Halftone Help?

Hey ladies, I want to see if anyone has had some good success working with screens or halftones. I wrote up a blog post specifically for this with my different experiments, but I haven’t had too much success. Would you be willing to share any experience you have with halftones?

To see lots of pictures and see what I mean look here (too much effort to try and re-upload all these images):

http://pantherapress.wordpress.com/2014/07/02/halftones/

Basically, the main problem is getting contrast between areas. All were plates made by Boxcar with the recommended 100 LPI. Any help would be amazing! Also if you would share visuals of what you did successfully that would be awesome too! 

 

Are you asking about multiple colors and halftones or single colors and halftones? 

I just took a letterpress intensive last week and we talked some about halftone printing; I can always send my professor an email if you’d like. He’s got some experience with halftones and letterpress, even showing us a 4-color postcard he printed for an event. It was nice.

When you start adding multiple colors and using halftones, you have to rotate the angles of each subsequent color halftone in order to prevent a moire pattern. I believe the usual rotations used my silkscreen printers can apply to letterpress.

100LPI may also be “too fine,” even if it’s recommended. I believe 80-85LPI may produce a pretty decent, consistent result, but that may depend on what kind of plates you’re printing with.

Anyway, let me know what your more specific questions are and if no one else chimes in here, I’m happy to hit up my instructor at the Book Arts Center here in C’ville and see what answers I can get for you. (Hello, fellow Virginian! 🙂 )

Thanks for the input! I’m more curious than anything. I’m going to try some more experiments and I’ll get back with any questions should I discover anything new. 

How’s your experimenting going? 

No news yet, I still need to order plates to test, I want to try some different linescreen levels. I will update with a new photo filled blogpost and mention it here when I get the chance though!

Does anyone know of a class that teaches the halftone technique?

When I’ve sent out files for film to make photopolymer plates I instruct the output bureau the line screen needed. There are tutorials on converting image files in Photoshop to halftones.

Hey all,

I updated the blog and did some new experiments with more success, you can read my findings there. 

Casey – Thank you, however I don’t have an issue making the screens, the plate makers do that for me and even if I wanted to I could use Vectoraster or just photoshop it into a bitmap. It is more in choosing the proper settings to get a nice range of tones or better yet a solid looking two tone effect. 

http://pantherapress.wordpress.com/2014/07/02/halftones/

This is really great, Danielle. Thank you so much for sharing! I now really want to pick up a halftone test plate myself and see what different results I get on my presses. The links on your blog post were also really inspiring. 

I went to the website of Concord Engraving and it said they’re under construction? Is their website just not … updated? 

Yeah their website is down, they are in the process of re-doing it, you can call though or email. They do any type of photopolymer plate for 50 cents a square inch. Its a nice deal. 

Um, yeah. That’s a great deal, indeed. Thanks for sharing their name! I’m totally going to get in touch now.

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