Newbies Guide in Choosing Colors for Print Posters

“The first time you look at a poster print, you first see its colors. When you print posters, it is usually one of the first things a designer takes into account. The choice of colors for a poster print design determines the mood of the poster and defines it with its character. You can use this to your advantage when designing your own color posters. Different color combinations offer a certain treatment to the eyes and convey certain message. The careful choice of these combinations will determine if your custom poster will be eye-catching and effective. If however you slept through art class when you were a kid, then these color combinations might be new to you. Yes, colors can be paired with other colors that will complement them. These color schemes have been widely used for posters since people are always attracted to beautiful color schemes. If you are a novice or have forgotten all about this, then here’s a little refresh course for the color impaired. Complimentary colors The first and most basic color combinations are the complimentary colors. These colors are usually have the opposite hue of each other. This makes both colors appear brighter and more vibrant when you put them together. For the primary colors red, blue and yellow, their complimentary color is the combination of the two other primary colors. For example, the complimentary color for red is the combination of blue and yellow which is green. So the color red will always compliment the color green. Sounds familiar in a holiday sort of way right? Applying this logic, we get blue and orange as a pair and yellow and violet as a pair. These color combinations are the basic bread and butter for matching colors in custom posters. So use them if your poster design warrants such a combination. Usually these color schemes are safe albeit the red and green combination has some holiday allusions. If you are a newbie, you should never go wrong using this combination for your custom posters. Even grand artists still use this concept today. Contrasting colors Contrasting colors are an extended combination for complimentary colors. Since complimentary colors are opposite in hue they contrast. So one color will help emphasize the other. However besides the usual combinations of red and green, blue and orange and yellow and violet you can use contrasting lightness or darkness schemes. The simplest example of this contrasting scheme is black and white. Black and white can always be together since once really does bring out the other. You can expand this concept even further for your color posters by using a light hue of a certain color with a darker hue of the same color. So if you are going to design your full color poster with this concept you can use a dark green with a lighter shade of green like teal. Sea blue or dark blue can team up with a light blue or sky blue. Red can pair up with pink or magenta. It can even be as simple as using white with any other color. These contrasting colors can really provide you with a nice coherent theme. This is all the more useful if the subject for your color poster has a theme color or favorite color. All you have t do is use a lighter or darker shade of it. Warm and cool colors Last for basic color combinations are warm and cool colors. Warm colors include red, orange, yellow and any other color between those three. They are usually bright and add warmth to your poster. The message conveyed for warm colors is that of intensity of emotion and activity. Cool colors on the other hand are in the realm of blue, green and violet. They usually lend a darker feel to things, but they offer feelings of calmness, rest and serenity. Using a set of warm colors or a set of cool colors is a good color poster scheme as well. Use the feelings these colors invoke in people when creating your poster design. Those are some of the basic combinations you can use for color poster printing. There are other more advances techniques, but these should really get you on your feet when it comes to designing your poster. Even for newbies, these combinations are safe to use and will always amount to a decent even wonderfully colorful custom poster print.

Effective Design Principles for Brochures

One of the very popular marketing medium in brand promotion is a brochure. Brochures work well to provide stability and strength to your products and services. With they’re flexible and portable features, brochures can be effective visual presentations to promote your business brand and identity. In fact, with the brochures’ size which can fit anywhere, they are powerful marketing tools to use.

However, brochures are only as strong as the design they have. A well planned design can optimize the visual feature of your brochure printing project. In order for you to come up with print brochures that is attractive as well as can be easily understood, there are design principles that you have to be acquainted with.

Number of Pages and Spreads

The number of pages generally determines the kind of cover you will use. Brochures with many pages can have heavy and glossy cover which usually gets your brochure more attention. In addition, you will be able to insert extra product or service content with multiple pages to fill up.

Although this type of brochure is more durable than the rest, it is however, very expensive. Likewise, a heavy and bulky brochure costs more when you decide to put it in an envelope and mail to your prospective clients.

