A Comparison of Electronic Prepress Techniques: Water Based vs UV Ink, Round vs Elliptical Dot Shapes, Three Press Speeds

The purpose of this experiment was to test electronic prepress techniques as they interact with the flexographic printing process. Adobe Photoshop and Aldus FreeHand were used to create graduated and radial fills. Aldus FreeHand was also used to create a screen tint chart. This chart was used to measure dot gain and print sharpness. Images created in Photoshop were imported into FreeHand to create a master target. The target was output at 133 lpi at both round and elliptical dot shapes. The press test was conducted using water-based and UV inks at three different press speeds.