We've gotten some pretty good feedback on our initial Tutorial for Silkscreen Printed discs on how to create colour separations, so we have followed up with Tutorial Number Two: Using Less Than 100% Solid Colour.
We find a lot of todays do-it-yourself designers (as well as a good number of professional designers) that we come into contact with aren't experienced in designing for commercial print, and don't realize that designing for multimedia or the internet has a whole different set of rules than commercial print.
For those designers, Silkscreen printing must seem like some sinister plot to drive them mad.
One of the greatest things about designing for computer-screen viewing is "what you see is what you get" (aka: WYSIWYG) ... you get to proof your designs on the very same display device that the finished design will be viewed on (we will conveniently ignore the fact that the colours may look different when viewed on other monitors).
With commercial print, what you see on your monitor may very well NOT be what you get and Silkscreen printing could be the biggest offender. Proof-in-point is when you use less than 100% solid colours in your design but, rather than re-hash it all here in this post, it's better to check out the tutorial which shows images of the difference between what you see on your monitor and what will actually print.
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Monday, June 29, 2009
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
Graphic Design Tutorial - Silkscreen Printing CDs
CD manufacturing, print and packaging involves a lot of technology and complicated equipment, so it does seem kind of unusual that such an ‘old school’ method like Silkscreen Printing is still so viable for CD printing.
At CDwest.ca we offer both CMYK Offset Printing and Silkscreen Printing for our CDs, and there’s no doubt that Silkscreen Printing is still the best choice for *some* types of CD designs. Unfortunately there is an inherent difficulty with using such an old school style of print, in the fact that so very few graphic designers are experienced with it and know (A) what the limitations of Silkscreen Printing CDs are, and (B) how to properly set-up their design files for Silkscreen Printing CDs.
The largest single issue we experience is colour separations… or lack thereof… so we have created a very simple tutorial to get your graphic design started in the right direction.
Additional aspects of graphic design for Silkscreen Printing CDs will be covered in later installments, which will include the use of bitmap images, designing using colours that are less than 100% solid, and specifying the correct colour values for Silkscreen Printing on CDs.
As always, before beginning the graphic design for your CD duplication or CD replication project, follow our artwork specifications and use our design templates - that on its own will help you avoid the most commonly made mistakes!
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At CDwest.ca we offer both CMYK Offset Printing and Silkscreen Printing for our CDs, and there’s no doubt that Silkscreen Printing is still the best choice for *some* types of CD designs. Unfortunately there is an inherent difficulty with using such an old school style of print, in the fact that so very few graphic designers are experienced with it and know (A) what the limitations of Silkscreen Printing CDs are, and (B) how to properly set-up their design files for Silkscreen Printing CDs.
The largest single issue we experience is colour separations… or lack thereof… so we have created a very simple tutorial to get your graphic design started in the right direction.
Additional aspects of graphic design for Silkscreen Printing CDs will be covered in later installments, which will include the use of bitmap images, designing using colours that are less than 100% solid, and specifying the correct colour values for Silkscreen Printing on CDs.
As always, before beginning the graphic design for your CD duplication or CD replication project, follow our artwork specifications and use our design templates - that on its own will help you avoid the most commonly made mistakes!
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Friday, June 12, 2009
Graphic Design for CD Packaging
Making a good first impression is always important, and it's no different for your CD or DVD project. Long before your disc ever gets played it actually gets judged on the quality and design of the CD packaging, so a professional image is very important.
If you need assistance with graphic design for your discs and CD packaging the professionals at CDwest.ca can help you.
- Standard Design Services: In many instances, our clients already know what they want their disc and packaging graphics to look like, but they don't have the ability of experience to create the design to commercial printing standards. Our answer is this: Send us your design idea, images, graphics, text and then we take it from there. Proofs are provided for your review so we can make sure you're happy with the work that's taking place. Price List for "Standard Design Services" [.PDF format]
- Concept & Design Services: If you don't know what you want your disc and CD packaging or DVD packaging graphics to look like, we can still help you. Our designers can consult with you and then the vision for the graphic design can be decided upon collaboratively with you. Our standard rate is $60 per hour.
- Content Creation: Sometimes clients don't have suitable imagery or copy for their discs and CD packaging or DVD packaging designs, but at Precision Disc we can help you with content creation and copy writing as well. Our standard rate is $60 per hour. Please contact us to discuss your specific needs.
Happy Graphic Design Clients
It's always nice to be complemented on a job well done. Here are a few recent comments from clients who came to us for graphic design assistance on their discs and CD packaging or DVD packaging:
"Just a note to thank you very much for the great job you did on the discs and sleeves! I am more than pleased with all your work! Thanks again!" - Robert K.
"Wowee! You're a damn genius! I love, love, love it!" - Troy K.
"I really appreciate the great job you have done." - Rick V.
"Everything looks good. It's a go on all fronts...Great Job." - Bill W.
"We are good to go - looks fantastic!" - Norine B.
"We think your artwork is FABULOUS. Better than we hoped for!" - Robert R.
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
New Music Download Service Just Launched!
