Design Terms You Should Know

I know I sometimes speak in printing and design industry jargon, and clients sometimes look at me like I am speaking in another language.  Technically, I am!  Here are some important design terms that you should learn to make your next design or print project as easy as possible!

RASTER – A raster image is built from pixels to create an image.  Each pixel is a small block that contains specific colors, transparency, and saturation.  Raster images cannot be scaled up in size without losing clarity.

VECTOR – A vector image is built using points and lines.  Vector images can be scaled up to any size without distortion.

BLEED – A design that has color go to the edge of a cut sheet.  Layouts with bleeds need to be printed on a larger sheet of paper and cut down to size to give a full bleed.  Including crop marks and extending your color past the cut lines is necessary to avoid trimming your finished piece down smaller than your intended design.

CROP MARKS – Small lines at the corners of your design that indicate where your piece is to be cut.

PANTONE (PMS) – The Pantone Matching System (PMS) is the printing industry’s standard for ink colors and mix formulas.

CMYK – The basic color building blocks of all printing, both digital and offset.  Cyan, Magenta, Yellow and Black.

RGB – The basic color building blocks of screen images.  Red, Blue and Green.

LEADING – The vertical space between lines of text.

KERNING – The horizontal space between letters.

SERIF – Small horizontal lines at the top and bottom of some fonts.  Serif type tends to be more traditional and formal.

SANS SERIF – Fonts without small horizontal lines.  Sans Serif fonts tend to be more modern and cleaner.

SCRIPT – Fonts that are designed based on cursive handwriting.

WHITE SPACE – Area that does not include any printing – it can be a very important part of your overall design.  White space is your friend!

LOREM IPSUM – Generic filler text used as a placeholder when the final copy is not yet available.

These are just a few industry-specific terms that I use on a daily basis.  Don’t be afraid to ask questions if you don’t know a term or would just like to learn more about design!  With the availability of so many apps that can be used at home, you may make yourself stand out from the rest with a little bit of knowledge!

Kelly Hartigan
Cortineo Creative, LLC
215-348-1100
CortineoCreative.com