On the other hand, a single page brochure can be maximized when you apply multiple folds. Not only is it more economical, it allows you to have a nice appearance minus the bulky look. It can even fit a standard envelope for mailing. The downside however, is that it offers a limited space for your product and service information.

Paper Size and Format

Your brochure’s paper size and format determines how much and where you can insert your product and service data. The more space you have, the more information can be incorporated in your brochure printing copy.

Distribution Method

How you want your brochure printing materials to reach your prospective clients can also determine your brochure’s visibility. You could either distribute them by hand, or mail your brochures to your client list.

You have to develop your brochure printing pages to fit the standard mailing envelope if you plan to send it by post. Trying to fit multiple and bulky pages inside an ordinary envelope can be challenging; plus, it will cost you more when you mail it.

In the same way, sending your brochures by hand can also be complicated if you happen to have heavy brochures. Imagine having to lag all those weight just to place them inside your prospective clients’ mailboxes.

Pictures, Graphics and Images

Avoid ruining your brochure’s appearance by inserting so many graphics and images that are otherwise immaterial to your overall brochure printing design.

Paper Color and Texture

Use glossy paper and vibrant colors to create a classy and quality appearance. Plain paper usually sets off unprofessional impression. Your brochure printer can help you choose multiple colors without having to pay extra for additional inks.

Emphasize your message by providing a well designed brochure. And always remember that choosing your brochure printing elements wisely can help you develop quality and more effective print pieces to reinforce your business’ image to your prospective clients.

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The 5 Measures to Quality Color Postcard Printing

Achieving great quality for your postcards is your printers’ job. But how exactly will you know if they are the right color postcard printing company for the job? More importantly, how do you respond and select to the different options available for postcard printing?

Review your options and see if you and your postcard printing project are getting the royal treatment you deserve. These 5 measures will ably guide you to determine what are the most important elements that should go into your color postcard printing.

Also, it will allow you to discern which printing company will truly deliver the ideal printing conditions you want for your postcard printing.

Four color printing and Offset Printing

The most economical, yet the most efficient means of producing postcards is through offset printing, integrated with four color process printing. Through this, you get to enjoy quality prints that are clean and clear. No fuzzy edges. No blurry images.

Plus, with four color process printing, your photos are sure to come out brilliant. It will capture varying hues of colors that would effectively replicate your photos, be it portraits, landscapes or paintings into fine, colorful pieces of what else, but art.

Bright, Opaque 14pt. Card stock

Paper stock or card stock is one material that greatly contributes to the color quality of your prints. Smooth, bright white paper is ideal because colors come out purer. This means that colors do not come out looking dirty or unpleasantly flat.

Brightness is a quality to look out for because it attracts much needed light that will enhance your colors. As it absorbs light, so does it reflect some of it back to make colors appear much more vivid.

Opacity is important so that the design does not show through to the other side. For all else, the your prints’ design will suffer as it competes against the shadows of the design on the other side. Other than this, the readability of your postcard will be greatly reduced.

If you were to pick out a card stock, go for something that is durable. A 14pt. card stock is ideal because it will hold its form better than a lighter paper. Common printers only have a 12pt. card stock, but if you know your money’s worth, you’d go for a printing company that offers a 14pt. card stock without any additional fees.

Aqueous Coating

If you want more gloss on your prints, printing companies offer Aqueous coating for your postcards. This comes free to distinguished printing companies while others may charge you.

Nevertheless, this added sheen will attract more light that will naturally, improve your prints’ colors and heighten its vibrancy.

Proofs

Proofs are your print-ready files that allows you to screen and inspect your file before it is sent to the presses. Some companies demand payment if and when clients ask for proofs. If this is the case, it’s better to choose a printing company who will provide you with free PDF proofs.

Printing companies who provide you free proofs are sure to exercise quality control. This aptly demonstrates just how focused they are at providing you real service and real quality. They even send proofs before you actually pay for your printing job. Now imagine that.

The Three E’s

The three e’s represent experience, expertise and equipment. If you find all three qualities in your printer, it is safe to say you are in good hands.

Experience allows you to gauge just how broad and extensive are the printing’s company’s familiarity with different printing projects.