CDwest.ca (and our parent company Precision Disc) is very pleased to announce our new Music Download Service that's available to all of our clients! We've just launched a new brand called BigBangTunes.com and we're excited to enter into the world of pay-per-download music distribution!
What's The "Big" Deal?
The "big" deal about our service is that your tunes are distributed to over 100 of the industry-leading music download services... this includes the heavyweights such as iTunes, Amazon, Rhapsody, Napster, MySpace, Puretracks and dozens more. In addition, there are some really great features that we don't see being offered by anyone else - like selling your music downloads right from your own website. With BigBangTunes.com you can!
You Can Sign Up For Free!
When you order at least 100 packaged CDs from CDwest.ca we will get you started by waiving the $35 set-up fee for the basic service which is called our "BIG Distribution" package. There are no monthly subscription fees, so if you don't end up selling any downloads it won't cost you any money.
Questions? Comments? Check out the website or give us a shout and we'd be happy to help!
What's The "Big" Deal?
The "big" deal about our service is that your tunes are distributed to over 100 of the industry-leading music download services... this includes the heavyweights such as iTunes, Amazon, Rhapsody, Napster, MySpace, Puretracks and dozens more. In addition, there are some really great features that we don't see being offered by anyone else - like selling your music downloads right from your own website. With BigBangTunes.com you can!
You Can Sign Up For Free!
When you order at least 100 packaged CDs from CDwest.ca we will get you started by waiving the $35 set-up fee for the basic service which is called our "BIG Distribution" package. There are no monthly subscription fees, so if you don't end up selling any downloads it won't cost you any money.
Questions? Comments? Check out the website or give us a shout and we'd be happy to help!
Saturday, April 18, 2009
CD duplication - Summer Special Pricing
With all the economic doom and gloom these days it feels good to offer up some economic good news! Namely, all of our CD duplication in eco-packaging has just been reduced in price.
We're calling it "Summer Special Pricing"... even though it's no quite summer yet!
Our short-run CD duplication in eco-packaging begins at a quantity of just 100 units, while most competitors still have a minimum order requirement of 500 or 1,000 units. Being able to order in such low quantities is good news and makes good economic sense for clients who simply don't need (or cannot afford) larger quantities.
Now, because of such eco-friendly choices, you don't have to commit to buying a quantity of product that you don't need and cannot use. Environmentally-speaking this is a very good thing as it will produce a lot less waste - as the best way to keep un-wanted and unused product from ending up in the land-fill is to only produce as much as people need and can use.
Our "Summer Special Pricing" on short-run CD duplication in eco-packaging products includes all of the following:
1. CS100 CD sleeve - simple pocket sleeve.
2. CS200 CD jacket - a CD jacket that folds in half and features one closed pocket.
3. CS1000 CD digipak - the standard CD digipak that folds in half.
4. CS1020 CD digipak - a two-fold version with the tray being on the center or right panel.
Our package pricing includes CD duplication, full colour inkjet print, colour printed eco-packaging, all set-ups, one round of PDF proofs, barcode and wrap. You can get an instant on-line quote for all of these products from our website.
If you prefer CD replication, please know that we offer CD replication for all of our packaged products (whether they are in CD cases, digipak or eco-sleeves) at a quantity of just 300 units. You can also get an instant on-line quote for all of these product from our website.
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We're calling it "Summer Special Pricing"... even though it's no quite summer yet!
Our short-run CD duplication in eco-packaging begins at a quantity of just 100 units, while most competitors still have a minimum order requirement of 500 or 1,000 units. Being able to order in such low quantities is good news and makes good economic sense for clients who simply don't need (or cannot afford) larger quantities.
Now, because of such eco-friendly choices, you don't have to commit to buying a quantity of product that you don't need and cannot use. Environmentally-speaking this is a very good thing as it will produce a lot less waste - as the best way to keep un-wanted and unused product from ending up in the land-fill is to only produce as much as people need and can use.
Our "Summer Special Pricing" on short-run CD duplication in eco-packaging products includes all of the following:
1. CS100 CD sleeve - simple pocket sleeve.
2. CS200 CD jacket - a CD jacket that folds in half and features one closed pocket.
3. CS1000 CD digipak - the standard CD digipak that folds in half.
4. CS1020 CD digipak - a two-fold version with the tray being on the center or right panel.
Our package pricing includes CD duplication, full colour inkjet print, colour printed eco-packaging, all set-ups, one round of PDF proofs, barcode and wrap. You can get an instant on-line quote for all of these products from our website.
If you prefer CD replication, please know that we offer CD replication for all of our packaged products (whether they are in CD cases, digipak or eco-sleeves) at a quantity of just 300 units. You can also get an instant on-line quote for all of these product from our website.
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Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Short-Run CD Digipak - Summer Special Pricing!
Ahhh... summer is coming so what better reason to offer up some great pricing on short-run CD Digipak! Here are the details:
Duplicated CDR media with full colour inkjet print.
*CD style digipak with clear or black tray, colour printed (4/0).
All set-ups, assembly, wrap and barcode included.
