Tuesday, January 31, 2012

Chapters 4&5

File Formats to print: TIFF, PhotoShop EPS, & Photoshop native (PSD).
File formats not to print: PNG, BMP, GIF, and JPEG
Pixels: Small squares that make up the actual image.
JPEG: A lossy file format, JPEGs compress images for efficient file size. This compression causes losses in image quality.
RAW
: A less compressed image file format, although this file format can not be put directly on a computer. It can, however, be imported into photoshop as a PSD.
ppi
Resolution: Pixels Per Inch resolution refers to the amount of pixels required to produce one square inch of an image.
Bitmap Images: BMP or Bitmap images are can go from 1-32 bit. Which is Black and White, to shades of gray. It does not support CMYK.
Cropping/Rotating: Cropping is the act of clipping the image to a useable size, there is debate over whether this should be done early in the design phase or later.
Rotation: Rotation is the act of turning the image by degrees. The dangers with this is if the image is turned to anything other than 0,90,180,270 or even 360, then there can be digitization, which will reduce the image quality.
Transparency
Tip: Sometimes when importing an Illustrator file (.ai) into Indesign, transparencies lose image quality. It must first be converted to EPS, to work properly.
Vector graphics: Vector graphics are resolution independent graphics, meaning that no matter how large or small they are scaled, they will look, generally the same. This is all due to the magic of math.
Vector file formats: Vector file formats are generally .ai (Adobe Illustrator) and .eps (Encapsulated PostScript). Both formats have unique qualities and abilities. However, .ai is the more widely used format.
Embedding fonts: Embedding fonts is the act of packaging the necessary fonts with a project, to allow it to print properly. This does not mean that a user can edit the text. To do that, the user must have the fonts active on their computer.
Outlining text: In Adobe Illustrator, Outlining Fonts is a good way to convert a font to an image. This allows the user to rasterize the text at 100% and export it as a TIFF or other Lossless file format.
Simplify path: This one also comes from Adobe Illustrator, Simplify Path removes unneeded or unused pixels and paths in the document.


All of this information comes from my own experience or the text book for this course:
Real World Print Production with Adobe Creative Suite Applications

By Claudia McCue

Thursday, January 26, 2012

Self-Promotional NotePad

Self- promotional Note Pad:


With this notepad, I was trying to embody technology, creativity, and humor.








Ten (10) Thumbnails
These are some of the other Ideas that I had.
You may notice that the one in the top left is the one that I built my rough from.















And 1 Rough

Purpose: a notepad, and possibly a funny/useful one at that.

Target audience: Anyone who identifies themselves as a "geek"

Mainly, I'm targeting males between the ages of 14-35, who are interested in geek culture, or have IT jobs.

call to action: The QR Code and my info in the bottom left of the page.






Specifications:

7 x 5 inch

Black ink only | no bleed

50 sheets per pad

padded

chip board back & Magnet

Price per pad: $8.00

How long will it take to create the pads: 7+days (about a day to process and print, and then 7 days to ship.)

What type of file do they need to print the pad: .pdf, .ai, .psd, .bmp, .cdr, .clk, .gif, .jpg, .jpeg, .ppt, .pub, .doc, .pcx, .pic, .pict, .pct, .png, .ps, .tif, .tiff, .emf, .wmf,

Source for information:1.800.Go.FedEx I talked to "Jerry", although I'm not totally sure that that was his name. I was directed to look at the website while I talked to him...

This is my final image for the notepad. I think it came out quite nicely.

copyright for all images is ©DanPhelan2012.

Monday, January 23, 2012

Chapters 1, 2, &3

Finishing Processes: Finishing Processes are any actions taken to "finish" a job, these can include folding, embossing, die-cutting, trimming, and binding, as well as a few lesser known finishing processes.

Folding Dummy: A folding dummy is a mock-up of a proposed job. They are annotated and positioned to allow the designer an idea of how the printed pages will be aligned and joined together. Folding dummies prevent many common errors associated with printing; upside down images, continuity issues, incorrect ad or article placement, just to name a few.

Imagesetter: An Imagesetter is similar to a scanner, except instead of scanning an image and printing to paper, it scans an image and creates film, plates, or photo-sensitive paper. An image setter uses a dedicated RIP (raster image processor) to scan images, this is usually done at 1300 - 2500 DPI (dots per inch).

