A step by step process on how film positives for screen printing are made

a-step-by-step-process-on-how-film-positives-for-screen-printing-are-made<p>Creating artwork for a silkscreen print is a digital process (at least nowadays). A graphic artist will create the artwork on a flat canvas in a digital graphics program (Adobe Illustrator or Photoshop are my faves). But silkscreen printing is an analog process! How do we get that digital file into a format that an analog printer can use? Keep reading, and I’ll show you.</p> <h3>Make a “comp”</h3> <p>An artist may “comp” or mock up a rendering of what the flat artwork will look like. In this case, two colors of ink (khaki and orange) are going to be applied to an amber colored bottle. That comp could look something like this:</p> <table cellspacing=0 cellpadding=0 align=center> <tbody> <tr> <td><a href=http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-OP_BxD9dgog/UJMDEleJlDI/AAAAAAAAAsg/ZTcqH7PuuBo/s1600/comp.png><img class=aligncenter src=http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-OP_BxD9dgog/UJMDEleJlDI/AAAAAAAAAsg/ZTcqH7PuuBo/s320/comp.png alt= width=320 height=320 border=0 /></a></td> </tr> <tr> <td style=text-align: center;>A “comp” or mockup (click to enlarge)</td> <td></td> <td></td> </tr> </tbody> </table> <h3>Output to PDF</h3> <p>From here, the comp needs to be prepared so that it can be printed on film positives … a sheet of clear plastic with light-blocking black ink. I would create two separate PDF files that would isolate or separate each color. There are three colors shown–amber, khaki and orange–but only two colors are actually going to be printed: khaki and orange. Here’s what my PDF files would look like:</p> <table cellspacing=0 cellpadding=0 align=center> <tbody> <tr> <td><a href=http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-zJod4G2L-dc/UJMHBaNjKiI/AAAAAAAAAtA/OGVJuVKkrZ0/s1600/color1.png><img class=aligncenter src=http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-zJod4G2L-dc/UJMHBaNjKiI/AAAAAAAAAtA/OGVJuVKkrZ0/s320/color1.png alt= width=320 height=320 border=0 /></a></td> </tr> <tr> <td style=text-align: center;>ORANGE: PDF to be made into the first film.</td> </tr> </tbody> </table> <table cellspacing=0 cellpadding=0 align=center> <tbody> <tr> <td><a href=http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-MolqtCwJhxo/UJMHBwm80aI/AAAAAAAAAtI/ZMOWMpH0GGM/s1600/color2.png><img class=aligncenter src=http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-MolqtCwJhxo/UJMHBwm80aI/AAAAAAAAAtI/ZMOWMpH0GGM/s320/color2.png alt= width=320 height=320 border=0 /></a></td> </tr> <tr> <td style=text-align: center;>KHAKI: PDF to be made into the second film.</td> </tr> </tbody> </table> <p>Notice the registration marks (the cross-hairs) in the corners. These are critical for the printer to know how your colors layer with each other.</p> <h3>Print films from PDFs</h3> <p>You save these as two high resolution PDFs and send them off to be made into film positives by a film positive preparation company.</p> <p>Here’s what your artwork looks like when they’ve been made into films.</p> <table cellspacing=0 cellpadding=0 align=center> <tbody> <tr> <td><a href=https://www.containerandpackaging.com/images/FilmPositives1.png><img class=aligncenter src=https://www.containerandpackaging.com/images/FilmPositives1.png alt= width=320 height=320 border=0 /></a></td> </tr> <tr> <td style=text-align: center;>ORANGE: First color, first film.</td> </tr> </tbody> </table> <table cellspacing=0 cellpadding=0 align=center> <tbody> <tr> <td><a href=https://www.containerandpackaging.com/images/FilmPositives2.png><img class=aligncenter src=https://www.containerandpackaging.com/images/FilmPositives2.png alt= width=320 height=320 border=0 /></a></td> </tr> <tr> <td style=text-align: center;>KHAKI: Second color, second film.</td> </tr> </tbody> </table> <p>When you have both films, you can lay them on top of each other and align the registration marks to see how the colors layer.</p> <table cellspacing=0 cellpadding=0 align=center> <tbody> <tr> <td><a href=https://www.containerandpackaging.com/images/FilmPositives3.png><img class=aligncenter src=https://www.containerandpackaging.com/images/FilmPositives3.png alt= width=320 height=320 border=0 /></a></td> </tr> <tr> <td style=text-align: center;>Both films aligned.</td> </tr> </tbody> </table> <h3>Make screens and print</h3> <p>These films are sent to the bottle printer, who creates screens using these films. Ink is then forced through these screens onto the bottle, first ORANGE, then dried, then KHAKI and then dried. And <i>that</i> is how your artwork become a screen. The end product would look something like this:</p> <table cellspacing=0 cellpadding=0 align=center> <tbody> <tr> <td><a href=http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-n-YdctmFyNo/UJMHDSErMuI/AAAAAAAAAtY/finOstKXYxA/s1600/final.png><img class=aligncenter src=http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-n-YdctmFyNo/UJMHDSErMuI/AAAAAAAAAtY/finOstKXYxA/s320/final.png alt= width=320 height=320 border=0 /></a></td> </tr> <tr> <td style=text-align: center;>Amber bottle with ORANGE and KHAKI printed on it.</td> </tr> </tbody> </table>