Print design is more than printing. Print design includes deciding the best digital format for your design, what material it should print on, and for which purpose. Print design is not limited to these features.
1. Different types of print design
How you design and print the final product will determine how you approach designing it.
- Package Design – A great package and labeling design will make your brand stand out from the rest. This category allows for the most innovative print design. Only the most appealing concepts are brought to life and made it to market.
- Brochure Design Brochure stands have loads of information packed in simple formats so that passers-by can easily pass them. Your brochure should be formatted in a way that is engaging and clearly illustrates your company logo, call to action, and website. This will ensure the best results.
- Catalog Design. While a brochure gives a glimpse and encourages people to read more, a catalog should keep that excitement going and allow customers to see what you have to offer. It is important to arrange your inventory so that it is easy to navigate and different from other competitors.
- Decals: There are many types of decals. These graphics can be anything that your company is passionate about, and you want to make or distribute. It is important that your decals reflect your company’s brand and image.
- Book Cover Design – While the old saying “Don’t judge books by their covers” is true, many people do just that. To stand out from the rest, even the most talented writers require a striking graphic for their book covers.
- Business card design: Every company needs a business card that is memorable. These cards can be used by staff to build relationships and expand your company.
These are just a few of the categories that many prints can be classified under. However, it is up to the designer to choose the category that interests them most.
2. Formats and File Types
Determining whether a file is “print-ready for printing” can be difficult. Many less experienced designers simply choose the file they are most familiar with, believing it will be sufficient for their needs. However, it is important to consider the file type you choose when printing a particular image. What does print-ready actually mean? Two types of file types can be characterized: vector and raster. The pixels used to create raster images are tiny, colored areas on a screen. These images are what you see most often online. Vector images don’t have pixel constraints and can be scaled to any size without compromising quality. To create vector images, you will usually need to use specific software.
Which file type is best for printing? These are the five most popular file types for print design:
- JPG/JPEG – JPGs are the default format for digital cameras. They are saved with the correct resolution and color space. JPG images are printed in CMYK by default. Later in this article, we will discuss printing in CMYK.
- PDF is another popular file format because it preserves original content and appearance regardless of how the viewer views the image.
- EPS Vector graphics are best saved in this format after completion. They can be scaled indefinitely with this file type.
- PNG – This file type excels in image quality, transparent backgrounds and opaque features.
- TIFF – This file type is only for printing images. Its high quality image and large file size make it an excellent choice for printing designs. The image’s quality does not decrease if it is compressed, unlike other file types.
There are many file types that can be used for all purposes, including those specific to certain programs or operating systems. However, the best way to get the job done is to use the ones listed above.
3. Resolution
Print design is dependent on the resolution. The final product’s quality will be determined by the resolution of the graphics. DPI and Pipi are two terms that affect the resolution of your printed images. They are both similar but each play a different role. DPI (or dots per inch) refers to the density of ink per inch on a printed surface. This term is important for the actual printing process, but it doesn’t apply to web design as soon as an image has been printed onto a surface. Equipment with a greater DPI will produce a better image. PPI (pixels per inch) refers to how many pixels are displayed on a given screen. A higher number of pixels will result in a better image. A lack of pixels can cause distortion, blurriness, and overall loss in quality. PPI is a measure of how images appear once they are printed. The print’s size will be smaller, but the quality will be better. To get the best results, determine the PPI required for your desired quality and quantity. Print at 300 PPI is a good rule of thumb. This is the highest amount the human eye can see and will usually translate into a high-quality physical image.
4. Color
Two color schemes are common for images: CMYK and RGB. The question is, “Is RGB better for printing?” RGB stands for red, green, and blue. These are the primary colors used in computer displays to represent all colors. You probably already know that the primary colors for pigment are blue, yellow, and red. These hues are chosen more carefully in printing. These are the ink colors that most printers use, with the addition of black. Together, they are abbreviated as CMYK for cyan-magenta-yellow-black. You’ll use more colors than these in your designs, it is obvious. Each custom color is assigned a code by design programs. This tells the printer how much ink to use for each section of a print. Remember that the design you see on your screen may not reflect what it looks like when printed. To ensure that your vision is accurately represented on paper, make several test prints.
5. Typography
While any font can be used in print design, as long as the designer has the rights to include it there are some fonts that are specifically optimized for web use. The designer of print design can choose the font that is most appropriate for their project. Designers have complete control over the font and orientation that best suits their needs. The kerning is an important part of text inclusion in print. Kerning refers to the adjustment of the space between each character. A well-kerned piece of copy will have an equal space between every letter and symbol, excluding spaces. This aspect will ensure that the information looks neat and ordered.
A good rule of thumb for text is to limit the use of capital letters. Caps can be used to highlight certain parts of a print’s most important elements, but adjusting the contrast can make your message more professional without being too overwhelming. Because each letter is the same height, capitals make it difficult for readers to identify words. Although they may seem simple, there are other ways to emphasize important information. The font size you use will vary depending on the type of print you create. Large posters and billboards may allow for smaller fonts. However, smaller fonts might not work well with smaller prints or business cards. Always get another opinion when deciding on size. It doesn’t matter if your eyes are able to read the text file.
