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welcome to foxprint's printing glossary. here you will find simplified explanation's of typical printing terms. we are always adding terms to this page, so please visit again soon. 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 A artwork all original copy, including type, photos and illustrations, intended for printing. A2 paper ISO paper size 420 x 594mm. A3 paper ISO paper size 297 x 420mm. A4 paper ISO paper size 210 x 297mm. A5 paper ISO paper size 148 x 210mm. A6 paper ISO paper size 105 x 148mm. -------------back to the top------------ B bleed printed area which extends off the trimmed area. it is not possible to print all the way to the edge of the paper sheet. to achieve this effect it is necessary to print a larger area than is required and then trim the paper down. typically a designer would allow an extra 3mm of bleed to colour and image areas to allow for a little leeway when trimming. bond paper category of paper commonly used for writing, printing and photocopying. also called business paper, communication paper, correspondence paper and writing paper. -------------back to the top------------ C CMYK abbreviation for cyan, magenta, yellow and key (black), the four process colors. coated paper paper with a coating of clay and other substances that improves reflectivity and ink holdout. mills produce coated paper in the four major categories cast, gloss, dull and matte. collating the process of assembling the various sections or sheets of a document in the correct order. coverage extent to which ink covers the surface of a substrate. ink coverage is usually expressed as light, medium or heavy. crop marks lines near the edges of an image indicating portions to be reproduced. also called cut marks and tic marks. ctp (computer to plate) computer to plate is an imaging technology used in modern printing processes. in this technology, an image created in a desktop publishing (dtp) computer file is output directly to a printing plate. cyan one of the four process colors. also known as process blue. -------------back to the top------------ D density (1) regarding ink, the relative thickness of a layer of printed ink. (2) regarding color, the relative ability of a color to absorb light reflected from it or block light passing through it. (3) regarding paper, the relative tightness or looseness of fibers. desktop publishing (dtp) software programs that enable the user to use a microcomputer and a laser or color printer to produce relatively high-quality publications. digital printing a recent development has entered the market in the shape of digital printing. these systems work directly from electronic data and avoid the intermediate stage of films. they are very cost effective for short runs. the quality obtainable is not yet up to lithography standards but is improving steadily and is adequate for many purposes. dot gain phenomenon of halftone dots printing larger on paper than they are on films or plates, reducing detail and lowering contrast. also called dot growth, dot spread and press gain. -------------back to the top------------ E emboss to press an image into paper so it lies above the surface. also called cameo and tool. emulsion casting of light-sensitive chemicals on papers, films, printing plates and stencils. -------------back to the top------------ F finished size size of product after production is completed, as compared to flat size. also called trimmed size. finishing any process that follows the actual printing. this can include folding, creasing, stitching, binding and the like. fold marks with printed matter, markings indicating where a fold is to occur, usually located at the top edges. four-color process printing technique of printing that uses black, magenta, cyan and yellow to simulate full-color images. also called color process printing, full color printing and process printing. -------------back to the top------------ G gloss consider the light reflecting on various objects in the printing industry (e.g., paper, ink, laminates, UV coating, varnish). graphics visual elements that supplement type to make printed messages more clear or interesting. gray scale strip of gray values ranging from white to black. used by process camera and scanner operators to calibrate exposure times for film and plates. also called step wedge. gsm abbreviation for grams per square metre. this indicates the weight of paper or other stock. for example; a typical photocopier paper would be 80 gsm - a good letterhead paper might be 100 gsm - a postcard would be about 250 gsm. gutter in the book arena, the inside margins toward the back or the binding edges. -------------back to the top------------ H house sheet paper kept in stock by a printer and suitable for a variety of printing jobs. also called floor sheet. halo effect faint shadow sometimes surrounding halftone dots printed. also called halation. the halo itself is also called a fringe. -------------back to the top------------ I imagesetter output device used to produce separated films from digital artwork. it can be thought of as a very high resolution printer. most systems use the postscript page description system. imposition arrangement of pages on mechanicals or flats so they will appear in proper sequence after press sheets are folded and bound. -------------back to the top------------ J -------------back to the top------------ K keylines lines on a mechanical or negative showing the exact size, shape and location of photographs or other graphic elements. also called holding lines -------------back to the top------------ L lamination a plastic coating which protects the printed surface and usually gives a high gloss finish. most paperback books have laminated covers. landscape artist style in which width is greater than height. (portrait is opposite.) layout a sample of the original providing (showing) position of printed work (direction, instructions) needed and desired. lithography printing lithography is by far the most common form of commercial printing. the basic principle on which it works is that oil and water do not mix. a litho printing plate has non-image areas which absorb water. during printing the plate is kept wet so that the ink, which is inherently greasy, is rejected by the wet areas and adheres to the image areas. -------------back to the top------------ M machine minder the person who actually runs the press. the quality of a printed job is often dependent on the skill of the machine minder. magenta One of the four process colors. this produces a red like colour. mock up a reproduction of the original printed matter and possibly containing instructions or direction. moire undesirable pattern resulting when halftones and screen tints are made with improperly aligned screens, or when a pattern in a photo, such as a plaid, interfaces with a halftone dot pattern. -------------back to the top------------ N nested signatures assembled inside one another in the proper sequence for binding, as compared to gathered. also called inset. -------------back to the top------------ O offset printing printing technique that transfers ink from a plate to a blanket to paper instead of directly from plate to paper. overs a quantity of printed material in excess of the amount ordered. it was once usual practice for a printer to charge pro rata for overs. this is much less common nowadays. -------------back to the top------------ P pagination in the book arena, the numbering of pages. pantone the brand name of a colour matching system produced by pantone, inc of the usa. a large range of inks are specified and identified by number to produce standard results across the industry. perfect bind to bind sheets that have been ground at the spine and are held to the cover by glue. also called adhesive bind, cut-back bind, glue bind, paper bind, patent bind, perfecting bind, soft bind and soft cover. pixel short for picture element, a dot made by a computer, scanner or other digital device. also called pel. plate piece of paper, metal, plastic or rubber carrying an image to be reproduced using a printing press. portrait an art design in which the height is greater than the width. (opposite of landscape.) postscript the brand name of a software standard created by adobe. it is a page description language which is used by most graphics software and output devices to combine text, pictures and graphical elements into an electronic document and create output which can be used by the printer. prepress camera work, color separations, stripping, platemaking and other prepress functions performed by the printer, separator or a service bureau prior to printing. proof test sheet made to reveal errors or flaws, predict results on press and record how a printing job is intended to appear when finished. this is what a customer will see before approving the job. -------------back to the top------------ Q -------------back to the top------------ R ream 500 sheets of paper. register marks cross-hair lines on mechanicals and film that help keep flats, plates, and printing in register. reprographics department that deal with artwork and setup imposistions ready for printing. resolution sharpness of an image on film, paper, computer screen, disc, tape or other medium. -------------back to the top------------ S saddle stitch to bind by stapling sheets together where they fold at the spine, as compared to side stitch. also called pamphlet stitch, saddle wire and stitch bind. special colours this refers to colours which are produced using specially mixed inks from one of the commercially available colour ranges such as pantone, dic or focoltone. they are most commonly used when using two colour printing. spiral bind to bind using a spiral of continuous wire or plastic looped through holes. sra3 ISO paper size 450 x 320mm. stochastic screening a digital screening process that converts images into very small dots (14-40 microns) of equal size and variable spacing for a high end finished print quality. stock a general term for any paper or board which is used as a printed surface. substrate any surface or material on which printing is done. -------------back to the top------------ T tint screening or adding white to a solid color for results of lightening that specific color. trim size the size of the printed material in its finished stage (e.g., the finished trim size is 5 1\2 x 8 1\2). two colour printing two colour printing is commonly used for stationery because of its cost-effectiveness. the typical design includes a special colour such as a pantone ink along with black. the special ink is for the 'company colour' for use on the logo and the black is for text. -------------back to the top------------ U uncoated paper paper that has not been coated with clay. also called offset paper. -------------back to the top------------ V variable data a file of information is used in conjunction with a print run. this file would include unique information like names and address, these names and addresses would be used on the print to make the print more personal. -------------back to the top------------ W watermark translucent logo in paper created during manufacturing by slight embossing from a dandy roll while paper is still approximately 90 percent water. work and turn when a whole job is printed on one side of sheet, the sheets turned and printed again using the same plates. for example, a single sheet a4 flyer is printed with back and front adjacent to each other on one side of an sra3 sheet. the sheets are flipped over and printed with the same plates again. -------------back to the top------------ X -------------back to the top------------ Y yellow One of the four process colors. this produces a yellow like colour. -------------back to the top------------ Z
