👍 Here’s a structured list of common printing terms explained clearly:
📖 Basic Printing Terms
- CMYK: Stands for Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, and Black – the four inks used in color printing.
- RGB: Red, Green, Blue – used for digital screens, not print.
- DPI (Dots Per Inch): Measure of image resolution; higher DPI = sharper print.
- PPI (Pixels Per Inch): Image resolution in digital files.
- Resolution: Clarity or detail in an image, determined by DPI/PPI.
- Vector Graphics: Images made of paths (scalable without losing quality).
- Raster Graphics: Pixel-based images (lose quality when enlarged).
📑 Paper & Materials
- GSM (Grams per Square Meter): Thickness/weight of paper.
- Coated Paper: Smooth, glossy, or matte finish, good for images.
- Uncoated Paper: Natural texture, used for books or stationery.
- Cardstock: Heavy, thick paper used for covers or business cards.
- Ream: Standard pack of 500 sheets of paper.
🖨️ Printing Methods
- Offset Printing: Traditional, high-volume method using printing plates.
- Digital Printing: Modern, cost-effective for short runs or print-on-demand.
- Letterpress: Old technique using raised type, creates debossed effect.
- Screen Printing: Ink pushed through a stencil, used on textiles and posters.
- Gravure Printing: High-quality printing for magazines and packaging.
- Flexography: Printing on flexible materials like plastics, labels, and packaging.
📏 Design & Layout Terms
- Bleed: Extra image area that extends beyond the trim, cut off after printing.
- Trim Size: Final size of the printed page/book after cutting.
- Margin: Safe space between text/design and the page edge.
- Crop Marks: Guides showing where the page should be cut.
- Gutter: Inner margin between two facing pages in a book.
- Spread: Two facing pages seen together.
🔤 Typography & Text
- Typeface/Font: Style of letters (e.g., Times New Roman, Helvetica).
- Kerning: Adjusting space between individual letters.
- Leading: Vertical spacing between lines of text.
- Tracking: Overall spacing across a range of letters.
- Widow/Orphan: Stray words left at top/bottom of a page.
📦 Finishing & Binding
- Binding: Method of securing pages (saddle stitch, perfect binding, spiral, hardcover).
- Lamination: Protective coating (gloss, matte, velvet).
- Foil Stamping: Metallic finish applied to text or design.
- Embossing/Debossing: Raised or pressed-in text/design.
- Die-Cut: Custom-shaped cutouts in paper.
- Spot UV: Glossy effect applied only to selected areas.
📊 Print Production & Quality
- Print Run: Number of copies produced in one batch.
- Pantone (PMS): Standardized color-matching system.
- Proof: Sample print for checking before mass production.
- Overprint: Printing one color over another.
- Registration Marks: Used to align different colors in multi-color printing.
- Imposition: Arranging pages correctly for printing and folding.
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