Real World Print Production with Adobe Creative Suite Applications

Specialty Inks

Metallic and fluorescent inks can add visual interest to a printed piece. Metallic inks, while somewhat expensive, are still less costly than using foil stamping (a special finishing process involving heat, pressure, and thin sheets of metallic foil. See Chapter Three, “Binding and Finishing,” for more information on foil stamping). The problems they pose are once again due to key pigments. Actual aluminum or bronze (zinc/copper) powder provides the basic metallic appearance, while additional pigments introduce other tinges. Metallic inks as accents are not too troublesome but these inks can mottle over large areas. Unlike most inks, metallic inks are almost opaque, which affects trapping and the order in which the ink is printed. ...