What is
RISOGRAPH
Printing?

The Risograph printer is a digital duplicator that prints one colour at a time and building up layers of colour to create your finished artwork – Think screen printing meets photocopying.

The risograph machine itself looks similar to a photocopier, however rather than using regular printing ink or toner, it uses a large drum of soy-based ink to print your image.

Each risograph drum has a unique colour ink, and printing in multiple colours is achieved by swapping drums in and out of the machine and printing layers on top of one another. A separate file is required for each colour of your print, as a result. These colours are unique to risograph printing, producing results different to regular digital printing, with a number of options such as fluorescents and metallics available.

We can print posters, flyers, zines, books and more. Risograph printing is suited to printing in multiples. As most of the cost of printing is in the set-up, printing is more cost effective when printing with fewer colours, and printing in larger quantities. We can print individual prints, but recommend printing at least ten copies for prints, or 50 copies for books and zines. Read our print guidelines below for more details on Riso's capabilities.

Read on for full print guidelines. Or

OUR
COLOURS

We currently have ten colours for our riso.

These are:

Download swatches here for:
Illustrator
(Full Photoshop template coming soon)

Black
#000000

Green
#00a95c

Fluorescent Orange
#ff7477

Metallic Gold
#AC936E

Medium Blue
#3255a4

Aqua
#5eC8e5

Fluorescent Pink
#ff48b0

Blue
#0078bf

Yellow
#ffe800

Bright Red
#f15060

Fluorescent Yellow
#f7ff00

PRINT GUIDELINES

The following guidelines will give you all the information you need to get the most out of the risograph process.

Please read through them before sending files for print.

ABOUT RISOGRAPH INKS

UNIQUE INK QUALITIESRisograph inks are different to ordinary digital printing inks. Risograph inks are soy-based, and transparent, meaning they appear different when printed, dry differently, and produce unique visuals and textures.

- Risograph inks use their own colour system different to CMYK or RGB colours, allowing you to produce unique print results. Pantone references provided are close approximations for reference. More info can be read on these at stencil.wiki/colors

-Risograph inks can only be printed on uncoated (non-glossy) paper as they dry by absorbing into the paper. Drying time is required between layers when printing designs with more than two colours.

- Risograph inks are wet when they are printed. This means that they can smudge when handled, and if large areas of dark colour (100% density) are printed, ink can transfer onto the back of your prints as they stack up while exiting the machine, marking the back of your prints. Large areas of dark colour can also cause prints to stick to the drum while printing resulting in paper jams and smudges.

OVERLAYS & TRANSPARENCYAs Risograph inks are transparent, inks can be printed on top of one another to create new colour combinations. This can be an effective way to reduce the number of colours required in your design, and

reduce cost. (Examples Below)

This also means that printing on coloured paper effects the colour of your inks. For example, printing pink ink on yellow paper will make it appear orange.

SPECIAL INKS

Due to risograph inks having their own colour system and not being limited to regular printing colours, we can print in special tones not normally achievable. Our current special inks include fluorescent pink, fluorescent orange, and metallic gold.

METALLIC INKSOur metallic gold has a very different finish to some of our other inks. It has a glittery finish and is opaque, unlike other riso inks, meaning it can be used on coloured papers and still appear as gold.

This is not the case with other inks, which are transparent.

BRIGHT RED & GREEN

FLUORO PINK & BLUE

AQUA & GREEN

BRIGHT RED & MEDIUM BLUE

PREPARING YOUR FILES FOR RISO

In order to print your image, we need to receive a separate file for each colour in the print. Please read the following section for more information on how this process works. This section will also cover what sizes we can print, and some details on crop marks and bleed.

SIZES

WHAT SIZES CAN WE PRINT?
The largest paper size we can print on is A3 (297mm x 420mm) but the riso does not print edge-to-edge on an A3 sheet. There will always be a slight border on A3 prints.

HOW BIG IS THIS BORDER?Approx 3mm all around the print.

IF I WANT A PRINT WITH NO BORDER, HOW BIG CAN IT BE?
GOOD QUESTION. Though the print area is 291 x 413mm in size, we recommend going smaller than this, and using the outer edge of the print area as a Bleed Area. We would then trim the prints down to a final size of 287 x 410mm, or smaller.

Download a PSD template with all relevant dimensions here.

DIAGRAM (right)

Non-Print Area: A small border at the edge of the A3 page which the riso can not print on.
Bleed Area: The 5mm closest to the edge of the print area
Print Area: The largest area the riso prints on – 291 x 413mm

CROP MARKS

It depends. Read this flow chart to see.

