Separation Software

[MC PRINTING]

I keep hearing people talk about certain software for screen printers. Things such as accurip and something that is a separation software, I am just asking what exactly are these and what do you all prefer to use if you use it at all what would you recommend? Isn't this the same thing as using illustrator or photoshop?

[Sbrem]

I think you should sit and watch a ton of youtube videos to start to get an idea of the basics. To try to explain, there is software for creating art, such as Illustrator and Photoshop (Corel Draw is extremely popular on the PC side). After you create the art, it needs to be able to print out separations. In order to print out separations to an inkjet printer, you need a RIP (Raster Image Processor) to tell the printer how to print the separations. If you are creating a simple 2 color design in say Illustrator, you need to assign "spot colors" to the elements of the art. Let's say an American flag on a white shirt, you need to print red and blue. So, you assign a spot red and spot blue, and go the print dialog, choose the necessary settings to print separations, those files go to the RIP which then prints out the separations from the inkjet printer. (there is a lot of detail missing here, it's just an overview) For the complicated work, like Sim Process, I like to think that you should know how to do this in Photoshop, but it's a steep learning curve, and "separation software" does a lot of the footwork for you; there are few, like AccuRIP and Separation Studio and others, again, look them up on youtube. You have come to the right place for help, a lot of really great printers with a lot of free advice. You have a lot to learn yet, so feel free to ask here...

Steve

Andy caught my error above, I mentioned AccuRIP as separation software, and I meant to say UltraSeps. Thanks Andy

[MC PRINTING]

Thank you Steve for the input, much appreciated  !!!

[JORDANART]

   I've been a screen print artist for over nine years. I use Coreldraw, Illustrator, and Photoshop.
For Simulated Process designs I have always had trouble creating the seps from scratch using Photoshop. About two years ago we bought UltraSeps v2. This program really boosted the quailty of my sim process prints! I highly recommend Ultra Seps for creating Simulated Process prints. You still have to edit the seps by merging colors and adjusting the value using Curves but it has made a world of difference in our production and quality.
   At the beginning of my work week I had some issues with the program booting up and their customer service was very helpful in resolving my problem. They had it corrected with in 30 min of me realizing that I had an issue.
   Steve is right though, youtube is the best resource for gaining knowledge. Other than theshirtboard of course.

[JORDANART]

 I also use T-RIP as my rip software. I like it for the most part but I have seen some great halftones come out of accurip. Anyone else have a Rip software they prefer for their separations?

[Frog]

It should be noted that some folks, like me, have hardly ever needed dedicated separation software. This is not because we are Photoshop wizards, but rather that our work just does not often require it. I rarely see the fancy sophisticated jobs, and when I do, I enlist the help of specialists.
Simple multi color art that comes to me as raster, when needed was easily separated in Photoshop using Color Range and spot color channels.
Vector art almost does itself, especially if they used spot colors rather than the process or RGB.

I suspect that you will need to start at step one and learn the basics first, like "what the heck is this raster and vector stuff"? And, why do I need a rip?
I know the information is out there, and perhaps we will see some suggestions as to where to look.

[Sbrem]

   I've been a screen print artist for over nine years. I use Coreldraw, Illustrator, and Photoshop.
For Simulated Process designs I have always had trouble creating the seps from scratch using Photoshop. About two years ago we bought UltraSeps v2. This program really boosted the quailty of my sim process prints! I highly recommend Ultra Seps for creating Simulated Process prints. You still have to edit the seps by merging colors and adjusting the value using Curves but it has made a world of difference in our production and quality.
   At the beginning of my work week I had some issues with the program booting up and their customer service was very helpful in resolving my problem. They had it corrected with in 30 min of me realizing that I had an issue.
   Steve is right though, youtube is the best resource for gaining knowledge. Other than theshirtboard of course.

Do be careful with the vids; there are a few well meaning people dispensing questionable knowledge, but a lot of very helpful stuff too.

Steve

[MC PRINTING]

Thank you to all of you guys for the input that has been very helpful. I will be watching YouTube videos on my downtime

Michael

[Maff]

Rip's and Separation Software are really helpful, but you can print films and separate artwork manually without extra software.  It all really depends on what type of artwork you are printing, what level of precision and accuracy you want to be printing, how much free time you have and also your skill level as a graphic designer.  There are lots of other variables that will also take effect like emulsion type, exposure light source, mesh, etc. and that's not even getting onto press yet... You can tweak the settings of most Inkjet printers to get decently opaque films (using good Inkjet film media). You can learn manual ways to separate raster and vector artwork.  You can manually convert grayscale to bitmap halftones. I did it this way for many years.

Now with all that said, 2 years ago I got UltraSeps and last year I got Accurip and have been thoroughly enjoying the increased efficiency, precision and control ever since and wouldn't ever want to go back.   

[MC PRINTING]

After reading all of your posts and information and replies that you all have sent to me I really do appreciate your time. So moving forward what would you recommend or who do you recommend to learn how to do better graphic design on illustrator and Photoshop? Any online learning specifically for screen printing graphic design, or institutions?

Michael

[Sbrem]

Great Dane Graphics has good books about Illustrator, Photoshop, and Corel Draw. Scott Fresener also has a series of vids. Mitch Different has a very good Photoshop book, though it's going to seem pretty deep if you're just starting out...

Steve

[screenxpress]

I would trust the UltraSeps Video from Steve over YouTube ones.  At least to start out.

[MC PRINTING]

Do you guys have any links for the videos that you are speaking of? Thank you guys !!!

Michael

[Frog]

Do you guys have any links for the videos that you are speaking of? Thank you guys !!!

Michael

Google is your friend. There is a video on the Ultra Seps website

[Prince Art]

After reading all of your posts and information and replies that you all have sent to me I really do appreciate your time. So moving forward what would you recommend or who do you recommend to learn how to do better graphic design on illustrator and Photoshop? Any online learning specifically for screen printing graphic design, or institutions?

Michael

After starting my biz with Corel, I took a couple of classes at the local community college, one for Photoshop, one for Illustrator. Even though it wasn't specific to printing, learning my way around those programs was one of the best moves I've made. (Bonus: I got the student discount when I bought them.) These were summer classes, so I jammed them out in a matter of a few weeks. (Lotta late nights, but I got it out of the way.) I actually did a customer order in Illustrator & also turned it in for an assignment before the class was done - that's how fast I was able to put it to use, and then never stopped. And that experience has made online tutorials pretty easy to understand.

If you plan on doing any original design, and don't have a design background, for the love of all things aesthetically pleasing, get a couple of good reference books on design principles. Nice, hoity-toity, upscale design books. Something to get you grounded in what makes design look good & why. Even if you don't read them cover to cover, get the ideas down, and get familiar with what good "design" looks like. This will also help you communicate with good professional designers, too. Some customers will never care about anything more than Arial Bold, their phone number, and clip art of a tractor, and they won't notice that the color choices make it unreadable from 10 feet away. But many customers will be impressed if you can offer intelligent suggestions to improve the look of the product they're paying good money for!