Picture printing paper, also known as art paper or picture printing board, is a specially coated paper that is mainly used for high-quality printed products. Picture printing paper is characterised by several special properties that make it ideal for reproducing images and graphics.
The most striking feature of art paper is its coating. This usually consists of a combination of pigments such as kaolin, calcium carbonate or titanium dioxide and binding agents such as latex or starch. The coating can be on one or both sides and gives the paper a smooth and even surface. This coating enables precise colour acceptance and ensures sharp and clear printed images.
Another important characteristic of picture printing paper is the gloss level. A distinction is made between high-gloss (glossy), semi-gloss (semi-gloss or silk) and matt. High-gloss paper reflects the light strongly and makes colours appear particularly strong and rich in contrast. Semi-gloss paper offers a compromise between gloss and legibility, while matt paper has a non-reflective surface and is therefore particularly suitable for texts, as the colours appear less intense.
The weight and thickness of the paper are also important. Picture printing paper is available in different grammages, which are usually between 90 g/m² and 350 g/m². Heavier papers are thicker and stiffer and are therefore particularly suitable for book covers, postcards or high-quality brochures. The dense coating and higher weight also give the paper a high opacity, i.e. it is less translucent and therefore more suitable for double-sided printing.
Thanks to its smooth and even surface, image printing paper can absorb the printing ink precisely, resulting in sharp and clear printed images. It is particularly suitable for offset printing, digital printing and other high-resolution printing processes. The coating prevents the ink from penetrating the paper so that it remains on the surface and ensures high colour intensity and sharpness.
The feel of art paper varies depending on the gloss level. High-gloss papers feel smooth and almost three-dimensional, while matt papers have a more velvety texture. These different textures offer different experiences that can be selected depending on the intended use and personal preferences.
Picture printing paper is used in a wide range of applications. These include high-quality magazines and catalogues, illustrated books and art books, brochures and leaflets, flyers and posters as well as business cards and postcards. Its ability to reproduce colours vividly and accurately makes it the first choice for print products where high image quality is important.
Many manufacturers now also offer environmentally friendly versions of picture printing paper. These are made from recycled material or are produced using sustainable production methods. Such papers often carry environmental certificates such as FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) or PEFC (Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification), which guarantee sustainable forestry and environmentally friendly manufacturing processes.
In summary, image printing papers are special printing papers that are particularly suitable for high-quality print products due to their coated surface and their ability to reproduce colours precisely.
In recent weeks, there have been lengthy discussions on the Fogra digital printing mailing list as to whether a research project should be launched to define standardised tonal value gradations for spot colours. What is this all about? In the field of CMYK and seven-colour printing, the definition of clear, printable and proofable standards is well established and has been tried and tested in practice. If the paper or paper class is known and defined, a measuring standard such as M0/M1/M2 has been established and the content of optical brighteners … read more
From now on you can order proofs for metal decor printing on white sheet metal at proof.de: The ICC profile for Fogra60 is Metal-Printing_MPC1_FOGRA60.icc
Over the last few months, we at Proof.de have been thinking about further improving our already very good colour measurement technology in terms of speed and measurement precision. Relatively quickly it became clear that only two devices would come into question: The KonicaMinolta MYIRO-9, the successor of the former FD-9, or the X-Rite ISIS 2 XL. The starting point: Since we at Proof GmbH have 5 proofing devices, the calibration of targets for profile optimisation is a time-critical undertaking for us. Therefore, we had been looking around for an upgrade of … read more
In recent years, various problems have arisen with our previous proof paper supplier. On the one hand, we sometimes had to wait more than three months for paper deliveries; on the other hand, we sometimes had significant problems with batch-to-batch discrepancies, surface defects and much more. After lengthy deliberations, we decided in December to replace all the paper. We therefore received pallets of new paper at the turn of the year, which we are now gradually incorporating into our production. There will be no hard cut, but the new papers … read more
In the current issue of Fogra News “Fogra Aktuell” Proof GmbH is involved in two places. Firstly, a summary of the Fogra report on our first FOGRA55 certification for seven-colour printing with extended colour space in CMYKOGV appeared. You can also find more information on our FOGRA55 certification on the Fogra website: https://fogra.org/en/press-releases/fogracert-erste-cpc-zertifizierung-fuer-fogra55-cmykogv-330 and on proofing.de: And secondly, there was a report on the completion of the research project for textile digital printing, FOGRA58, in which we were allowed to investigate and test the proof capability of the new textile … read more
This year we once again created proofs for Fogra certification and sent them to Munich-Aschheim for testing. With these proof prints, which we print according to three different proof standards and on three different papers, we point out that we not only deliver excellent proof quality through internal quality controls and checks, but that the quality of our proofs is also measured and confirmed by external experts. We have now had test prints certified by Fogra for the 12th time. We have also been “Spot-cert” certified for the display of … read more
In this short image video we – the Proof GmbH – introduce us and our work. Find out who we are and what drives us. What do you think of our short film?
After Eddy Hagen pointed out in this posts, that there were some major colour deviations between the brand new PANTONE Solid Coated Guide 2023 and the previous version especially for the PANTONE 2635 C, I was curious to lookup the same colours in the new PANTONE Color Bridge Coated Guide of 2023 and compare the colours with the previous version. I measured a dE00 of 8,15 between the two colours that Eddy mentioned, which is really far apart from how accurate PANTONE colours should match between the different PANTONE guides. … read more
Today I received an email in which PANTONE asked how it should orientate its products and services in the future. The users were asked which countries, industries and company sizes they come from, but also what PANTONE products should look like in the future and what customers would be prepared to pay for PANTONE services in the future. Question: How much can PANTONE services cost? PANTONE appears to be orientating itself on the PANTONE Connect prices: All price queries have the lowest price category < $ 7,- / month, i.e. … read more
Peter Jäger is an expert in colour management that reliably works across the boundaries of printers and monitors, web and print – essentially: cross-media.