Unlocking the Power of Halftone Shapes: Enhancing Reproduction Effects in Screen Printing

Erik Draven

Updated May 14, 2024 15:59

The topic of halftones stresses some screen printers and not just those new to their use. So many conversations surround this important topic and the answers aren’t always the same therefore leading to confusion and avoidance. Refer to other Freehand articles on halftones for a thorough understanding. Here we focus on the selection of the shape – round, ellipse, and square, for example.

Halftone shapes and sizes deliver great reproduction effects to any image. Use screening to enhance a print at every opportunity. Don't be afraid to use a low line screen to achieve a highly graphic affect. Halftones bring style, so have fun with them.

Elliptical dots were developed to fight against the dot gain created by using a rosette pattern for CMYK. The close proximity of the spots left little room for proper dot gain causing an unwanted build up and merge of inks. Rather than use the traditional and proper round dot it was determined that an elliptical dot does not spread equally in all directions. This was somewhat helpful to combat dot gain issues, but it’s a Band-Aid fix when using the improper method of four separate angles (a rosette pattern), rather than the proper single-angle method called Flemenco.

Many printers struggle unnecessarily. Bad advice spins them off into a loop of theories and patches. Trying to improve and prevent problems when the plain truth is using a single-angle for ALL colors reduces or eliminates most of the troubles while improving print results dramatically. This allows you to make better use of any dot shape you like. As long as you use something for the right reason, the right way, it's correct.

I have been a screen print professional for more than four decades and I have not yet seen a hole grab mesh. Yet, this has been the common thought process people have and tell others they should use elliptical dots. Have you heard this one too? We burn our line screens (halftones) to the emulsion layer and not to the mesh. Elliptical dots work, and you may use them, just know it is a choice or preference, but it is not to grab mesh. Regardless of the chosen halftone shape, be sure to use Flemenco (single-angle) to produce better prints right away.