Expertise demonstrates their signature output quality which puts the printer distinct from other printers. Without expertise, it does not matter whether they have the most modern equipment or not, it’s how they manipulate their presses and exercise their techniques that measures a good postcard output.

And of course, having the necessary equipment makes postcard printing totally convenient, fast and accurate.

So you get your hands on the right color postcard printing company and place the images you want on your postcards with clarity. Print your portraits, family photos, and even your own digital art on postcards and see the difference it makes by choosing wisely.

4 Color Printing: How to Use Colors

4 Color printing brings images to life. The life-like colors of blushing pink and earthy greens found on your prints can communicate multiple ideas that are beyond words.

The power that color wields is undeniable as it moves trends and creates followers. It paints events, memories and even attaches itself to emotions. Heck, we even dream in multi-color.

4 color printing allows us to access into a rich pool of colors that affects the visual communication of print designs. Colors are that integral in not just enhancing a look or feel, but ultimately in sending out messages where the text fails to define.

Graphic design for prints, be it for business cards, posters, flyers, catalogs or brochures, all involve a certain complexity. For with proper use of colors, these print materials can be made more enticing, more lively more striking.

How We Use Colors

1. Illustrations, together with colors, make abstract concepts simpler. Through colorful designs or images, we can create a picture of progress by using graphs and colors. Each color can represent a bar or a line that exhibits and emphasize the scale at just how much progress have been made, or the lack of it.

2. Colors can heighten the dramatic effect of your prints. Just take note at how certain colors can significantly change a person’s look overtime. Hair can be colored brown, auburn, platinum blonde, and black. Though there are little changes in the person’s face that little hair color can bring about different looks with. It can make you older, younger, and even sultry.

3. Colorful prints help paint a more accurate picture of the things we see. Through 4 color printing, we can transfer and recreate even the scenes and ideas we made up with our heads. The objects we’ve come to know and associate with colors can readily be transferred on print.

4. Indeed, 4 color printing are like make-up and can be used to transform or enhance certain looks. By changing the value and levels of colors, you can achieve different styles without trying too hard.

5. Colors attract attention. The very nature of colors and how it is used in four color printing can very help the colors of your brand label standout. Your company logos too become more identifiable with 4 color printing.

6. 4 color printing too makes simple images more detailed. Details are necessary for it naturally makes images more accurate. It too, as a part of the whole, completes the whole look that the picture wishes to create.

7. The variety of hues and shades available make it possible to generate contrasts and highlights. Both of which are vital in producing depth. Depth is vital in making the composition solid and balance.

4 Color Printing

Offset printing are integrated with the 4 color process printing technology that gives your prints layers upon layers of colors.

The capability of the machine to produce colorful prints is undeniable. However, for a printer to capably manipulate the machine and produce color accurate prints is a different matter entirely.

The expertise of your printer spells the difference from great quality 4 color printing to poor ones. It is the printer, after all, who assess the quality of the colors, how they will come out using a particular paper stock, and what will eventually be the final product once it is coated with finishes, among so many other factors.

These are all contributing elements which the machine cannot process or identify, Your printers’ expertise makes 4 color printing possible a success. While printing machines may accumulate a number of years from use, it doesn’t have the necessary experience only printers or humans acquire.

Choose a 4 color printing company with the expertise in the four color process to give you the full color prints you need. Such expertise need not be expensive at all, for such commercial, professional printers are more competitive than ever. Not only do they have the technology that eases the print out of volumes of print materials, but they have the mastery on color printing that makes it faster and better.

Brochure Design Tricks That Work

It doesn’t matter that you have an outstanding product, or even excellent customer service; as long as your marketing medium look more depressing than the others in your industry, you wouldn’t be able to convince your prospective clients to think otherwise.

Not only do your marketing pieces (such as your brochure printing items) reflect your company and the way you do business, but they also provide that strong image that can make or break your business profits. Nowadays, your brochure printing materials, or any other marketing pieces, for that matter, influence your potential clients more than any other visual presentation to make the right decision about your business.