Pica vs Point: Picas and points are increments of measure used in printing and layout. Specifically Typographical layout.
Pica: A pica is 1/6th of an inch.
Point: There are 12 points in a pica, so a point is 1/72nd of an inch.

Die Cutting process: The die cutting process is the act of cutting, scoring or pressing a substrate with a design or blade to create a fold, perforated edges, or embossing.

Importance of Registration: The importance of Registration can mean the difference between having a well made product or spending time, energy, and money to produce it again. Registration is the act of lining all layers of a job to coincide, often this is done with special registration paper with pre-made holes and markings that line up to dowels and clips on the image setter.

Purpose of a RIP : The purpose of a RIP is to scan an image and create a rasterized bitmap from it, also RIPs can create bitmaps from Vector-based Images.

Define VDP: VDP (also known as Variable Data Printing) is a printing process that allows the producer to specialize the product for the end-user. An example of this is a direct mailer that may include an offer for horse back rides or massage therapy, the VDP aspect would use a database and produce ads for Horse back rides to certain people, and massage therapy to certain other people, depending on the database requirements. It is also used to direct market, by name, to recipients.

Two color print job : A two color print job is a job that uses black ink and any other color ink to produce visually stimulating artwork.

DPI, LPI, PPI: Units of measurement, and can vary from industry to industry.,
DPI: Dots-per-inch: DPI is generally used for output devices, such as printers, who use dots of color to print a job.
LPI:Lines-per-inch: LPI is used for offset printing, it relies of a grid pattern of different sized dots, each attracting ink to create halftones that simulate shades of colors.
PPI: Pixels-per-inch: PPI refers to the true resolution of an image as viewed on a monitor. This is the basis for all raster based images, the more original pixels in an image, the better the quality.

CMYK vs Spot Colors:
CMYK: Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, and Black. These are the basic colors of process printing, mixing them together in varying degrees produces all (or most) of the colors of the visual spectrum.
Spot Colors: Spot colors are specially mixed inks that produce the same color from any machine that uses them. There are many brands of spot colors, but Pantone is the most widely used.

sources include:
All Pittsburg State University classes before now,
desktoppub.about.com/od/glossaryprint/Prepress_and_Printing_Glossary.htm,
& http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/S/spot_color.html

Wednesday, January 18, 2012

The Rundown: QR Codes


What are they?:
QR Codes, short for Quick Read Codes, are digital representations (much like Bar Codes) of text, geo-locations, and URLs.
The difference between QR and Bar Codes, is that QR Codes can hold a LOT more information.

<---This is what they look like.
<---By the way, if you scan this one, you will go to my blog. But you are already here, so you don't need to. :)

Why are they important?
Most magazines, advertisers and even business cards feature QR Codes. These are the quickest way, currently, to show a lot of information in a short amount of time, and to show that the user is "with it" (as in active in the digital age).

How do I make one?
QR Codes are extremely easy to make, and there are many free websites that will convert your text, URL, images, or geo-location information. I used qrcode.kaywa.com. You should feel free to look around for a generator that you feel comfortable with.

Preflight Significance

The purpose of the Preflight Process is to assure that a design document has no errors. If the design document (often a pdf) has errors, then that can cost the designer and the printer time and money to correct.

An example of a Preflight Check List:

1. Include all fonts with any documents

Always supply font files to avoid unexpected font substitutions. Adobe InDesign is a great tool to use when packaging fonts.

2.Include images
Once again, Adobe InDesign will bundle files together for you with their Package function.
When using this, be sure to save the images as either CMYK, RGB, or Pantone. And specify to the receiver what type the images are, and why.

3. Save images in the proper file format, and at the proper resolution

Generally, when printing, images should be saved as TIFF or EPS files. If you are archiving your images or publishing them to a website or online portfolio, JPEG is alright.JPEG and GIF should never be used for printing.

If possible, save images at 100%, or higher. This allows the printer to resize the image, without losing resolution.

PrePress PreFlight Technician:

Job Summary
Retrieves digital images and executes preflight processes for digital artwork files.
Salary: $11.00 to 14.00 / hour

Job offer from MailSouth.com