Print quality, much like wine, is nuanced and complex, with various factors contributing to the final result. Two prominent print quality standards are High Quality Print (HQP) and High Quality Print Modified (HQPM). While both strive for excellence, they differ in their approach and target applications.
Understanding these differences is crucial for print service providers and print-buying organizations to make informed decisions, ensuring their prints meet the desired quality and standards.
High Quality Print (HQP)
HQP is a print quality standard defined by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) in the ISO 12647 suite. It's designed to provide a consistent, high-quality print output across different printing processes and machines.
HQP focuses on minimizing color variations and ensuring a wide color gamut to meet the demands of today's high-resolution, large-format printers.
Gamut and Color Consistency
HQP ensures a wide color gamut, covering 90-93% of the European Color Initiative (ECI) 2010 color space. This wide gamut allows for vivid, vibrant colors and exceptional skin tone reproduction.
Moreover, HQP employs strict color consistency rules, ensuring that colors printed on different machines are as close as possible, even if the machines use different inks or printing processes.
ISO Compliance and Certification
HQP is evaluated and certified against the ISO 12647-7 standard. Printers achieving this certification demonstrate a commitment to maintaining the highest print quality standards.
Certification involves rigorous testing and quality control procedures, providing customers with a guarantee of consistent, high-quality prints.
High Quality Print Modified (HQPM)
HQPM, developed by Fogra, a German research institute for print and media, is an enhancement of the HQP standard. It aims to improve upon HQP's color gamut and consistency, catering to the demands of the packaging and advertising industries.
HQPM provides a more realistic representation of print performance, focusing on the practical aspects of printing on various substrates and with different inks.
Expanded Color Gamut
HQPM offers an expanded color gamut, covering 95-97% of the ECI 2010 color space. This allows for even more vibrant and realistic colors, particularly in packaging, where lifelike representations of food and other products are crucial.
Moreover, HQPM's wider gamut caters to the increasing demand for high-impact, attention-grabbing print materials in advertising and marketing.
Improved Practicality and Substrate Compatibility
HQPM addresses the practical challenges of printing on various substrates. It incorporates adjustments for paper whiteness, ink sets, and substrate-specific behaviors, providing improved color consistency and performance across different materials.
This focus on practicality ensures that HQPM prints retain their vibrancy and color accuracy even on challenging substrates, making it an ideal choice for diverse packaging and promotional applications.
In the dynamic world of print, understanding and leveraging these quality standards is a powerful tool for printers and print buyers alike. Whether you're aiming for the broad consistency of HQP or the enhanced gamut and practicality of HQPM, the right choice will ensure your prints stand out, capturing attention and delivering results.