The document discusses different printing techniques including hand printing, mechanical printing, and digital printing. Hand printing techniques include linocut printing where a design is carved into linoleum and inked before being pressed onto paper. Mechanical printing includes gravure printing commonly used for labels and packaging due to its photographic quality. Digital printing includes photocopying, which is widely used in business for duplicating images in a quick and cheap process, though ink can be expensive.
2. Hand printing
• Linocut is a printmaking technique, a variant of woodcut in which a sheet
of linoleum (sometimes mounted on a wooden block) is used for the relief surface.
A design is cut into the linoleum surface with a sharp knife! V-
shaped chisel or gouge, with the raised (uncarved) areas representing a reversal
(mirror image) of the parts to show printed. The linoleum sheet is inked with a
roller (called a brayer), and then impressed onto paper or fabric. The actual
printing can be done by hand or with a press. This technique was used in the
1950s.
• Advantages. carving is enabled, printing is possible, embossing is enabled, rubbing,
tough and sturdy, different surfaces, easy for simple designs
• Disadvantages. Mistakes are unreversible, it is not 3D, you have to work hard to get
texture, hard to cut, limited colour application, hard to clean, hard to get off
hands, long time to dry, Time consuming .
3. Mechanical printing
• Gravure printing is commonly used for labels and packaging,
competing against flexography. Photogravure is a process
used mostly for fine art prints.
• Advantages. photographic quality, bright colours, best
possible appearance and highest perceived value for your
product. Its main disadvantage is the high cost and the time
needed to engrave gravure cylinders.
4. Digital Printing
• Photocopying is where you can get a photo that you like and you can make
an exact copy of the same photo.
• Photocopying is widely used in business, education, and government.
There have been many predictions that photocopiers will eventually
become obsolete as information workers continue to increase their digital
document creation and distribution, and rely less on distributing actual
pieces of paper.
• advantages, are that you can duplicate your images in a quick, easy to use,
cheap process.
• Disadvantages, are that the ink can become expensive.
5. Types of printing
Print Technique Definition Advantage Disadvantage
Hand: Etching metal plates, from which designs
and pictures are printed.
saves paper, low in cost, fast to
produce.
cant produce very high quality
prints.
Hand: Linocut A design is cut into the linoleum
surface with a sharp knife. The
linoleum sheet is inked with a roller
and then impressed onto paper or
fabric. The actual printing can be
done by hand or with a press.
you can do carving, printing,
embossing rubbing, tough and
sturdy, different surfaces, easy for
simple designs
Mistakes are irreversible, it is not
3D, you have to work hard to get
texture, hard to cut, limited colour
application, hard to clean, hard to
get off hands, long time to dry, Time
consuming .
Hand: Screen print is a technique in which an ink-
blocking stencil is printed onto a
woven mesh.
it makes good quality prints. the stencils are fragile .
Hand: Woodcut a carved block of wood from which
prints are made.
cheap material longwinded process.
Hand: Lithography A printing process in which the
image to be printed is rendered on
a flat surface, as on sheet zinc or
aluminum, and treated to retain ink
while the nonimage areas are
treated to repel ink
You can print any picture you want
onto a sheet of metal.
someone needs to know how to do
it.
Mechanical: letterpress The process of printing from a
raised inked surface
it can be used again and again to
mass produce copies.
it cannot be used to print complex
imagery.
Mechanical: gravure Gravure printing is commonly used
for labels and packaging, competing
against flexography. Photogravure
is a process used mostly for fine art
prints.
photographic quality, bright
colours, best possible appearance
and highest perceived value for
your product
high cost and the time needed to
engrave gravure cylinders.