Pre-press and one round of PDF proofs included.
Quantity of 100: $3.99 each
Quantity of 200: $3.50 each
*Style CS1000 and CS1020 are the styles available.
Applicable tax extra. Shipping extra.
Standard turn-time approx 7-10 days after proof approvals.
CD Digipak is definitely the #1 choice for independent musicians, bands and performing artists who want to boost their image up a notch or two. With its contemporary and more organic visual appearance than traditional plastic cases, CD Digipak will create some visual separation between your CD and all of those in plastic jewel cases. Our Digipak also scores points on an environmentally-friendly level as it's a completely recyclable package. Printed on FSC certified boardstock, printed on waterless printing technology and featuring a completely recyclable tray; our CD Digipak makes a great eco-friendly product you can be proud of.
Looking for more than 200 units? No problem! We provide replicated discs in CD Digipak starting at just 300 units.
Questions? Comments? Give us a shout!
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Duplicated CDR media with full colour inkjet print.
*CD style digipak with clear or black tray, colour printed (4/0).
All set-ups, assembly, wrap and barcode included.
Pre-press and one round of PDF proofs included.
Quantity of 100: $3.99 each
Quantity of 200: $3.50 each
*Style CS1000 and CS1020 are the styles available.
Applicable tax extra. Shipping extra.
Standard turn-time approx 7-10 days after proof approvals.
CD Digipak is definitely the #1 choice for independent musicians, bands and performing artists who want to boost their image up a notch or two. With its contemporary and more organic visual appearance than traditional plastic cases, CD Digipak will create some visual separation between your CD and all of those in plastic jewel cases. Our Digipak also scores points on an environmentally-friendly level as it's a completely recyclable package. Printed on FSC certified boardstock, printed on waterless printing technology and featuring a completely recyclable tray; our CD Digipak makes a great eco-friendly product you can be proud of.
Looking for more than 200 units? No problem! We provide replicated discs in CD Digipak starting at just 300 units.
Questions? Comments? Give us a shout!
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Sunday, April 12, 2009
DVD duplication - Indie-Musicians Are Missing Out!
At the present time very few of our independent-music clients have pushed into the realm of DVD duplication as to release live performance footage. Some very talented performers come to us for CD work so it seems a shame that the idea of live performances aren't being promoted in this fashion.
When you think about it, some very creative things could be done with a hand-held video camera, a basic video editing program (hey... almost every computer's operating system includes a video editing program these days), a couple of hours of time at the computer, and some short-run DVD duplication.
A while back I did that very thing for a friend of mine who sent me a bunch of video he had taken at 2 or 3 different performances. As you can imagine, the video quality was pretty good but the sound quality was just awful (those built-in microphones in hand-held video cameras cannot handle the volume levels at a live show very well) so I ended up using a song from his CD as the audio track and cut video on-top of it.
It wasn't possible to synch up the audio with the video performance (do you notice how a lot of bands always play the songs faster at a show?) so I grabbed a lot of short clips from the footage of the different shows and purposely selected anything that looked energetic, because energetic images would tie-in well with the energy of the song I chose.
The end result was pretty good (if I must say so myself). He put it on his website and got lots of favorable comments including some who said they wanted to check out an upcoming gig because (from the video) it looked like he put on an entertaining and energetic performance.
In addition to putting it on his website we also got some DVD duplication of the video done so he could include them as a bonus in his CDs. Because DVD duplication is cost-effective and quick for small runs of DVDs he still gets DVDs done from time to time and uses them for promotional and marketing purposes, sells them at shows and even gives them away to fans via his website.
I think indie-artists could get some good mileage out of DVD duplication. Nothing ventured, nothing gained!!
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When you think about it, some very creative things could be done with a hand-held video camera, a basic video editing program (hey... almost every computer's operating system includes a video editing program these days), a couple of hours of time at the computer, and some short-run DVD duplication.
A while back I did that very thing for a friend of mine who sent me a bunch of video he had taken at 2 or 3 different performances. As you can imagine, the video quality was pretty good but the sound quality was just awful (those built-in microphones in hand-held video cameras cannot handle the volume levels at a live show very well) so I ended up using a song from his CD as the audio track and cut video on-top of it.
It wasn't possible to synch up the audio with the video performance (do you notice how a lot of bands always play the songs faster at a show?) so I grabbed a lot of short clips from the footage of the different shows and purposely selected anything that looked energetic, because energetic images would tie-in well with the energy of the song I chose.
The end result was pretty good (if I must say so myself). He put it on his website and got lots of favorable comments including some who said they wanted to check out an upcoming gig because (from the video) it looked like he put on an entertaining and energetic performance.
In addition to putting it on his website we also got some DVD duplication of the video done so he could include them as a bonus in his CDs. Because DVD duplication is cost-effective and quick for small runs of DVDs he still gets DVDs done from time to time and uses them for promotional and marketing purposes, sells them at shows and even gives them away to fans via his website.
I think indie-artists could get some good mileage out of DVD duplication. Nothing ventured, nothing gained!!
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