Print, banner and framing glossary
76 terms you will meet on printer spec sheets, quotes and frame-shop counters, explained in plain English.
A
- A-series
- The ISO 216 paper sizes (A0 to A10). Each size is half the previous one and all share a 1:√2 ratio. A1 is 594 x 841 mm. See the poster size chart.
- Acid-free
- Paper or board with a neutral or alkaline pH, so it doesn't yellow or damage artwork it touches. Ask for acid-free mats and backing when framing.
- Acrylic glazing
- Clear plastic sheet used instead of glass in frames. Lighter and shatter-resistant; UV-filtering grades protect color. Clean with a soft cloth, never paper towels.
- Aspect ratio
- Width divided by height, written like 2:3. A file with a different ratio from the frame must be cropped or bordered.
B
- Backdrop
- A large printed wall behind a booth, stage or photo area, often fabric on a tube frame or vinyl on a stand.
- A frame that holds a banner upright. Retractable (roll-up) stands store the graphic in the base.
- Bleed
- Extra image area beyond the trim line, usually 0.125 in for paper prints and more for banners, so no white edge shows after cutting.
- Blockout vinyl
- Vinyl with a light-blocking layer so a print on one side doesn't show through to the other. Used for double-sided banners.
- Bungee ball
- An elastic loop with a plastic ball used to attach banners through grommets. The stretch absorbs wind gusts.
C
- Canvas wrap
- A canvas print stretched over a wooden frame with the image (or a color) continuing around the sides.
- Cast vinyl
- A premium thin vinyl film used for vehicle graphics and decals; conforms to curves better than calendered vinyl.
- CMYK
- Cyan, magenta, yellow and black: the ink colors most printers use. Bright screen colors (RGB) may print duller in CMYK.
- Coroplast
- A common name for corrugated plastic board, usually 4 mm, used for yard signs.
- Corrugated plastic
- Lightweight plastic sheet with internal channels (flutes). Waterproof and cheap; the standard yard-sign substrate.
- Cotton rag
- Fine-art paper made from cotton fibers. Archival, textured and expensive; used for giclée prints.
- Crop marks
- Small lines at the corners of a print file showing where to trim.
D
- Die-cut
- Cut to a custom shape rather than a rectangle.
- Dimensional weight
- Shipping price based on box size rather than actual weight. Explains why long poster tubes and framed art cost more to ship.
- Double-sided
- Printed on both faces. Banners need blockout vinyl or two layers; flags can be two layers with a liner.
- DPI
- Dots per inch: a printer's ink-dot density. People often say DPI when they mean PPI (pixels per inch in the file).
- Dye sublimation
- A process that turns ink into gas to bond with polyester fabric. Used for flags and fabric banners; colors don't crack or peel.
E
- Eco-solvent ink
- Outdoor-durable ink common on wide-format banner printers; milder solvents than older solvent inks.
- EPS
- A vector file format older design programs and printers still accept. PDF is now preferred.
F
- Polyester banner printed by dye sublimation. Wrinkle-resistant, matte and light; best indoors.
- Feather flag
- A tall, narrow flag on a curved pole shaped like a feather; common outside shops and events.
- Fine-art print
- A print on archival paper with pigment inks, intended to last decades.
- Flutes
- The internal channels in corrugated plastic. For yard signs they must run vertically to take a stake.
- Foam board
- Lightweight board with a foam core and paper faces; for indoor signs and mounting posters.
G
- Giclée
- A marketing term for a high-quality inkjet print with pigment inks on archival paper or canvas.
- Gloss
- A shiny finish with deep blacks and saturated color, but strong reflections under lights or windows.
- Grommet
- A metal ring pressed into a banner hem so it can be tied or hooked. Usually brass or nickel, about 3/8 in inside diameter. See grommets and hems.
- GSM
- Grams per square meter: paper weight. Most posters are 170–250 gsm; fine-art papers are often 300 gsm or more.
H
- H-stake
- A wire stake shaped like an H that slides into the flutes of a yard sign.
- Hem
- The folded and welded or sewn edge of a banner. It doubles the material where grommets go and stops fraying.
- Hemming tape
- Double-sided tape used to fold banner hems; a cheaper alternative to heat welding or sewing.
