.4” inches would be our maximum print size at 150 DPI.

However, it is not always necessary to maintain the photo quality printing requirement of 150 DPI. If your photo enlargement print is being viewed from several feet away, we are able to drop the DPI lower. This is because the human eye begins to blur the dots as viewing distance grows. We experience this effect on a daily basis as we drive. For example, billboards are printed at much lower resolution, because of the great distance at which they are viewed. It is not uncommon for billboard printers to print their images at 10 or 20 DPI! If your print is hanging high over a mantle or on a high wall in a room with vaulted ceilings, there is no reason to print at high resolutions. From this distance, even 100 DPI would create a stunning image.

Use the chart below as a reference when calculating image DPI and distance of viewing.

Under 2’ feet distance = 300 PPI
2’ to 3’ feet distance= 200 PPI
3’ to 5’ feet distance = 125 PPI
5' to 10' feet distance = 100 PPI

Always consider these key factors in photo enlargement printing: number of megapixels your camera can create, size of print you wish to create and the expected viewing distance. Knowing these factors will help you calculate the maximum size of your print while maintaining excellent photo quality.

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Plastics Printing TIPS

2009-05-23T08:21:00.000-07:00

A plastic printing technique still needed by us even plastic things are non friendly environmental products that hard to recyled. But plastic printing could promote your business effectively. You just selecting your plastic media for your expanding market share by plastic printing items, printers, design, printing jos: plastic name cards, shopping bags, presentation folders, agenda cover, office equipments, etc.

These are several important plastic printing tips:

ere are the important tips on Printing onto Plastics: Choose a specialist printer; Show the printer the image as early as possible for his advice; Create a full brief for the printer; The choice of ink is important; Choose one appropriate for the job; Longevity is another factor; Timing....

1. Choose a specialist printer. Plastic behaves very differently to paper.

2. Show the printer the image as early as possible for his advice. This is especially important if using a 3D or a moving image (lenticular).

3. Create a full brief for the printer. Consider the usual requirements such as quantity, size, ink colour(s), packaging and delivery. However, with printed plastics there are other considerations.

4. The choice of ink printing is important; fluorescent might be suitable for instance.

5. Consider the different types of plastic and thickness, and choose one appropriate for the job: for plastic name cards, shopping bags, presentation folders, agenda cover, office equipments, etc.

6. Is the image in line colours or full colour i.e. can it be screen printed or does it need a specialist Litho printing onto plastic?

7. Where is the item to be placed - Inside or outside? If outside, or in an area where it will be touched, it may need extra protection.

8. Longevity is another factor. Will the item be a permanent fixture or short-term promotion that needs to be easily removed?

9. How will the image be viewed? At arms length or distance?

10. Timing.
Allow longer time for lenticular printing as a lot of time is in the pre-press, which must be absolutely accurate before printing commences.

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Banner Printing TIPS in self-making

2009-05-23T08:06:00.000-07:00

Abanner printing material sometimes needed by you to promote your business or personal needs. What do you think to need about? Here are some printing tips on how you can have effective in self-making of banner printing materials:

1. Get a graphic design software that can handle large full color files.
There are three types of graphic design software that are used by many design professionals, they are: image editors, page layout programs and illustration programs these programs give you the ability to enhance, edit and improve on the different elements of your design. However, if your budget is limited and you do not want to buy these programs and software, you can opt to go for online printing services that offer free online printing tools on their website. The online printing tools that are being offered in printing sites are much simpler and easier to master.

2. Keep your graphic designs simple.
A simple graphic design job will enable your target audience to get and easily grasp your desired message. It would be very successful if you can get your message across after a single glance. For this to happen, you also need to have designs that are dynamic and out of the ordinary. You need to stand out from the rest of the marketing materials available around you.

3. Be aware of the colors that you are using.
Full color printing is the most expensive color printing option that you can use. It uses four colors and combining them to give you a wide array of colors at your disposal. The finished product will be vibrant and vivid colors that will add life to your images and your design. If used, properly, full color printing will enable you to grab and hold your audience’s attention. Ask more about printing tips to your online printing company.

However, if you are short on the budget, you can also avail of two color printing or single color printing. These options do not give you the same flexibility as that of full color printing but with the right design and layout, they can be as effective as or even more effective than full color printing.

Also, be judicious in your use of colors since some things are attached to a particular color. Green usually refers to nature while purple means royalty, keep track of what ideas are being associated with colors and use them accordingly.

4. Always keep your text readable.
Banners are done so that people can see them even from afar. Because of this, you need to keep track if the font size and the font type that you use. Remember that different fonts have different sizes some fonts are thinner while some fonts have a higher x-height that make them appear shorter. Try to check these small details and have a set of fonts that you are comfortable of working with. These printing tips sometimes forget in large format banner printing producing.

