Resources & Support

We take great pride in making our clients feel confident about their jobs during the production process. To help you gain a better understanding of what’s happening to your project, we’ve compiled a glossary of terms that we commonly use in our industry.

• Abrasion Resistance

  The resistance to scratching of a surface of paper by other paper surfaces or other materials.

• Absorbency

  The ability of a material to take up moisture

• Abstract Art

  Any art in which the depiction of real objects has been subordinated or discarded in favor of patterns, lines and color.

• Abstract Expressionism

  The movement developed in New York during the decades immediately following World War II. It is also referred to as the New York School or, less accurately, as "Action Painting." It is characterized by an attempt to depict universal emotions. It was the first exclusively American movement to gain international recognition.

• AC

  Author's Correction

• Achromatic

  The non-colors... black, white and gray.

• Acid-free Corrugated Cardboard

  Corrugated board that has been rendered acid-free; may be lignin free and/or buffered to raise the pH to 7 or above (alkaline). Used as a backing board or for making sturdy storage containers for paper art, textiles or other unframed pieces which should be stored in acid-free atmospheres

• Acid-free Foam Board

  A board made of foamed plastic (polystyrene) material sandwiched between coated paper from which the acids have been removed or have been chemically neutralized to raise the pH level above 7 (alkaline).

• Acid-free Foam Board

  A vague term, referring to a material with a pH of 7 or higher. Sometimes used incorrectly as a synonym for alkaline or buffered material. Some acidic materials are chemically neutralized with the addition of alkaline products; other materials are processed to remove the acid-producing elements. (Acid-free materials may become acidic over time due to residual chlorine from bleaching, aluminum sulfate from sizing or atmospheric pollutants.)

• Acrylic Painting

  Artists’ colors made by polymerizing a methyl methacrylate by emulsification, thus dispersing the resin into tiny particles in water. This fluid is used for a base in compounding polymer colors. Acrylic colors are water soluble when wet, but dry to an insoluble film. Colors are bright, dry quickly and are flexible.

• Additive Colors

  In photographic reproduction, the primary colors of red, green and blue which are mixed to form all other colors.

• Aestheticism

  Aestheticism found advocates among artists who wanted to liberate art from morality, politics and social purpose. Aestheticism was the more general movement from which Symbolism developed.

• Air

  Large white areas in a design layout.

• Air Brush

  An instrument, powered by compressed air, used to spray paint with delicate control and precision. Paint (usually a fine water color) is held in a small cup attached to the side of the pen-like instrument. Paint is drawn through the "brush" by the Venturi effect. The result is characterized by a very smooth, even texture and unbroken tonal gradations.

• Airbrush

  A compressed air tool that dispenses a fine mist of paint or ink; used in illustration and photo retouching.

• Allegoricism

  Allegorical painting has a meaning hidden in its subject matter which the viewer must "read." Allegory differs from symbol in that it usually has a clear or precise associative meaning and does not require an intuitive response from the reader.

• Archival

  Broadly used to describe materials that have the least harmful effects on the art being framed or stored and thus preserving such pieces for the longest period of time.

• Art

  A form of human activity created primarily as an aesthetic expression, especially, but not limited to drawing, painting and sculpture.

• Art Work

  Any materials or images that are prepared for graphic reproduction.

• Artisan

  A skillful craftsman. One skilled in an applied art.

• Artist’s Proof

  Historically, it was a print retained by the artist for his/her own use or sale. It may bear the designation A/P.

• Artwork

  All illustrated material, ornamentation, photos and charts etc., that is prepared for reproduction.

• ASA

  A number set by the American Standards Assoc., which is placed on film stock to allow calculation of the length and "F" number of an exposure. Reference, "F" numbers.

• Author's Alterations (AA's)

  Changes made after composition stage where customer is responsible for additional charges.

• Balance

  A term used to describe the aesthetic or harmony of elements, whether they are photos, art or copy, within a layout or design.

• Banker's Flap Envelope

  Also called wallet flap; the wallet flap has more rounded flap edges.

• Baroque

  An extremely elaborate and ornate artistic style. This dynamic, theatrical style dominated art and architecture in Europe during the 17th Century.