More than likely that your brochure printing project can get attention and respect than what improvements you’ve done to your products or services. The fact remains that what your target clients see and read from your brochures are essentially the things that will give them the impression regarding your business.

To make your target clients see you for the excellent quality service that you provide, you may want to create your next brochure printing project with the following tricks up your sleeve.

Make use of quality graphics, clipart, and pictures that are within your grasp. What you don’t have (like talent for design for example) should not stop you from creating a design that is worth looking at. There are so many sources of graphics and images that you can use for your brochure printing project.

And it doesn’t have to cost you much. In fact, you can have professional and quality illustrations for a minimal fee, and sometimes even for free. For one, there’s the Internet that has a wide variety, as well as the most number of clipart and stock photos that you can use to improve your brochure printing design. Another popular source is your personal computer which has more than enough clipart functions for you to explore.

However, you must use your clipart and images with caution and with limitation. You don’t have to put everything you can get your hands on. Use only those that can help you emphasize your brochure printing message.

Improve your brochure printing layout by highlighting important content and putting them outside of their standard place. You can use text balloons and quotation marks with colored background to help you emphasize a point.

Make use of elements consistently throughout your brochure printing layout. Use the same elements in your design and layout to create harmony in your overall appearance.

Make sure to take note of proximity among your elements. Take note of the spaces in between your photos, content, and even your letters.

Make use of fonts that are easier to read, especially if you have heavy text and content.

These are simple tricks that you can use. For your next brochure printing project, you might want to try them out and see how successful your print brochures can get.

Sticker Printing Facts and Functions

Sticker printing has plenty of varieties. If you have taken care to notice the signs and labels around you, you may have probably noticed that the stickers can be highly different from one another and it is not just the design.

You can explore different stocks and use custom printing specifications in order to come up with a highly unique sticker. Stickers have been classified according to the sticker stock or the material used to print the sticker on. It can also be sorted by the kind of adhesive used for it.

Lastly, stickers are also categorized by their overall function. These are designed for specific purposes where each sticker has different characteristics.

So while stickers are meant to adhere on surfaces, there are stickers particularly made to adhere on certain materials more effectively. Then, there are stickers which can be made more durable or tougher than others.

Here then are some facts that you should know about sticker printing and the kind of stickers you can enjoy. Read on and empower yourself with more knowledge on stickers. Know what your options are and get the right details for a truly unique and functional sticker.

1. Vinyl stock is used for many stickers that are commonly meant for outdoor use. Stickers printed on this stock may last for a year and a half, depending on use. Most of the time too, lamination is applied on these stickers.

Lamination is a kind of finishing. It is applied on stickers to prevent any scuffing or abrasions from ruining the print designs or the stickers as a whole too.

2. Tamper Evident stickers are stickers used to maintain the integrity of products. It is used to safeguard products from being tampered with. These stickers act as seals which can be found from food items to electronic ones. Most of the time, these has words that says “Void” when the item has been tampered even before you try to open them.

3. Hologram stickers may be nothing new. You can easily imagine hologram stickers as the ones kids play with and use.

However, hologram stickers are also used to help indicate that a product is original. This helps customers and buyers from identifying an original item from a cheap, counterfeit one. Usually, this can be seen on items such as CDs, but are good for use on other merchandise as well such as IDs and the like.

4. Another popular use for stickers is called danger labels. These are stickers that are made to inform, warn and indicate caution. These danger labels carry words such as “Warning,” “Caution,” or “Danger.”

These are particularly handy to warn consumers of the dangers of misusing certain products which may not be child-proof or are particularly harmful to one’s health.

5. Stickers do not only come in white stocks. You can have your stickers printed on fluorescent stocks to make them more vibrant and especially attention catching. The fluorescent stocks can come in a range of colors such as green, pink, red and orange.

If you have noticed, these colors all work to make a black print or design stand out. In this manner, you can have little problem making you text stand out too.

There are yet more to find out on sticker printing, stickers and the materials you can combine to create functional sticker prints. From bumper stickers to decals, find and design a sticker that would fit your need.

