BLEED
Ink coverage that extends to the edge of the finished (trimmed) piece. Designs without margins (full bleed) require additional space around the image to allow for trimming and is usually more expensive than designs with a 1/4" or 3/8" inside margin.

CAMERA READY
Print ready mechanical art.

CMYK
The acronym for the four basic ink colors used in "process" color printing: Cyan, Magenta, Yellow and Black.

COLOR KEY PROOF
Color Keys are film proofs that use colorized acetate overlay sheets to approximate four-color printing. Each of the process colors is applied to an overlay and then the overlays are registered to each other and taped down to a white piece of paper. Color Keys are one of the least accurate color proofing systems because the color is being viewed as dyes on plastic rather than pigments on paper.

COLOR SEPARATED LASERS
(see laser proofs)

COLOR SEPARATIONS
(see process color separations)

DIGITAL PROOFS
Digital proofs are produced from electronic art files before color-separated films or plates are generated. This is the least expensive point in the overall proofing process for making alterations to files. Some examples of digital proofs are lasers, phasers wax proofs, dye sublimation, and color copies from digital data.

DOT GAIN
The amount of density gained by the printing process. For example, screenprinting increases density by about 15%, so a image with a 50% black fill would appear as approximately 65% black after printing. (see process color separations)

DPI (DOTS PER INCH)
(see process color separations)

DUOTONE
When a photograph is printed using two ink colors it is a duotone. The most common color combinations are black plus a color, but duotones can be created using two PMS ink colors.

FILM
Film is photo-sensitized acetate sheets which are processed through exposure to light. Film carries the images to be printed. The acetate sheets are solid black before exposure. After exposure, the image areas become clear. Film is first used to make proofs and then, second, used to make metal printing plates.

FILM POSITIVE
Film output as positives will show the image to be printed as opaque black. Non-printing areas will show as clear.

FILM PROOFS
Film proofs are created using the negatives which have been output on an imagesetter. They are highly accurate representations of what the final printed product will look like and are given to clients for final review, approval, and "sign-off" before the printing plates are made and the order is put on the press. Some examples of film proofs are Dylux, Silverprint, Blueline, Chromalin, WaterProof, Color Key and Matchprint.

FINISHED SIZE
The dimensions of a printed piece after trimming.

GRAY SCALE
The tonal range from a very light gray (1% dot) up to solid black (100% dot) in increments of 1%.

HALFTONE
The reproduction of continuous-tone artwork such as photography or pencil sketches, through a digital screening process which converts shaded images into solid ink dots of various sizes and concentrations. A few, tiny dots will produce highlight areas. A heavy concentration of large dots will produce mid-tone and shadow areas. Also see DOT GAIN

LASER PROOFS
Laser proofs are black and white or CMYK digital, non-film proofs which can be run out as composites or as color separated sheets. Lasers are used to check spelling, grammar, image placement, photo cropping and the proper separation of colors. Lasers are the least expensive form of proofing available. However, they are also the least accurate for image detail and color matching. Composite laser proofs indicate that all colors which will print have been used to produce the laser print-out. Color-separated laser proofs indicate that each ink color has been printed out on its own separate laser printout. (e.g. CMYK separated laser proofs result in four sheets of laser print-outs; one each for the cyan, magenta, yellow and black.)

LPI OR LINES PER INCH
The number of rows of dots per inch in a grayscale or halftone image. Newspaper photos are generally 85 lpi, Magazine photos are usually 133 to 170 lpi. Screenprinting does not allow for such fine dots but we can print your image at up to a 70 lpi screen.

LITHOGRAPHY
Lithography is the printing process based on the theory that water and oil will not mix. The lithographic printing process uses a planographic plate to control where the printed image will appear. This plate is sensitized to be ink-receptive in the image areas and water-receptive in the non-image areas. After the plate is placed on the printing press, ink is applied to the surface of the plate and stays in the image areas. A minuscule amount of a water solution is applied to and stays in the non-image areas of the plate defining where the ink is positioned to an accuracy of 1/1000 of an inch.

NEGATIVE-PROCESSED
Printing plates that are created with film negatives are called negative-processed printing plates. Negative-processing is also used to make proofs for clients before the printing plates are made.