• Baroque Classicism

  Baroque Classicism was distinguished by three main developments which were all facilitated by the increase in private patrons wanting easel paintings for their homes; the Classical landscape which evokes mood; Poussin's reassertion of Classical principles of composition; and the codification of such principles as the foundation of Academic art education.

• Base Line

  This is a term used to describe the imaginary horizontal line upon which stand capitals, lower case letters, punctuation points etc.

• Basic Size

  This term refers to a standard size of paper stock; even though the required size may be smaller or larger.

• Basis Weight

  Basis or basic weight refers to the weight, in pounds, of a ream (500 sheets) of paper cut to a given standard size for that particular paper grade.

• Binder's Board

  A heavy paperboard with a cloth covering that is used for hardback binding of books.

• Bleed

  Extra ink area that crosses trim line, used to allow for variations that occur when the reproduction is trimmed or die-cut.

• Blow-up

  Any enlargement of photos, copies or line art.

• Body

  The main shank or portion of the letter character other than the ascenders and descenders. Also: A term used to define the thickness or viscosity of printer's ink.

• Bounce 1

  A registration problem, usually on copiers, where the image appears to bounce back and forth. A bounce usually occurs in one direction depending on how the paper is passing through the machine. This is usually accented by card stock (especially if it's over the machine's spec). When a customer refuses a job for whatever reason.

• Burnish

  A term used for the process of "rubbing down" lines and dots on a printing plate, which darkens those rubbed areas.

• Burnishing

  Creating a polished finish on paper by rubbing with stone or hand smoothing a surface.

• Calligraphy

  Handwriting as an art. Elegant penmanship with decoration and design of primary importance.

• Canvas

  A heavy woven fabric usually of cotton or linen, used as a support for a painting. The surface is prepared for painting by applying gesso or rabbit skin glue. 2) Interlocked or woven fibers used as the ground material for needle art.

• Canvas Pliers

  Heavy pliers with elongated jaws for grasping the edges of a piece of canvas when stretching it onto a stretcher frame. A square extension at the middle of the lower jaw is called the hammer; its most important function is to supply leverage against the back of the stretcher bar.

• Canvas Transfer

  A process which lifts the image on a print off the paper support so that it can be transferred to a canvas mount.

• Cast Paper

  Paper made by pressing the pulp into a die or mold used for casting or shaping, becoming a work of art in and of itself.

• Chipboard

  A board made entirely from recycled paper products, containing a variety of impurities. It is an inexpensive mounting and backing board for non-conservation/preservation framing.

• Chop Mark

  A small embossed seal or impression on a print, generally indicating the printer or artist.

• Cibachrome

  A color photograph based on the silver dye-bleach system. The necessary colors (azo dyes) are built into the emulsion layers. These colors are bleached out where not needed during developing. Azo dyes produce more brilliant colors and have greater stability and resistance to light than any other current process. Ilford has renamed its process Ilfochrome.

• Classicism

  Many Renaissance artists associated the Middle Ages with cultural decline and distanced themselves from it. Instead, they studied the arts of ancient Greece and Rome whose achievements they aspired not only to emulate but to surpass. In this, they were typical of a general fascination with the values of classical Greece and Rome.

• Climate Control

  The control of temperature and relative humidity to produce an environment with little fluctuation, ideally 50 percent relative humidity and 70 degrees F.

• Coated Art Paper

  Printing papers used for printing projects that require a special treatment of detail and shading.

• Coated Stock

  Any paper that has a mineral coating applied after the paper is made, giving the paper a smoother finish.

• Collage

  Artwork created by securing pieces of paper, fabric or other materials onto a substrate. Though basically two-dimensional, it may have a sculptural effect.

• Color

  Used to refer to perceived qualities that result from the response of vision to the wavelength of reflected or transmitted light. 2) Describes images that have hues, as opposed to black, white and gray tones only and the processes used to make them.

• Color Wheel

  A spectrum of colors placed in a circle including the three primary colors: red, yellow and blue, and the secondary colors: orange, green and purple. Colors opposite each other on the wheel are complementary colors.

• Complementary Colors

  Colors which are directly opposite each other on the color wheel, e.g., red and green, blue and orange.

• Composition

  The arrangement of elements, shapes and colors in a work of art.