The Perfect Printing Press Partner: How to Find Them Online

Finding your printing press partner can easily be done on the web. Online printing is the most convenient way of having your designs printed without ever leaving your home. Your printing projects can be completed with ease with a few clicks on your mouse.

Printing companies now operate using the world wide web to connect you easily. You can complete job orders, upload your design files, have your prints run through the presses and have it shipped right to your doorstep. It is no wonder why this is one of the most easiest and practical you can do online.

Online Printing Privileges

Through the internet and the world wide web, you can tap into the best pool of printers online. Whether you are in for short run printing projects, wide-format printing projects and bulk printing projects, you can find one that will suit you best.

It doesn’t matter too if the printer you want is miles away from you. The internet creates bridges that will get you in touch with the printer you want. You can work on the details for your print project through live chat, email, and of course the telephone.

Picking Your Printing Press Partners

You can easily pick out a printer from the vast number of commercial printers online. But finding one that can perform and deliver results to tailor fit your needs may not be as easy. Follow these simple steps and it may just well lead you to a printing partner you are looking for.

Step 1: Identify Your Own Needs

See what your printing project is all about. Do you need a printing company who would give you the time of day to work out your printing design with you? Do you need someone who would offer you the cheapest possible price? Do you need both undeniable quality and quantity?

Printing companies have their own strengths. There are printing companies who excel in customer service by attending to your printing project at every step. They keep track of your project and keep you informed at the same. Then there are those who give you a bargain price for prints. Check to see if you can find one that would best perform according to your demands.

Step 2: Looking for Your Printing Partner

You can easily look for a printing company through search engines like Google, MSN or Yahoo. But you would have to limit your search according to your printing project. If you are preparing for a business card printing project, then you might want to use business card printer as your keyword.

You can even be more specific in your search by indicating – full color business cards or cheap business card printing. This would give you a list of printing sites that are described just as that.

Step 3: Read Through Articles and Blogs

If you have happened to come across some articles (just like this one) or blogs, you would know that they not only offer useful information but some great insight on some printing companies.

These write ups can give you leads on professional printing companies. And with the popularity of the blogs, you can gain an insight to their own experience with a specific printing company.

Step 4: Online Directories

You can also look up for a professional printing company using online directories. These give you a list of commercial printing companies that are out there. You can, once again, use a variety of keywords from printing press or printing company, to a more specified search such as business card printers or full color catalogs and the like.

Try these practical ideas and contact a printing press who would do the job for you.

Basic Information About Printing

Most businesspeople do not know much about the fine art of printing. They simple design their advertising literature, and send it off to their commercial printer, where they will work their magic and produce the amazing results. However, it is a good idea to get a good grasp of the basics of printing, because doing so can help you make better designs for your marketing materials.

Paper stock

There are two primary types of paper stock: text and cover. Text stock is more transparent (easier to see through) than cover stock. Within those two classifications, there is a further division based on the weight (or thickness) of the paper. There is an 80# Gloss Text stock for example, and an 80# Gloss Cover stock. Most promotional material, including flyers, is printed in either 80# or 100# text or cover stock.

Spread

The spread of a print design is often misunderstood by businesspeople. Spread is a term used to describe how the page is looked at. There are two kinds of spread: reader spread and printer spread. Basically, reader spread is how the reader sees the page, while printer spread is how the printer sees the page. For example, think of a normal magazine. When you open it, you may see page 15 on one side and page 16 on the other. As you are looking at those pages that is reader spread. However, page 15 is not on the same piece of paper as page 16, due to the folding and stapling of the pages. If you took the staples out of the magazine, and laid the pages out, that would be printer spread.

It is important to know the basics of spread because it can save you money when you have your designs printed. If you are printing something that will be arranged in magazine form, you must deliver the design to the printer in printer spread. Otherwise, the printer will have to rearrange the pages, which will cost you more time and money.

Signature

The signature is basically a large piece of paper upon which several pages are printed. This is then divided up into the standard pages that you see in the finished product. The number of pages that are on a signature depends on a number of factors, including the printer’s supplies and the size of your pages.

