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Frequently Asked Questions Related to Printing


Q1. What is GSM / Weight of paper?
Ans : In the Metric System, the mass per unit area of all types of paper and paperboard is expressed in terms of grams per square meter (g/m2). This quantity is commonly called the Grammage, though printers in most English-speaking countries still refer to the "weight" of paper.
Q2. What is the difference between offset printing and digital printing?
Ans : Offset Printing:-
Offset printing uses plates made of aluminum, These plates used to transfer an image on a rubber "blanket", and then rolling that image onto a sheet of paper. In Offset printing the ink is not transferred directly onto the paper. It is the best choice for larger quantites, and provides accurate color reproduction, and crisp, clean professional looking printing.
Digital Printing :-
No plates required for Digital printing,It is like a good quality colored photo copy which uses options such as toner (like in laser printers) or larger printers that do use liquid ink. Digital printing mainly used for lesser quantity prints. The benefit of digital printing is it’s variable data capability. When each piece needs a unique code, name or address, digital is the only way to go. Offset printing cannot accommodate this need.
Q3. What does CMYK mean?
Ans :CMYK refers to the 4 primary colours that are used in a printer to produce colours across the full spectrum.

C - Cyan

M - Magenta

Y - Yellow

K - Black

By mixing these four colours in varying amounts, a high quality printer can accurately reproduce almost any colour except Silver and golden.

Q4. What does 4/0, 4/1, and 4/4 mean?
Ans : Numbers stands for number of colors so 4/4 means both side multi-color printing and 4/1 stands for one side multi color and the other side single color.

4/0

Print will be CMYK (full colour) on one side only

4/1

Print will be CMYK (full colour) on the front side and 1-colour on the back

4/4

Print will be CMYK (full colour) on both sides

Q5. How do I choose an appropriate paper for my offset printing project?
Ans : Glossy Vs. Matte: Glossy papers convey quality and sophistication, and they make photos “pop,” but their shine also can make text harder to read. Matte papers project an “environmentally friendly” image, and their soft white appearance makes for good text legibility.

Light Vs. Heavy: Lighter weight papers say “value” and are economical for mailing, while thicker papers typically are more opaque and more durable, making them a good choice for pieces that feature a lot of text or are intended to have a long shelf-life.

Q6. What are typical sizes for digital printing presses?
Ans : A. 12 x18 Text and 18x12 Cover are the most common sizes for uncoated paper. The newer printing press models from Xerox and HP are now accepting larger sheets sizes such as 14 1/2 x 20 1/2 and 13x19, respectively.
Q7. What is the difference between Glossy & Mat paper?
Ans : Glossy Vs. Matte:
Glossy papers convey quality and sophistication, and they make photos "pop," but their shine also can make text harder to read. Matte papers project an "environmentally friendly" image, and their soft white appearance makes for good text legibility.
Q8. What is the difference between Light & Heavy paper?
Ans : Light Vs. Heavy:
Lighter weight papers say "value" and are economical for mailing, while thicker papers typically are more opaque and more durable, making them a good choice for pieces that feature a lot of text or are intended to have a long shelf-life.
Q9. What is the difference between Varnishing and Laminating?
Ans : Varnishing refers to a UV (ultraviolet) chemical coating that is applied to provide paper and colours a resistance to fading and colour change when exposed to sunlight.

Lamination refers to a physical plastic film that is applied to paper to provide UV protection, water resistance, strength/durability, and enhance colours by producing an extremely glossy and brilliant finish

Q10. What is Lamination?
Ans : Being a totally different process to varnishing and coating, this can be described as a ‘plastic sheath’ which is applied involving a heat process. Lamination is designed for card stocks (i.e. 200g and above) and cannot be applied to paper, ie. 150g. It is a more expensive option but the gloss option particularly, is very durable and prevents cracking when creasing and folding on card

GLOSS LAMINATION.. is very popular on brochure or report covers, offering a very high gloss durable finish.

MATT LAMINATION.. is used extensively on brochure or report covers, creating a ‘plasticy’ matt finish. The down side is that it can be prone to finger-marking and scratching. A popular use is to matt laminate and ‘spot’ UV varnish to create a matt and gloss contrast.

Q11. What is Varnishes?
Ans : Varnishes can be added in gloss, matt, silk or neutral, but are not as cost effective and do not produce as higher quality finish as coatings. They also take a lot longer to dry and do not offer any time saving. They are applied on the 5th unit of our press and are solvent based.
Q12. What is Spot UV?
Ans : This process is used to add a high gloss finish to selective areas of the page or document. It is an effective but expensive option and works well in conjunction with matt lamination, or matt coating. The process is only accurate to +/- 0.5mm, so items to be spot UV’d need to be carefully chosen.
Q13. What is the difference between centre staple & perfect binding?
Ans : Centre Staple :
Saddle stitching is simply a printer’s term for stapling. Printed, folded forms are opened at their centers (half the pages on one side and half on the other side) and then gathered or nested together - each form falling on top of the next in proper order while riding along a chain.
Perfect Binding

Perfect binding is commonly used for catalogs, directories and paperback books that have a higher page count. Pages are glued together at the spine with a strong flexible glue. The cover is wrapped around the glued pages, and the brochure or catalog is then trimmed to its finished size.

Q14. At what resolution should I save my photos and graphics?
Ans : Resolution should be of 300 dpi.

Pictures and graphics pulled from the internet are often low resolution, typically 72 dpi or 96 dpi. Avoid these graphics, as they will appear pixilated and blocky when printed.

Also note that you should save all photos in CMYK mode, not RGB mode when possible. Images saved in RGB mode may not print properly. If you are unable to save your image in CYMK mode.

Q15. Why do the printed colors look different from the colors on my screen?
Ans : In short, printers and monitors produce colors in different ways.

Monitors use the RGB (red, green, blue) color model, which usually supports a wider spectrum of colors. Printers use the CMYK (cyan, magenta, yellow, black) color model, which can reproduce most-but not all-of the colors in the RGB color model. Depending on the equipment used, CMYK generally matches 85-90% of the colors in the RGB model.

When a color is selected from the RGB model that is out of the range of the CMYK model, the application chooses what it thinks is the closest color that will match. Programs like Adobe Photoshop will allow you to choose which color will be replaced. Others may not.

Q16. Is white considered a printing color?
Ans : Not typically. Because white is the default color of paper, it is simply recognized as the absence of any ink. However, when using colored paper, white ink may be used if any text or graphic requires it.
Q17. Paper GSM & their examples.
Ans :
  • 35-55 GSM is typically used for newspapers. The paper is thin and so effective for lots of pages which are low cost and don't need to last long.
  • 90-120 GSM is a typical paper for inner magazine pages.
  • 130-170 GSM is a standard weight for a good quality poster you would expect to last for a while.
  • 170-300 GSM would be suitable for most corporate brochure printing. You might need to compromise GSM slightly if you have a large number of pages to ensure the brochure lays flat and is not excessively bulky
  • 300-350 GSM is thin card, so probably what your business cards are made from. If you chose too low a GSM for your business cards they will be flimsy and may give the wrong impression of your business.
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Frequent Asked Question
What is GSM / Weight of paper?
What is the difference between offset printing and digital printing?
What does CMYK mean?
What does 4/0, 4/1, and 4/4 mean?
How do I choose an appropriate paper for my offset printing project?
What are typical sizes for digital printing presses?
What is the difference between Glossy & Mat paper?
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