If you have done any printing on press, than you may have heard the term dot gain bandied about. Or, if you haven’t heard it from your printer, then you may have seen it as an option in In Design, Photoshop or some other design related software. At first glance you might think dot gain is a good thing. More dots, better resolution, Yeah, I want to gain some dots. That assumption, however, would be way wrong.
The truth is, dot gain is a spreading effect for a printed dot. Remember putting your felt tip pen on a piece of blotting paper and watching the ink spread? That’s the effect we are talking about. And what that leaves you with is a bunch of blurry and ugly dots. Not the kind of thing you want when you are prepping your business’s pamphlet or business – no you want clean crisp photos and graphics, which means you want to limit dot gain.
Essentially dot gain can effect several aspects of a print job, including:
• Loss of detail in separations and halftones
• Colors shift in separations
• Screen tints print too dark
• Colors don’t match the swatch book
So how do you deal with it? Well, the good part for designers and creators is that your printer should take care of this issue for you. A good printer, which we certainly think we are, will have all kinds of ways of dealing with dot gain, and a pre-press department will know what they need to do for their machines and equipment. In contemporary printing practices there are so many ways to control for dot gain that it isn’t something you should ever need to worry about.
That said its always good to know about one of the print demons that may rear their heads. Here are a three things to know:
1.Types of Dot Gain
There are basically two types of dot gain, optical and mechanical. Mechanical comes from the presses, and there are all kinds of factors that play a role. Each machine, and each printing method has its own rules and quirks when it comes to dot gain. The second type of dot gain is known as optical dot gain. This is caused by how the dot appears to the eye on the page. Optical dot gain is effected by the printing method, paper, inks, lighting and no doubt the shape of your eyeball. So there is a more subjective aspect to optical dot gain, simply because it may be more noticeable to some then others.
2. Paper
One of the major factors in determining dot gain on a given project is the paper. Different papers absorb and hold ink differently which directly affects how and when it occurs. The answer here is to talk with your printer early and often about whether or not they anticipate any problems with a chosen paper.
3. Pre-Press
Dot tone can be controlled best during the preparation of files. If you or your printer anticipate an issue, than leave sensitive files in their most editable formats such as native photoshop or similar files. A pre-press staff person will be able to adjust the halftones, quartertones, midtones and even three-quarter-tones (that’s a lot of tones!) in order to adjust your files for the best printing possible.
Those are a few things to know about dot gain and how it may affect a printing job. Again though, its always best to consult with your printer and let them lead the way because they know their equipment better than anyone else. If problems arise I’m sure they will let you know. If you are in the Bucks or Montgomery county areas and have any questions about this or need help printing a new project for your business, we welcome you to stop by our shop. We are always willing to help you get the best printing possible.