5. The size of the banner should also be taken into consideration.
The bigger your banner means you need to have extra details and specifications that you should give to your online printing company. For example, for large banners, you should make sure that the images that you use have high resolution and that you should use rich black in printing so that to achieve a full body black color instead of the grayish color that you get when you print in normal black.

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Printing Paper Finishing Types

2009-02-14T00:16:00.000-08:00

The finishing of printing paper refers to the surface characteristics of the paper model such as how the paper feels: is it smooth such as glossy cover or rough with an antique finish? Does the medium (papers) you choose suitable for digital printing process, offset printing advantages, custom greeting card printing or just for labeling your CDs? Does the paper have a glossy appearance such as coated glossy papers or is it dull like bond paper. Does the paper enhance the look of the printed piece similar to watermarked paper or is it purely functional like newspaper print? Does the paper have a high ink absorption rate as does Vellum or poor absorption such as on coated paper?

Some common paper finishing are described below:

Linen
Linen finished paper resembles linen cloth and is usually produced after the papermaking process as an offline embossing process.

Gloss
A gloss finish produces a shiny and reflective surface on one or both sides of certain coated papers. A higher gloss is usually seen on higher quality coated papers. The gloss finish is produced from compounds added during the paper making process.

Matte
A finish on certain coated papers that is smooth but gives a dull appearance. A matte finish, as well as other types of coated paper, are good choices for print jobs in which high quality is required.

Felt
Felt is a soft texture on uncoated paper that is created during the papermaking process with a either felt covered roller or with a rubber roller with a felt pattern that creates the finish. It can also be accomplished as an offline process. The felt finish does not affect the strength of the paper.

Laid
A laid finish has the appearance of translucent lines running horizontally and vertically in the paper. It is produced during the papermaking process with a special roller that creates the pattern in the wet paper.

Parchment
A paper finish that has an old or antique appearance and is the result of washing sulfuric acid over the paper and then quickly neutralizing the acid wash. This process melts the outer paper fibers which fill the voids in the rest of the paper. Parchment is very durable and grease resistant.

Smooth
A smooth finish is the result of the paper passing through sets of rollers during the papermaking process. This process is known as calendering.

Vellum
A vellum finish has an eggshell appearance and is consistent and even but not as much as a smooth finish. Vellum is one of the most popular uncoated finishes and paper with this finish has a high ink absorbency rate.

Wove
An even finish in uncoated paper with a slight texture made by a felt roller covered in woven wire.

Cockle
A cockle finish simulates characteristics of hand made paper with a wavy, rippled, puckered finish. The effect is obtained by air drying the paper under minimum tension.

Finishes can be applied to paper during the manufacturing process (recycled paper) or produced offline. A paper finishing such as Laid can be created while it is being manufactured with the use of a marking roller that forms the pattern in the paper while it is still wet. Paper finishes provided offline are usually accomplished with steel rollers that press the pattern into the paper. The offline finishes are known as embossed finishes.

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Postcard Printing Services | TIPS Choosing

2009-05-20T12:03:00.000-07:00

Many Postcard Printing Services offer their advantages for you custom postcards needs. There are postcard printers that also offers brochures, flyers, catalogs, posters and many more. The larger the product line, the more impressive their printing services can provide.

Evaluating a postcard printing company’s services is always a relevant issue to discuss. Postcard printers are not created equal and while many seem to be the same, it helps to ably identify just which one is especially meticulous and committed in going all out in their postcard services.

Some detailed performance indicators that can help guide you in choosing a postcard print company to take care of your print needs:

Cost-effectiveness
They say nothing comes cheap, especially in this modern age. But when it comes to postcard printing services, this is exactly what you get. You can have full color postcards without paying a huge bill.

Printing companies have bulk or wholesale postcard printing services that allows you to save more as you print more. Every single cent can be stretched out as if affords you more prints without paying doubly as much.

Rate of Quality
Printers have full color custom postcard printing wherein you can have luscious, vivid colors that showcase your postcard design. Thus, you get to enjoy premium quality prints without paying for expensive fees that other postcard companies do.

Range of Option
A print service shows flexibility to its clients by giving them a full range of postcard printing capabilities. Custom postcard printing means you can print on the paper stock you want, in the size you want, using your own design, and in the number of prints you want. You can dictate just what and how you want your postcards done.

Support
Direct mail postcard is one such service that further takes postcard printing services to another step. As popular print materials, postcards are readily sent almost anywhere. Your postcards, invitations, greetings cards and others can be organized and prepped up to be sent to the mail.

Expertise
With all these mix of postcard printing services, it is very fortunate to find all your postcard printing needs under one roof. This, most likely, makes it undoubtedly an expert company’s trademark.

And so, learn to compare and scrutinize before you sign that first print job order. Go online and look into different printing companies available until you find the one that matches you to a tee. Get those postcard printing services that you need and enjoy a wholly fulfilling print job.

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