Archive for August 2008 | Monthly archive page
I read a piece on my Muti rss feed last night called the calm before the storm and I never thought that the message it conveyed, would somehow be a warning to me.
Images of nature’s destructive power was visible in all the areas I’ve traveled today. Rosmead Avenue, the street on my doorstep was filled with debris of broken branches-some piled up on the sides of the road- some still in the road. Along the M5 closer to the William Herbert soccer grounds , fences were pumbled and the golf course flooded beyond recognition. Along De Wet road in Ottery the scenes became worse as images of damaged roofs with missing tiles left a sense of helpessness in the pit of my stomach. The Ottery Hypermarket was cordoned off because a gust of wind ripped apart the barge boards from the entrance overhang which resulted in many people getting injured. The day was filled with wailing sirens from all forms of state services such as police vehicles, fire fighters and disaster management trying to aid the victims of angry mother nature.
Scene at the Ottery Hypermarket.
Many feel that this is just another incident in the world that we live in today and as long as it doesn’t happen to us personally, well……. that its a bullet dodged and no skin off our backs. A close relative of mine was affected when he lost his roof today and I tell you, it is horrible to lose your most valuable form of security in such a freak manner. I haven’t seen anything on the news yet but I know we will hear about people in shacks being displaced by today’s occurrence. The question is how are we going to help? Please give some ideas because South Africans need to stand together in such times and show compassion to those who have been affected.
Question
Which software does one use to prepare artwork for screen printing?
Answer
Different designers will have different opinions but it all comes down to the artwork that you are working with and what kind of results you wish to achieve. This is my black and white version of which software one needs to use when preparing artwork for screen printing.
Shaded/ overlapping colours
Clearly defined lines and colour
Clearly defined lines and colour : Use vector software like Illustrator/ Coreldraw / Freehand to trace/draw images. Follow tutorials on how to trace/ draw using these programs. Vector images can be scaled up or down without any distortion. So you can use the same vector image to print a business card as well as a billboard.
Colours of vector images are easily seperated -eg. the different shades of red and the white flame. Each colour becomes a positive. The print result is crisp and the colours are very accurate
Shaded /Overlapping colours : Use software like Photoshop. Scan/import/open your image in photoshop, convert it to CMYK, check the sizing and send to your printer.
Colours of shaded images/ photos/ scans are divided into process or CMYK positives. You have 4 positives (Cyan, Magenta, Yellow and Black). The print and colour results may vary with manual printing. The image and colour forms as a result of printing CMYK, one colour on top of the other.
It is possible to use both vector and photo images in your design. You will learn from your bureau how to set up your artwork and some of you will learn the hard way. Advice……… work with a bureau or printer that is willing to guide you and also always ask if you are unsure.
Next post: Advice for those who want to single run t shirts from home.
Question
Leoferrago asks:
Hey there.
I’m looking to get some designs printed onto shirts to sell. The designs are just simple, hand-drawn two-color drawings. I have no graphic design know-how, and I’m not sure what all it takes to have my designs cleaned up a little and made t-shirt ready. What I’m wondering is how willing and able are most printers to help customers with this kind of thing (I’m assuming it requires the use of photoshop or illustrator or something along those lines), and is that usually something they charge extra for, or is it usually included in the price of having t-shirts printed?
Thanks
question posed on t shirt forums
Answer
Quick screen printing lesson – Pre-printing process
When making use of a commercial printer your artwork has to be loaded onto a computer- it is then broken down into seperate colours (seperations) using vector or photo/raster software- these seperations are made into positives (printed onto transparency film)- these positives are used to develop the screens- each screen is used to print the colour from which it originated- thus you have broken down the colours and re-assembled it onto the t shirt. Simple!
The fact that you have done the drawings by hand, means that a designer/ dtp operator would need to do the computer input for your illustrations. Unless you are doing a large amount of t shirts, you will probably be charged an hourly rate for their work.
I would suggest that you learn more about the programs that you’ve mentioned. If you are serious about printing your designs and selling them, perhaps you should get trial versions of the various programs and do some tutorials.
I will be elaborating on the various programs in future posts, so watch this space if you would like to learn more.
This post is dedicated to Gerhard Pieterse who is currently locked in a cell at the Canal Walk Shopping Centre. No, he didn’t commit a crime, on the contrary, he is jailed for an inspiring purpose, to raise 1 million Rand for the awareness of Autism. Through the use of freely available online tools, Rafiq, our notorious Web AddiCT, shows how social media can be socially uplifting.
Here’s how you can help:
SMS the word VUKA to 38010. SMS COSTS R10 AND THERE IS NO MONTHLY SUBSCIPTION FEES. That 10 Rand will be going straight to the #jail4bail charity campaign and Autism Western Cape and you will be able to win a Vuka Scuta, R3000 or R2000.