OFFSET PRINTING
The term offset is often used interchangeably with lithography. In fact, lithography is the printing process based on the theory that oil and water don't mix and often uses the offset process for printing an image. Offset is the process whereby a printing plate first transfers its inked image areas onto a rubber blanket mounted on a cylinder in the printing press and then the rubber blanket transfers (or offsets) the inked image onto the paper as it passes through the press.

OUTPUT (when used in printing)
Output is the end result of converting electronic art files into the prepress materials used for printing production. Imagesetters output film negatives or film positives which are used to make printing plates. Platesetters output the printing plates used on the press.

PLATES
Plates are the carriers of the images that are to be printed on paper. One printing plate is required for each ink color printed. Metal plates are the only way to produce high quality, close-register printed images. Plates can also be made out of plastic and paper. Used in offset and lithography.

PMS COLORS
PMS stands for Pantone Matching System and was developed for color identification. The system assists clients, designers and printers in the communication process for color specification on printing orders. Each PMS color has a unique number and formula for ink mixing. PMS colors are also referred to as "spot" colors.

PROCESS COLOR
The four basic colors of ink used in process color printing are cyan, magenta, yellow and black. These ink colors are transparent and "process" with each other when overprinted in predetermined amounts. i.e. when cyan overprints yellow, it produces green, when yellow overprints magenta, it produces orange. Controlled screen tint combinations of the four basic colors allow the full spectrum of colors to be produced on a printing press. Colors are semi-opaque and will be affected by the stock color. On clear stocks a base of white (fifth color) should be used to block light ands to keep colors true.

PROCESS COLOR SEPARATIONS
Color separation refers to the breaking down of any full-color image into the four basic ink colors used in printing. The making of a color separation involves the use of a laser light scanner which, through the use of four color filtering systems, can "read" and record the amounts of cyan, magenta, yellow and black that is present in any particular area of a color original. The recording of this data is converted into digital form and saved to a computer for further processing and placement into page layout programs.

RESOLUTION
The quantification of output quality designated in dots per inch (dpi) when applied to paper output and in lines per inch when applied to film output. Laser printers commonly hold resolutions of 300, 600, 800 and 1200 dpi. Film output units (imagesetters) have variable resolution output; but are most commonly specified based on the surface type of papers to be printed. Screenprinting can hold a resolution from 55 to 70 line screen. Newsprint can hold a resolution from 85 to 100 line screen. Uncoated papers typically use 120, 133 or 150 line screens. Coated papers can hold resolutions of 133, 150, 175 and even 200+ line screens.

SCREENPRINTING
The process where black & white art is output as a film positive, and the design is "burned" into a silk mesh that has been sensitized, and then printed by squeezing ink through the mesh onto the substrate. Very durable and resistant to cracking, fading, and peeling.

SHEET-FED PRINTING
Sheet-fed printing is the process where precut sheets of paper are fed through the printing press rather than paper being fed off rolls (or webs).

SPOT COLORS
are PMS colors.

SPOT COLOR SEPARATIONS
When spot colors (or PMS colors) are being used in a printing order the identification and assignment of each color can be done in a page layout program. This process is done by the designer of the art files. When a print shop receives electronic files, one of their routine jobs is to give a proof back to the client to verify that the spot color separations appear in the correct locations.

STRIPPING
Stripping is the process where film negatives are positioned (imposed) in preparation for making the printing plates. Litho strippers lay the films down on carrier sheets. A proof is then made from the "stripped up" negatives for the client to review and approve. After approval or corrections, the same stripped up negatives are then used to make the printing plates.

TRAPPING
Trapping is the precise relationship between two ink colors when they butt together on a printed sheet. If no trap is added, a white gap may appear between colors. If too much trap is added, a dark line will appear where the colors overlap.

UV INK
Opaque, semi-opaque and translucent inks cured by exposure to intense UV radiation. Very environmentally safe, 123Stickers.com uses UV inks for almost all of our stickers.

UV COATING AND LAMINATION
While a UV clear coating or UV film lamination may add a premium look and some durability to your sticker, it is our opinion that these will not stop fading or wear from sunlight and exposure to weather conditions such as heat, rain and snow.

WEB-FED OFFSET
Web-fed printing is the process where paper runs through the printing press from a roll and then is trimmed into sheets.