History of transition from black and white printing to color printing
The technology that you are enjoying today has evolved as a result of painstaking effort and unthinkable commitment of inventors over hundreds of years. One of the most remarkable inventions of the human history is printing. Yes, Printing! Printing is an essential part of human civilization. Various printing techniques had been used all around the world.
The oldest printed book known is the “Diamond Sutra”. This book was printed in China in 868 CE. However, it is doubted that printing may have taken place long before this date.
Though it appears the technology has rapidly progressed and continues becoming more and more intuitive each year, the history of color printing is long and rich. The colored printed club flyer is one of the most burnished printed products that we see today. Earlier printing was nothing more than black printed letters on white paper.
A Short History of Printing
The story of printing is a long and complex one. There was a time when people wouldn’t have imagined beyond black and white printed papers. The transition from black and white printing to colored printing was not easy. It took decades to actually invent a fully functional colored printer.
Timeline of color printing
Lithography was the 1st advancement that printing technology had made since the invention of the Printing Press in the 15th Century. In this technique only one or two colors were used to print entire plate. This technology came into existence in 18th century.
Chromolithography is the enhanced version of lithography. During the initial stage, the outcome of Chromolithography was nothing more than flat colors printed side by side. Later bright colors and ornate designs were featured. Chromolithography became the most preferred printing technique in early 19th Century.
Color Printing was once again transformed in 1800, when steam-driven printing press invented. By the 1880s, colored magazines and brochures printing in chromolithography with steam-driven presses came into existence.
Today, printing technology has progressed a lot. The colored printed products are now more colorful than the real world. Wait, history is not complete yet! A lot more has to come in the future…..
