Halftone

ハーフトーン（網点） / 1880s– / Technique / Print Expression

Halftone converts continuous tone into regularly spaced dots of changing size so it can be printed; from a distance they return to tone, while enlargement reveals the screen as material.

Halftone — Black halftone simulation — بهرام عفراوی — Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 3.0
Black halftone simulation — بهرام عفراوی — Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 3.0 · CC BY-SA 3.0
Halftone — AI-generated interpretation 1
AI-generated interpretation, not a reference work
Halftone — AI-generated interpretation 2
AI-generated interpretation, not a reference work

At a glance

Visual cues

  • Large and small dots on one fixed pitch
  • Light and shade made by dot area
  • Rosettes from differently angled color screens
  • An image that changes between normal and magnified viewing

Best used for

  • Printing photographs in newspapers, magazines and packaging with limited inks
  • Using enlarged dots to make reproduction and print itself the subject

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Dictionary entry

Type
Choose bold type or simple contours that survive conversion into dots.
Composition
Place normal-scale image and enlarged screen together to exploit changes in viewing distance.
Material
Set line frequency, dot shape, screen angle and ink color, then translate tone into dot area.
Caution
Polka dots are not halftone. Dot size must carry continuous tone in relation to printing resolution.
Further study
AM and FM halftone / Screen angle and rosette / Photomechanical reproduction

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Cite this entry

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Link
https://indexstyle.org/styles/halftone
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[Halftone — IndexStyle](https://indexstyle.org/styles/halftone)
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<a href="https://indexstyle.org/styles/halftone">Halftone — IndexStyle</a>

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