• Conceptualism

  Conceptualism emerged in the 1960's. Its main claim is that art is a "concept," rather than a material object.

• conservation (preservation)

  In framing, it is the careful maintenance and protection of works of art.In conservation (preservation) framing, using materials and procedures that will have no adverse effects on a piece of artwork and will protect the artwork from external damage.

• Constructivism

  Constructivism describes abstract, geometric works of art which are constructed, or organized, from distinct components and contemporary materials.

• Contrast

  The degree of tonal separation or gradation in the range from black to white.

• Copy

  Refers to any typewritten material, art, photos etc., to be used for the printing process.

• Copyboard

  A board upon which the copy is pasted for the purpose of photographing.

• Copyright

  Exclusive rights to reproduce, sell and distribute a work, prepare derivative works and display the work publicly.

• Crop

  To eliminate a portion of the art or copy as indicated by crop marks.

• Crop Mark

  Markings at edges of original or on guide sheet to indicate the area desired in reproduction with negative or plate trimmed (cropped) at the markings.

• Cubism

  The origins of Cubism have been traced back to 1901. The way Cubists represented objects was considered to be radical. Their subject matter was often highly conventional and usually drawn from the still life tradition.

• Cutter

  Machine for accurately cutting stacks of paper to desired dimensions...can also be used to crease. Also trims out final bound books' top size (soft cover).

• Cyan

  A shade of blue used in the four-color process; it reflects blue and green and absorbs red.

• Dadaism

  Allegedly taken at random from a dictionary, the word "dada" means "hobby-horse" in French. The Dadaists proclaimed that all received moral, political, and aesthetic beliefs had been destroyed by the First World War. They advocated a destructive, irreverent , and liberating approach to art.

• Deckle Edge

  The rough or feathered edge of paper when left untrimmed.

• Deckle Edge

  The feathery edge of a sheet of handmade paper, caused by the deckle or frame which confines the pulp to the mold. Also present on some machine-made papers, caused by the rubber deckle straps at the sides of the paper machine.

• Densitometer

  An optical device used by printers and photographers to measure and control the density of color.

• Density

  The degree of tone, weight of darkness or color within a photo or reproduction; measurable by the densitometer. Reference, densitometer.

• Descender

  A term that describes that portion of lower case letters which extends below the main body of the letter, as in "p".

• Design

  The selection and arrangement of the formal elements in a work of art; the expression of the artist’s conception in terms of a composition.

• Digital Proof

  Color separation data is digitally stored and then exposed to color photographic paper creating a picture of the final product before it is actually printed.

• Dimensional stability

  The qualities of paper to stabilize its original size when undergoing pressure or exposed to moisture.

• Diptych

  A set of two prints making one complete image

• Drop Shadow

  A shadow image placed strategically behind an image to create the affect of the image lifting off the page.

• Duotone

  Color reproduction from monochrome original. Keyplate usually printed in dark color for detail, second plate printed in light flat tints. A two-color halftone reproduction generated from a one-color photo.

• Découpage

  Decoration of a surface by covering it completely with cut out paper forms. The process used in making collages.

• Easel

  A freestanding structure designed to hold an artist’s canvas or panel during painting. Also may be decorative for display.

• Edition

  The total number of copies printed from the same plates or blocks and published about the same time.

• Eggshell Finish

  The finish of paper surface that resembles an eggshell achieved by omitting the calendar process. Reference, calendar rolls.

• Embellish(ing)

  To beautify by ornamentation.

• Emboss(ing)

  An embellishment raised in relief from the surface.

• Embossed

  A method of paper finishing whereby a pattern is pressed into the paper when it is dry.

• Embossing

  To raise in relief a design or letters already printed on card stock or heavy paper by an uninked block or die. In rubber and plastic plate making the process is usually done by heat.

• Enamel

  1) A glossy substance, usually opaque, applied by fusion to the surface or metal, pottery, etc., as an ornament or for protection. 2) Any of various enamel-like varnishes or paints.

• Estimate

  The form used by the printer to calculate the project for the print buyer. This form contains the basic parameters of the project including size, quantity, colors, bleeds, photos etc.

• Estimator

  One who computes or approximates the cost of work to be done on which quotation may be based.

• Font

  The characters which make up a complete typeface and size.

