By Ryan Radomski Aaron Carr

There are many ways that print techniques are used. They were used from the early 1700s. Here are the different types of print technique:

This is an intaglio printmaking technique, which is a variety of the technique of etching. An inked plate is passed through a printing press with a sheet of paper resulting in a transfer of the ink to the paper. Acid is used to make marks in the metal plate. Example; The majority of graphic work by the Spanish artist Goya was done using this technique (1746-1828).

Printing using an unlinked plate to produce the subtle embossed texture of a white-on-white image, highlighted by the shadow of the relief image on the unlinked Paper. This technique is used in many Japanese prints.

Printing technique in which proofs are pulled back from a block on which the artwork or design is built up like a collage, creating a relief.

An intaglio printing technique. An image is cut into a plate or matrix with a hard-pointed needle of sharp metal or diamond point. Acetate and zinc are commonly used as plates. Drypoint is similar to drawing, just that the pencil is substituted with a metal or diamond point needle.
Here is an example of an artist using drypoint. Lesser Ury, Woman in cafe. (1861-1931

P rinting technique in which an intaglio image is produced by cutting a metal plate or box directly with a sharp engraving tool. The incised lines are linked and printed with the heavy pressure.

Printing technique in which a metal plate is first covered with an acid-resistant Material, then worked with an etching needle to create an intaglio image. The exposed metal is eaten away in an acid bath, creating depressed lines that are later inked for printing. This technique was thought to have been developed by Daniel Hopfer (1493-1536). Etching surpassed engraving as the most popular graphic art during the active years of Rembrandt and Hercules Segher in the 17th century, and it remains one of the most versatile and subtle printing techniques today.

A computerized reproduction technique in which the image and topology are generated from a digital file and printed by a special ink jet printer, using ink, acrylic or oil paints. Giclee printing offers one of the highest degree of accuracy and richness of color available in any reproduction techniques.

Lithography is a printing technique process which uses a smooth stone or metal surface Lithos means stone. It was invented in 1798. It is mostly used to print text or images onto paper, although other materials can be used. In modern lithography the stone is replaced by a flexible aluminium plate. The image is etched into a coat of wax or polymer, unlike intaglio where it is etched directly into the metal. Lithography was invented in 1798 in Solnhofen, Germany by Alois Senefelder. The early history of lithography is dominated by great French artists such as Daumier and Delacroix, and later by Degas, Toulouse-Lautrec, Picasso, Braque and Miro.

The process starts with drawing the image on the stone by using a greasy black lithographic pencil. These usually take three to twelve days, depending on the size and complexity of the image. The main problem is that mistakes cannot be erased. Small corrections can be made with a sharp knife, but major corrections are needed, it is necessary to start again on a new stone.

Mezzotint is a reverse engraving process used on a copper or steel plate to produce designs in relief with effects of light and shadow. The surface of a master plate is roughened with a tool called a rocker so that if inked, it will print solid black. The areas to be white or gray in the print are rubbed down so as not to take ink. It was widely used in the 18th and 19th centuries to remake portraits and other paintings, but became unused with the introduction of photoengraving.

Monotype is a one of a kind print made by painting on a sheet of metal or glass and transferring the still wet painting to a sheet of paper by hand or with an etching press. If enough paint remains on the master plate, additional prints can be made, however, the reprint will have substantial variations from the original image. Monotype printing is not a multiple-replica process since each print is unique.

A printing technique that makes use of a squeegee to force ink directly onto a piece of paper or canvas through a stencil creating an image on a screen of silk or other fine fabric with an ink that wont soak through. Serigraphy differs from most other printing in that its colour areas are paint films rather than printing - ink stains.

Silk-screening, which is also referred to as serigraphy or screen printing, is a centuries old process that started in China, It is a refined version of a hand drawn process. The image is divided as it were, by a colour, with a screen in order to each shade of ink that will appear on the final product like paper, canvas, fabric, etc. The ink is applied to a screen, transferring to the paper only through the areas set out. A separate screen must be created for each colour. It can take between 80 to 100 screens to create a serigraph. The elements are hand-drawn onto mylar and photographically exposed onto each screen. Each edition takes approximately eight weeks to complete and four to five people work on the several stages of the process, and 80 to 90 percent of the production time is devoted to making colour separations and the screens.

The print (or lithograph) is sprayed or handcoated with a chemical compound. When it dries, the print is covered with another chemical solution that splits the paper from the ink. The removal of the paper and how carefully the remaining paper is taken of can affect how the finish product will look. Once the paper is gone, whats left resembles a thin slice of Jell-O.

Mechanical
Printing Techniques

 Photocopying is where you can copy some work that you have already done or maybe an item or a picture that you need two of they use xerographic technology to work
Pros you can get a paper copy of all work done on a paper. It is also cheap. Easy to use Cons you can only copy stuff from one view that the item is laying face down

 A laser printer has the ability to produce high quality images and text on to plain paper these use the Xerographic technology as well like photocopiers, these use a laser beam to do the graphics Pros easy to use, produces good work, it has a laser beam. Cons if breaks may be hard to fix, costly

 A inkjet printer is where, when you print stuff out, the machine drops little droplets of ink onto the paper to produce a digital image Pros easy to use, makes a good image, most people have one Cons costs a lot, can get messy, may smudge

 Desktop publishing is a more complex and professional look it makes digital file for text and images so they can be used for the web slide shows commercials and newsletters etc. Pros makes things look more professional and detailed. Cons harder to use to standard word documents.

Digital Screen Printing

Digital screen printing uses elements from inkjet or laser printers to produce work that has been done from desktop publishing and it has variable data technique and can can easily suit for print plates and on demand prints. Pros good for urgent jobs, high quality prints, able to change image last minute, very efficient Cons depending on what print may be more costly.