PREPARING EACH LAYER

CORRECT COLOUR TONES

Though risograph is known for its bright colours, all files are sent to the printer in greyscale. The colour of your image is added by the printer, and is determined by which drum is in the machine. For this reason, your files should all be in black and grey as shown here. Coloured files will not reproduce tones accurately.

COLOUR DENSITYTo print something in as solid/vibrant as possible, it should show in your file as 100% black. To print a lighter shade of this colour, your file should be a lighter shade of grey. Your file can contain a mix of black and grey, to achieve different shades of the same colour, in one layer – like a black and white photograph for example.

LARGE DARK AREAS

Large areas of 100% black can cause issues such as smudging, jamming, marking the backs of prints, and roller marks, so we recommend that large areas of colour be no darker than 80% grey in your file. When overlaying two colours, it is best not to have them both at 100%, and have one of them at least as light as 75%.

MULTIPLE LAYERSFor images with more than one colour, a different file is needed for each colour. There are a number of ways this can be done. The most common ways are working in layers, and toggling visibility on/off for each layer, saving a separate file each time.

CORRECT SET-UPA different file is required for each colour of your design. We ask for a separate PDF for each colour layer in your file, and a colour reference as an example for how you want your finished piece to look.

To get the best results, we need high-res files, between 300 and 600dpi. Anything lower than this can make your prints look pixelated.

There is no limit on what software you can use to produce these, as long as you can provide print-ready PDFs for each layer.

CONVERTING YOUR COLOUR FILES
Common Mistakes
When changing your finished layers from their coloured versions to blacks and greys, it is important to note the colour density, as mentioned above. A common error here is to just desaturate/convert your image to grayscale and not adjust the colour density by changing the shade of grey in the image.

Intended image Result

Separated Colour LayersAqua

Black

Desaturated Aqua

This Desaturated Aqua file is not dark enough to produce a vibrant shade of aqua. To produce this the file needs to be darkened. See the swatches here for reference. See the solution below.

How colours appear in file:

Printed result when Aqua drum is used:

THERE IS A FIX FOR THIS:LEVELS

HOW TO ADJUST LEVELS IN PHOTOSHOP:
In Photoshop, first save your file as a PSD so it can be retrieved later. Then, flatten your file:
(Top Menu: Layer -> Flatten Image)

Desaturate your layer (Cmd+Shift+U)

The file in this case is now a pale grey, but needs to be darker. Open Levels (Image -> Adjustments -> Levels) or Cmd+L.

Grab the dark slider on the left of the histogram (Highlighted in red in Image 1) and slide it to where the histogram begins to show information (Highlighted in red im Image 2). Notice the image is darker.

Note: This can also be done a few other ways including using Curves.

(1)

(2)

PHOTOGRAPHIC IMAGES

When printing photographic images in risograph, there are a number of options available to reproduce your images.
As risograph does not print full-colour images, a number of different techniques are available as alternatives or experimental substitutes.

BASIC SINGLE COLOUR IMAGESWe print from greyscale PDF files. Different tones of the same colour can be created on the same master, by varying the shade of grey in your file. This is a useful tool to reduce the number of colours in your file, or to print photographic images. We can also print on black paper using opaque Metallic Gold ink.

DUOTONE IMAGES

Duotone images are created by reducing an image down to two colour layers. This is an economic way to express a range of colours using only two inks. We can do this in a few ways. See examples below.

FULL-COLOUR CMYK IMAGES

We can replicate full colour printing by substituting the ordinary CMYK layers of a full colour image, for our riso inks. The most common way we do this is using Aqua, Fluorescent Pink, Yellow and Black inks (below).

These layers will not align perfectly, and colours can vary slightly from print to print.

Four Colour CMYK
(Aqua, Fluo Pink, Yellow, Black)

Four Colour CMYK
(Aqua, Bright Red, Yellow, Black)

Three Colour Custom Profile
(Bright Red, Green, Blue)

Two Colour Custom Profile
(Blue, Fluo Pink)

Two Colour Custom Profile
(Blue, Metallic Gold)

Two Colour Custom Profile
(Green, Fluo Orange)

Single Colour Print
(Metallic Gold on Black Paper)

TIPS & COMMON ERRORS

TEXT

Do not set text below 6pt in size. If you are printing white text on a coloured background (knockout text) do not set text below 8pt in size. Printing the same text in two colours to make a new colour (For example: Pink and Medium Blue to make Purple text) is not advised unless for large headings or display type. This is because the layers will not line up perfectly and this may make your text illegible.

Text prints best when it has been set in InDesign. It can also be set in Illustrator and outlined before being sent to print.

