METALLIC INK Part 2

THERE ARE OPTIONS: Laying down a flat metallic ink (or even a metallic halftone) and then dry-trapping other non-metallic colors on top of it is not your only option. Ink manufacturers and printers are now mixing quantities of metallic inks directly into spot colors, or even into process colors, to create new and different hues. In fact, any color can be transformed into a metallic by adding metallic paste to it. (The color will just no longer be the same hue as the original PMS or process ink.)

Another option is a process called MetalFx, which first lays down metallic silver and then overprints the metallic with cyan, magenta, yellow, and black inks. This patented process (similar to the dry-trapping noted above, but without the wait) allows the printer to match a wide range of metallic colors due to the transparency of the process inks and the show-through of the metallic ink below. Be aware, however, that this is a proprietary technique for which not all printers have received training.

The good news is that in this operation, the process inks behave like a varnish to protect the metallic ink base and keep it from scuffing. In addition, the final effect is opaque enough not to require two hits of the metallic ink. In fact, the entire process can be completed in one pass on a five-color press.

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*[Steven Waxman is a printing consultant. He teaches corporations how to save money buying printing, sells printing services, and teaches prepress techniques. Steven has been in the industry for twenty-five years, working as a writer, editor, photographer, graphic designer, art director, production manager, and print buyer.]