Four-color printing is an all too familiar sight to you. You can see colorful magazines, brochures, catalogs, and posters, all of which are lavishly smothered with colors.
Four-color process printing is a procedure combined with offset printing commonly used in commercial printing. It creates high-volumes of quality, varicolored prints at the most affordable prices, at the shortest turnaround times.
As any client who wants the best possible prints, you may have once, twice, or even thrice thought about what goes on in your prints. What are the best paper stocks or card stocks there are?
Paper stocks or card stocks are just as important as any other element in printing. It is through quality paper stock that ink sits well. It is quality paper stocks that hold your prints for a long time, with its thickness, strength, and durability.
What exactly are paper or card stocks?
Paper stocks or card stocks are the paper or card used by the printing company. It uses this stock for a lot of printing products.
Misconceptions
Some people fear that such paper or card stocks are of poor quality. On the contrary, professional printing companies have access to high-grade paper and card stocks that allows them the liberty to use it for your prints.
Their access and transactions with various suppliers allow them to get the best quality stocks at the best possible price.
Some people, again, fear that with the limiting paper stocks provided for printing companies, it is always best to use specialty papers. Aside from the paper stock, other elements that go into printing can make and shape your prints into something unique. Matter of fact, they are always unique.
But if you persist in using a rare kind of paper for your printing project, it is best to know the risks that you might run into.
- Four-color process printing is calibrated to every paper stock used in printing. So that whatever the paper or card stock used, the print colors and quality are consistent. With an unfamiliar paper stock, you might risk these for your prints.
- Colored paper or card stocks are all the more challenging. Inks are semi-transparent even if we see solid and bold colors on prints. If a cream-colored paper stock is used, the yellows of your prints might become more intense, and so, you would still have to balance it out.
- If you print on an uncoated paper too, the ink will seep into the paper producing dot gain. This is where the halftone dots will spread.
- Paper stocks, especially dark-colored ones, can become overpowering such that your print design might get swallowed up. The inks will end up competing with the paper and not working together with it.
If you truly want to see how your prints would fare out using your paper stock of choice, you request for your printing company to give you a hardcopy proof, printed on your paper.
Also, it is more plausible that with such complications, it may become even harder for a printing company to print your design offset. This makes digital printing the only available option, albeit, an option with a steeper price tag.
For truly astounding prints, it helps to scrutinize which paper stocks are used by your printing company of choice, so you can verify if they are true of high-quality. 100lb Text is the thickest and heaviest paper. 100lb Cover is used for brochures and has, let us say, body to it. 14pt. Cover stock is thick and durable, used for business cards and postcards.
These are just some of the paper and card stock used by printers. After all, four-color printing works best with premium paper and card stock. Choose a printing company that can give that combination and your printing will all be worth it.
For attractive and attention-grabbing materials four color printing will be an ideal concept to apply. To find more on its application please feel free to reach out to PrintArt for all your printing needs.
It can be a fairly complex process but don’t feel overwhelmed, reach out to PrintArt today, and explain your needs. Their customer service department will put together a cost-effective quote and help your vision come to reality!
PrintArt – Accurate Die Cutting
413 Interchange St.
McKinney, TX 75071
972.562.7921
https://www.printart-adc.com
