What is the difference between offset and digital printing?
Offset printing is a widely used printing technique where the inked image is transferred (or "offset") from a plate first to a rubber blanket, then to the printing surface. Based on the repulsion of oil and water, paper obtains ink from ink rollers, while the non-printing area attracts a film of water, keeping the nonprinting areas ink-free.

Digital printing is a widely used, plate-less system that involves the reproduction of digital images on a physical surface, like a copier. Each cycle of the printer transfers a fresh image – same or different – to the substrate.

How do I choose between offset and digital printing for my project?
If you have a very short run project, i.e. a handful of specialty posters, digital printing is a more affordable, effective option. Because digital printing does not require plates, initial set-up costs are much lower. This is especially the case when your short run project involves 4 or more colors. In addition, digital printing makes it possible to print variable information from print to print, which conventional printing cannot do.

For other projects, offset printing provides many distinct advantages, including:

• Consistent high image quality on short and long run projects
• Usability on a wide range of printing surfaces in addition to smooth paper (e.g., wood, cloth, metal, leather, rough paper)
• Quite simply, the beauty of ink on paper

What is the difference between process and Pantone colors?
Process color is a common shortened form of the term "four-color printing process." Process color (and similar terms) refers both to a method of reproducing colored images on printing presses and to the specific ink colors used. Other ways of referring to this printing process include "four color," "CMYK," "full process" and "full color."

The four-color printing process is based on mixing pigments of the four following colors in order to make other colors: cyan, magenta, and yellow, plus black (abbreviated as "K" for "key"). Using black ink provides shadow detail and reduces the amount of the primary colors needed to print dark hues.

Full-color printing relies on qualities of color mixing and human color perception. It is the dominant method of printing that is capable of reproducing a full range of color, required for reproducing color photographs in newspapers, books and magazines.

Pantone, or PMS, colors

What are soy-based inks and why does Polyprintdesign use them?
Soy-based inks are significantly less toxic than the more commonly used oil-based inks. As a result, the final printed product is more environmentally sound, it is less harmful to the manufacturer, helps minimize air-quality issues in the pressroom, and the waste from cleaning the presses is less harmful to the environment.

What should I know when asking for a printing estimate?
We express ink coverage or coloration on paper like a fraction. For example, for a job that is printing black on both sides with no other color, we would write 1/1 black. Likewise, if the job were black and 1 color, it would be written as 2/2.

Other considerations such as how heavy the coverage is, whether there are photos, and if the artwork bleeds off the page should always be determined prior to pricing a job.