In order to determine the format and topics I wanted to include in my info pack, I looked at some examples of print based manuals. I found that to determine a topic or a route I wanted to go down I found it useful to look at more commercially designed books, to gather what is already existing in the market, what there may be a gap for and what would be appropriate:
'The Digital Print' by Martin C. Jurgens acts as a guide to digital printing processes, used mainly by photographers and artists. It explains appropriate printing materials and options for acquiring and preserving digital prints. It also has a removable poster intended to be used for reference. This manual seems to be most useful for beginners in commercial art.
'Hard Pressed: 600 Years of Prints and Process' by David Platzker and Elizabeth Wyckoff focuses on the history of print making, and prints and processes that pushed the boundaries of media, looking at processes from woodcuts and etchings to digital. While learning the background of print is ideal for people with a pre-existing interest in the area, I would want to be more practically informative.
'How To Identify Prints' by Bamber Gasciogne is a reference book designed to answer technical questions based on identifying different aspects to print. It features a print history, paper, and the principles of colour, and can guide a reader with limited previous knowledge.
'Materials, Process, Print' by Daniel Mason explores the wealth of materials and print processes available to designers and explains how they can be applied and stretched in order to produce original pieces of design. An analysis of materials and print is combined with examples of innovative practice from contemporary design studios.
'Print Liberation: The Screen Printing Primer' by Nick Paparone is a guide book aimed specifically at screen printing and the appropriate materials. It briefly explores the history of screen printing and then uses photos and illustrations to guide the reader through techniques, and explores the prospects of using screen printing as a money-making venture.
'Printmaking' by Beth Grabowski acts as an introduction to the fundamentals of printing techniques, including collagraph, monoprint, screen print and lithography, and gives examples of current prints using the techniques. It also explores how to translate digital images into print works. By chapter it follows a step-by-step illustrative explanation of each aspect to printmaking, and provides interviews and examples from a contemporary printmaker.
'301 Inkjet Tips and Techniques' by Andrew Darlow focuses only on the digital aspect of print and is most applicable to photographers. It determines how to chose the appropriate inkjet printer for desired output, how to manage your digital images, how to select the right materials etc.
'Low Tech Print' by Caspar Williamson is based around an exploration of hand-made printing techniques and their application to contemporary design and illustration. It divides into chapters on screen printing, letterpress, and other printing processes, and explains the process behind each of the techniques as well as a short historical background.
After examining a selection of these commercially designed guides to print, I much preferred the idea of focusing either on one area that falls under the print making umbrella, or, similar to the 'Low Tech Print' book, looking into strictly hand rendered print. Some of the books above are very specific, focusing on photography over other areas, and I would like to avoid falling into the trap of making the info-pack too specific, as I would like for it to be applicable to a lot of designers.
While the subject matter for these examples is valid for this brief, I want to avoid falling into the trap of making an actual book, as I made a few last year, so I started looking and more design based information packs.
Designed for Missing Children South Africa (MCSA), includes a DVD and a small "milk bottle" for parents to purchase, which holds all the information that guides a parent through what to do in the event that their child goes missing on the packaging. It includes an arm band for children to wear with their parents contact details and a calendar reminding people of missing child stats.
The Outback Pack is filled with camping and adventure equipment, and contains a variety of diagrams which would aid the consumer in building shelters or hammocks, and information on UK wild camping legislation.
An information pack for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital is directed both at the children in the hospital and their parents. It contains games for the children but also information on how to cope with a sick child in the hospital.
Rice Terraces Pack provides information and samples on all the varieties of rice, and where they came from. The structure of the pack is designed to resemble the shape and movement of the terraces.
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