REGISTRATION
If you’re printing more than two layers, it is unlikely that your layers will line up perfectly. Keep this in mind when designing your files. You can include trapping to compensate for this.

Registration is particularly tricky when printing double sided, so it is best to presume that your two sides will not line up perfectly.

AVOIDING ROLLER MARKSIt is best to avoid heavy ink coverage on the feed edge of your design (The top edge of a portrait A3 image). The RISO feeds the paper into the machine using a set of rubber rollers, and these pick up heavy ink, and can mark your prints. We always print with this in mind and do our best to avoid these; however they are not always avoidable.

PAPER

We offer a variety of papers with different tones to ensure the best results for your project.
Most of our papers come in various weights, ranging from 80gsm to 300gsm.
All paper being used for risograph printing must be uncoated (non-glossy).

COLOURED PAPERS

1. Munken Polar
Our go-to white paper
Available in:
Rough 120gsm, 170gsm.
Smooth 240gsm.

2. Munken Pure
Our go-to off-white paper
Available in:
Smooth 100gsm, 240gsm.
Rough 120gsm, 170gsm.

3. Context Flint
A recycled stock with a similar warm grey tone to newsprint.
Available in: 140gsm

4. Context Birch
An off-white recycled stock with natural fibres throughout.
Available in: 110gsm, 170gsm.

5. Cairn Straw
A more distressed recycled stock, with a rougher feel.
Available in: 120gsm.

6. Freelife Kendo
A white recycled stock with grey fibres running throughout. A less yellow alternative to context birch.
Available in: 150gsm.

6. Context Salmon
A pale pink stock with a slight grey tint.
Available in: 225gsm

6. Context Pink
Recycled card in a light pink.
Available in: 170gsm.

6. Context Yellow
Recycled card in a pale yellow.
Available in: 170gsm.

6. Context Green
Recycled card in a light minty green.
Available in: 170gsm.

6. Context Blue
Recycled card in a cool, pale blue.
Available in: 170gsm.

RISO IMPERFECTIONS

DISCLAIMER

Riso's soy-based inks behave slightly differently to other printing inks. Because of this, risograph printing is prone to certain unique imperfections. We do our best to avoid any major unsightly marks that affect the appearance of your finished print, but these are not always avoidable, and are part of the risograph proces. These include:

Smudging: Risograph inks are wet when they are printed, which means that printing involves a risk of smudging when handling prints, or when printing multiple layers.

Uneven Coverage: Inks print with a slight texture and can vary in density across large areas of printed ink

Registration: As layers are printed one colour at a time, passing your paper through the machine each time, it is unlikely that layers will line up perfectly. This is particularly unlikely when printing double sided.

Roller Marks: Pages are fed through the Riso by a series of rubber rollers that sit at the centre of your page. When printing multiple layers, these can pick up residual ink which can mark your prints. We do our best to avoid this by taking into account the order in which we print your layers.

BEFORE YOU SEND YOUR FILES

This list of tips we've picked up in our time printing with RISO will help you ensure your files are ready to print without any issues.

Please note, if files need to be edited after printing has begun, this will incur a cost of €15 (ex VAT) due to added material cost.

1. FLATTENING FILES
Sending flattened files will prevent the risograph from creating any unexpected errors in your print's appearance. These can be caused by issues such as transparency, effects, typefaces not being found.

To flatten in Photoshop:
When saving your PDF tick the “As a Copy” box.
To Flatten in Illustrator:
When saving your file untick “Preserve Illustrator Editing Capabilities” box.

2. SIZE AND RESOLUTION
Set resolution to 300dpi. Lower resolution will leave your images pixelated.

Files should be A3 (297 x 420mm) in size.

3. TEXT SIZE

Do not set text below 6pt in size. If you are printing white text on a coloured background (knockout text) do not set text below 8pt in size.

4. TEXT APPEARANCE
For best results, outline your text (Illustrator).
Do not make text any lighter than 30% ink density.

5. LINE WEIGHTS
Do not set line weights at less than 0.5pt. Lines thinner than this can appear broken, especially in lighter tones.

6. WE NEED THE FOLLOWING
To print, we need separate PDF files for each colour layer in your image, and a full colour JPEG for reference.

Example:
"Your_Name_BrightRed.pdf"
"Your_Name_MediumBlue.pdf"
"Your_Name_Reference.jpg"

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Information in these print guidelines has been compiled from Damn Fine Print, Stencil.wiki,
and our own research and printing experience regarding the various topics covered.

What isRISOGRAPHPrinting?

OUR COLOURS