Imposition

The imposition is just the orientation of the pages on a signature. If you were to look at a signature, you would see some pages upside down, while others are turned sideways, and still others are in normal orientation. In the finished product, however, they will (hopefully) all be in the normal, readable format.

These are just a few basic terms in the world of printing. They are good to know, though, even for businesspeople who are not intimately involved in the printing process. You are still overseeing the design of your color printing efforts, and having an understanding of the process will help you maximize your time and money.

Preparing a Catalog for Print

Print catalogs continue to be mailed by the thousands every day. Some companies send catalogs to introduce a new product line, such as clothing retailers for a seasonal change. Catalog businesses rely solely on mail-order catalog sales for income. Even though many catalogs are available online, many more are still sent through the mail because many customers prefer the ease of flipping through a printed catalog.

Preparing a catalog for print can be a tedious project, which is why following a strict step-by-step process can be helpful. An organized course of action will prevent muddled steps and the pain of needing to redo any part of the design.

Plan thoroughly. Gather everyone involved in the catalog printing design to discuss the plan. First decide on the style. Without a clear company image, the font, pictures, and entire format will be disconnected. Next discuss the responsibilities of the editor, writer, photographers, and designers. Everyone should be absolutely clear about individual tasks before leaving the table.

Choose the products. Make a list of all the items to be included in the catalog. Gather prices and decide which products will have discounts and which are the bestsellers.

Choose photographs. Using individual photographs for each product ups the catalog sales. Use high resolution to avoid pixilated pictures. Clear photos make items more desirable. Play around with different angles for the best presentation.

Write the text. Use only a couple of different fonts. Emphasize important information using bolding or highlights. Customers do not have time to read long paragraphs of information, so keep sentences short and simple.

Group the products. Before beginning the layout, gather like items together. Each item on a spread should be connected; otherwise, your catalog will mirror a rummage sale. Not many people have the patience to wade through unorganized piles of merchandise.

Design the page layouts. Use the same format for pages with a few unique layouts thrown in to break up any repetitiveness. Place the most attractive item in the upper right corner of the spread with next most desirable products in the other corners. This method catches the skimmer’s attention and will hopefully give a reason to pause long enough to see the entire page. Remember that a “spread” is two pages when the catalog is lying open.

Design the cover. Items that can be included on the cover are photographs of bestselling items, possibly with page numbers, a headline or issue name, issue number, logo, and company name. Choose four colors to use on the cover and throughout the catalog magazine.

The above-mentioned steps are only the most common guidelines. Your design team might decide to add a few more in between or to further break them down into smaller, more detailed steps. The important thing to remember is to stick with a plan for a smooth design process for your printed catalogs.

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Folder Printing: Save Money and Improve Professionalism

A great, all-purpose tool for your business is presentation folder printing. Folders can be used for sales presentations, meetings, or even internal documentation for training, as an example. Folder printing can save your company time and money because your staff will not have to print or design new cover sheets every time they have a new presentation or need to reproduce current documentation. Folder printing also improves professionalism by creating a uniform look and feel across presentations and documentation. When customers see a unified brand, it shows them that you are well organized. Internally, folder printing also improves professionalism in the same way. As you begin designing your folder printing project, keep these tips in mind to both save money and improve professionalism: Keep it generic – do not focus the folder printing design on a particular aspect of your company or on particular products and services. Rather, keep the overall look and feel somewhat generic so the folders can be used in many different situations. Branding – make sure your corporate logo, color schemes, and other branding tools are incorporated into the folder printing. This will help your customers and your staff recognize your brand. Print bulk – folder printing in bulk will save you money. Print more than you think you will need as it is cheaper to have too many folders than it is to need to print a few extras. Print professionally – folder printing and design requires specialized equipment and expertise. It is better to pay a few cents more per folder and have a professional product than to risk producing flimsy or amateurish folders. If you have loose documents that need to be consolidated for customers or your staff, folder printing is an ideal option that can not only save you money but will also improve the professionalism of your presentation. For comments and inquiries about the article visit Presentation Folder Printing

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