Paper sizes used for envelopes, designed to take A size paper.

Finished artwork that is ready, without further artwork preparation, to be photographed.

A thin woodfree or part mechanical paper coated on one side with colouring agent of carbon. It is transferred to a sheet of paper underneath when pressure is applied.

Slightly rough coated or uncoated paper.

A registered trade mark of Agfa. An accurate colour proof that is made from imaged film using a powder instead of ink.

Letters which stand for Cyan, Magenta, Yellow and Black (K). K is used for black to eliminate confusion with blue. Full colour printed images are made up of these component colours.

Material coated on one or both sides with a mixture of china clay and latex to fill up surface pits and improve the printing surface. A variety of coating methods exists including roll coating, blade coating, air-knife coating and brush coating, or combinations of these types.

A special water based coating which is applied to printed matter to protect literature from ink smudging or finger marking or to enhance appearance. The main types are sealer, gloss, matt and silk. Coatings are commonly used on matt or silk coated paper as these types are more prone to smudging than gloss coated paper. The main difference between a varnish and a coating is that coatings are faster drying and therefore jobs can be turned around quicker. They tend to be more scuff resistant than varnishes and there is also less risk of yellowing paper. However, oil based varnishes are better if specific areas of a document need to be coated. (spot varnish).

Specifications on a piece of artwork to a printer, showing the required colours for the item to be printed.

Division of colour into basic elements eg CMYK or flat pantone by a process of scanning or page make-up from a computer. Separate printing plates are needed for each colour.

Equipment which converts film to printing plates.

An indentation made in thick paper to prevent cracking.

Small lines that show the document edge essential for register and trim.

A shade of blue used in four-colour printing.