You’ve probably heard about ImagePrint R.E.D. by now. It’s a separation software that works with any printer and can streamline your design process. So why do you need it? What is rip software? Let’s dive in.
WHAT IS RIP SOFTWARE?
Maybe the first question that comes to your mind is, “What’s a RIP?” Most screen print designs are one or two colors, or a spot color. In other words, they are created without shading or tonality. A large flat area of one color printed the same way across.
However, if you have a detailed design with shading or realistic looking effects, then you will probably have to use halftones to achieve the look you want. Halftones will help to enhance your design’s detail and depth. But halftones also require that you make a few digital adjustments to your design before taking it to the press. That process, a “RIP,” is accomplished with Raster Image Processing (RIP) software.
You don’t always need to use a RIP when printing halftones though. There are two ways to create halftones that will allow you to burn and screen print them properly: use RIP software or do it manually.
If you have never created halftones and color separations in Adobe Photoshop or Illustrator, then you should know it’s quite a process (just watch the video above to get an idea). It takes a lot of time.
With RIP, all you have to do is import your art, play around with the halftone settings, and it’s ready. RIP software makes the process much more efficient and consistent.
WHEN SHOULD I GET RIP SOFTWARE?
If you’re only receiving a few requests here and there for halftone jobs, then you may not need to get RIP. It’s when you start receiving a steady stream of orders and you find yourself spending an awful amount of time designing that you should consider investing in RIP software.
In summary, you should think about owning a RIP if you do any amount of images with halftones. It's a tool that makes halftones much more accessible for printers who are just learning to create art, and will also dramatically speed up your process.
RELATED: MEET IMAGEPRINT R.E.D., THE NEW RIP SOFTWARE THAT WORKS WITH ANY PRINTER
WHAT RIP SOFTWARE SHOULD I GET?
ImagePrint R.E.D. is the first RIP software that connects to any printer. Whether you’re printing large format, stickers, photos, or film transparencies, you can use ImagePrint.
CREATING HALFTONES WITH IMAGE PRINT R.E.D.
Once you’ve created halftones in your design software, head to ImagePrint. The separation software is a great tool to translate those halftones to your films. It takes the gradient in the artwork and transforms it into screen-printable halftone dots.
By using a RIP software, your halftone creation process just got that much easier. While RIP software isn’t necessary for all printers, it’s a great tool to have once you start utilizing halftones.