I
- Image resolution
- How many pixels a file has relative to its print size. See the resolution guide.
K
- Knit polyester
- A stretchy, breathable fabric used for flags and some banners.
L
- Laminate
- A clear film applied over a print for scratch, UV or moisture protection.
- Large format
- Printing wider than standard office sheets, usually from about 24 in up to 16 ft rolls.
- Lustre
- A semi-gloss finish with a slight texture; a good compromise between matte and gloss. Also called satin or pearl.
M
- Mat (matboard)
- The card border inside a frame that separates art from the glazing and frames the image visually.
- Matte
- A flat, non-reflective finish. Easy to view under any light; blacks look slightly softer than gloss.
- Perforated vinyl that lets wind pass through. Used on fences and scaffolding in exposed spots. See mesh vs vinyl.
- Mockup
- A preview image showing a design on a product, wall or scene.
- Mounting
- Fixing a print to a rigid board so it stays flat.
N
- NFPA 701
- A US fire-test standard for fabrics and films. Many convention centers require trade-show fabrics and drapes to meet it.
O
- Ounces per square yard of banner material. 13 oz is standard; 18 oz is heavy-duty.
P
- Pantone (PMS)
- A standardized color-matching system. Useful for brand colors, though most wide-format printers simulate them in CMYK.
- PDF/X
- A print-ready PDF standard that embeds fonts and images and fixes color settings.
- Pigment ink
- Ink with solid colorant particles. More fade-resistant than dye ink.
- Pole pocket
- A sewn sleeve along a banner edge that a pole slides through. See grommets, hems and pole pockets.
- PPI
- Pixels per inch: how many image pixels fall in each printed inch. 300 ppi is the usual target for close viewing.
- Proof
- A preview of exactly what will print, sent for approval. Always check spelling, crop and resolution on the proof.
R
- Rabbet
- The recess in a frame's back that holds the glazing, mat, art and backing.
- Raster
- An image made of pixels, such as a photo. It loses sharpness when enlarged beyond its resolution.
- A roll-up banner that stores inside its stand's base. A common size is about 33 x 80 in.
- RGB
- Red, green and blue light: the color model of screens and cameras. Printers convert RGB to CMYK.
S
- Safe zone
- The area inside the trim where text and logos should stay, so hems, grommets or frames don't cover them.
- Satin
- See lustre.
- Scrim
- The polyester mesh inside banner vinyl that gives it tear strength. “13 oz scrim vinyl” is the standard banner material.
- Sidewalk sign
- A two-sided A-frame sign that stands on the pavement; also called a sandwich board.
- Sintra (PVC board)
- A rigid foam PVC sheet for durable indoor and outdoor signs.
- Spot color
- A single premixed ink color rather than a CMYK mix.
- Step-and-repeat
- A backdrop printed with repeating logos, used for photos at events.
T
- Table throw
- A fitted or draped printed cloth covering a trade-show table.
- Teardrop flag
- A flag with a rounded top, shaped like a teardrop. Keeps its shape in light wind.
- Tension fabric display
- Stretch fabric pulled over an aluminum tube frame, often with a zipper, for seamless booth walls.
- Trim size
- The final cut size of a printed piece.
U
- UV-cured ink
- Ink hardened instantly by ultraviolet light; durable and printable on rigid boards.
- UV-filtering glazing
- Frame glass or acrylic treated to block most ultraviolet light, slowing fading.
V
- Vector
- Artwork made of mathematical paths, not pixels (logos, type). Scales to any size without blur. Common formats: SVG, EPS, PDF and Adobe Illustrator files.
- The standard printed banner: PVC with a polyester scrim, printed with outdoor inks. See the vinyl banner buying guide.
W
- Washi tape
- Low-tack paper tape that is gentler on painted walls than ordinary tape.
- Wind slits
- Half-moon cuts in a solid banner meant to let air through. They weaken the banner; mesh is usually the better choice.
Y
- Yard sign
- A small outdoor sign on stakes, typically 18 x 24 in corrugated plastic. See the yard sign guide.
Z
- Zip tie
- A plastic tie used to fasten banners through grommets. Use UV-stable black ties outdoors.