Design for Print: Stand Out with Specialty Printing Techniques

Hello! My name is Ross Moody (owner of 55 Hi's) and I am excited to welcome you to my Skillshare class “Design for Print” where we will be exploring printing and finishing techniques available to add visual impact to your print designs.

We're going to be creating a business card where traditionally speaking, specialty techniques can really help your brand look professional and stand out in a sea of inkjet blandness.

What You'll Learn

• Print Methods. We will cover everything from Letterpress to Offset printing methods and the pros and cons of what each method brings.
• Specialty Techniques. This is where the magic happens. Here we will learn all the specialty printing techniques you can utilize in your project to help add some visual impact. We will also be covering an introduction to paper as well as a section on some money saving tips you can use while setting up your files.
• Concepting. Here we will get started creating our business card and I will cover my normal workflow for sketching out ideas while keeping printing techniques and budget in mind. I will also elaborate on my process for generating ideas and a little of how I work.
• Design. You’ll learn how to bring your ideas to the computer and how versatile printing techniques are in the production of your design.
• Pre-Press. You’ll learn an introduction to prepressing your files for print and some common standards for communicating with a printer. There will also be a large resources section for further investigation.

What You'll Make

I'll walk you through my typical workflow from concept to creation where I'll introduce some techniques I use to generate ideas and we'll will finish with some standard procedures for prepping files for print when working with a specialty printer as well as a collection of resources you can use for further investigation.

Also, since it's a recurring problem I've faced for most of my career so far, I'm going to be placing an emphasis throughout the course on working within a budget for yourself or clients. I'll introduce a few ways you can use some printing tricks to get the most bang for your buck while setting up your jobs.

• Deliverable. You'll design a unique business card that will be ready to send to printers.
• Brief. Will you design a business card for yourself, a brand, or a client? How will your design visually communicate the services provided? What type of print method, paper stock, ink, and card shape will you use? Which printer will best suit the craft and budget of your final product?
• Collaboration. Ask your fellow classmates for their feedback. Trade card concepts, or design a card for each others' brand.  
• Specs. Your final product will be an Adobe Illustrator (or Photoshop) file of your card design complete with production notes for your printer.

• 4 Color vs. Spot Color Printing
• Letterpress & Silkscreen Printing
• Offset & Digital Printing
• Paper & Printing Materials
• Specialty Techniques I
• Specialty Techniques II
• Budget Minded Production Tips
• Think Outside the Box
• Refine Your Sketch
• From Paper To Computer
• Pre-Press Introduction
• More Design Classes on Skillshare