Images reproduced in the digital age
Flatbed printing and silk screening have the capability of producing nearly the same image. To an untrained eye, image reproduction may be insignificant but the details flatbed printers capture far exceed the nuance of the silk screening process. Where silk screening once dominated the image printing market conveyed on posters and cloth, digital flatbed printing enhances color and detail far better than its predecessor.
Silk Screening
Silk screening used in poster production.
The practice of silk screening developed in China and has been around for centuries. Hobbyist and small businesses began making silk screening a commercial endeavor by applying colors of light- red, green and blue -- onto porous products; wood, paper and cloth. With its relatively low start-up cost and flexibility in design structure; silk screening is time consuming; can lead to excessive waste and clean-up; and requires drying time for the ink to adhere to the medium.
Flatbed Printing
Inkjet captures details in reproduction.
Digital flatbed printing opened an entire new field for the print industry; flatbeds use subtractive inks- cyan, magenta, yellow and black- with inkjet technology onto substrates, or mediums that silk screening cannot touch. It also uses digital imaging to create spectacular reproductions of photography, enhanced imaging and murals. The process comes with a cost; flatbeds and their inks are high-end start-up but are highly accurate and dry quickly.
Flatbed Vs. Silk
Measuring and using one process over the other is dependent on several factors but the primary consideration is the end result of your product. Everything for the silk screening process may be collected at a hobby shop, making this method perfect to capture the logo of a local organization and create personalized products on a small scale. Digital flatbed printers have the capability to produce a large quantity of crafted products for wide distribution but printers start at $5000 and range up to $45,000 as of 2010.
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