• Fugitive inks

  Colors that lose tone and permanency when exposed to light.

• Ganging

  The bundling of two or more different printing projects on the same sheet of paper.

• Glassine

  A strong transparent paper.

• Hairline register

  Printing registration that lies within the range of plus or minus one half row of dots. It is the thinnest of the standard printers' rules.

• Kerning

  The narrowing of space between two letters so that they become closer and take up less space on the page.

• Keyline

  Lines that are drawn on artwork that indicate the exact placement, shape and size of elements including halftones, illustrations etc.

• Layout

  A rendition that shows the placement of all the elements, roughs, thumbnails etc., of the final printed piece before it goes to print.

• Lithography

  The process of printing that utilizes flat inked surfaces to create the printed images.

• Match Print

  Photographic proof made from all color flats and form composite proof showing color quality as well as accuracy, layout, and imposition before plates are made.

• Midtone Dot

  Commonly taken as the area between highlight and shadow area of a subject's face in halftone image.

• Moire

  An undesirable halftone pattern produced by the incorrect angles of overprinting halftone screens.

• Mottle

  A term used to describe spotty or uneven ink absorption.

• Natural

  A term to describe papers that have a color similar to that of wood; also called cream, off-white or ivory.

• Offset

  The most commonly used printing method, whereby the printed material does not receive the ink directly from the printing plate but from an intermediary cylinder called a blanket which receives the ink from the plate and transfers it to the paper.

• Offset Lithography

  Indirect printing method in which the inked image on the press-plate is first printed onto a rubber blanket, then in turn offsets the inked impression on to the sheet of paper.

• Opacity

  Quality of papers that defines its opaqueness or ability to prevent two-sided printing from showing through.

• Opaque

  A quality of paper that allows relatively little light to pass through.

• Opaque Ink

  Ink that completely covers any ink under itself.

• Point

  A measurement unit equal to 1/72 of an inch. 12 points to a pica, 72 points to an inch.

• Positive

  Film that contains an image with the same tonal values as the original; opposite of a negative.

• Ppi

  Pixels per inch.

• Premium

  Any paper that is considered better than #1 by its manufacturer.

• Press-Proof

  Actual press sheet to show image, tone values and colors as well as imposition of frame or press-plate.

• Primary Colors

  In printing the four primary colors are cyan (blue), magenta (red), yellow and black.

• Printability

  The quality of papers to show reproduced printed images.

• Process Inks

  Printing inks, usually in sets of four colors. The most frequent combination is yellow, magenta, cyan, and black, which are printed, one over another in that order, to obtain a colored print with the desired hues, whites, blacks, and grays.

• Rag paper

  Papers with a complete or partial content of cotton fibers.

• Register Marks

  Any crossmarks or other symbols used on layout to assure proper registration.

• Scaling

  The enlargement or reduction of an image or copy to fit a specific area.

• Score

  Impressions or cuts in flat material to facilitate bending or tearing.

• Stability

  The quality of paper to maintain its original size when it undergoes pressure and moisture changes.

• Step And Repeat

  A process of generating multiple exposures by taking an image and stepping it according to a predetermined layout.

• Stet

  A proofreader's symbol that is usually written in the copy margin, that indicates that the copy, which was marked for correction, should be left as it was.

• Stock

  A term for unprinted paper or other material to be printed.

• Tensile Strength

  A paper's ability to withstand pressure.

• Tooth

  The rough surfaced finish of papers such as vellum or antique.

• Transparent

  Inks that do not block out the colored inks that they print over, but instead blend with them to create intermediate colors.

• Trim Marks

  Marks placed on the sheet to indicate where to cut the page.

• Two-sidedness

  The difference in feel and appearance of either side of a sheet of paper due to the papermaking process having a felt and wire side.

• Up

  A term used to describe how many similar sheets can be produced on a larger sheet; two up, four up, etc.

• Varnish

  A clear shiny ink used to add gloss to printed pieces. The primary component of the ink vehicle. Reference, vehicle.

• Vellum

  A finish of paper that is rough, bulky and has a degree of tooth.

• Watermark

  A translucent logo that is embossed during the papermaking process while the paper slurry is on the dandy roll. Reference, dandy roll