ABSTRACT

Relief printing, planographic printing, and intaglio printing are the three traditional ways that ink can be applied to a piece of paper. Each technique has its own unique visual signature, as well as its own inherent expressive limitations in conveying visual information. The first technique is relief printing, and its name perfectly describes how ink is transferred to paper. The second technique is planographic printing. The most recognizable planographic technique is lithography. The final type of printing method, and the one employed in all photogravure processes, is called intaglio printing. In traditional copperplate intaglio printing, aquatint techniques are used to create broad expanses of continuous tone in the resulting print. It might seem that all that would be needed for printing gradations of gray tone would be to change the depth of the etched area for the various gray tones.