What You Need to Know About Prepress Technician
Example of Prepress Technician Job Format and proof text and images submitted by designers and clients into finished pages that can be printed. Includes digital and photo typesetting. May produce printing plates.
Daily Life Of a Prepress Technician
- Analyze originals to evaluate color density, gradation highlights, middle tones, and shadows, using densitometers and knowledge of light and color.
- Operate and maintain a variety of cameras and equipment, such as process, line, halftone, and color separation cameras, enlargers, electronic scanners, and contact equipment.
- Mix solutions such as developing solutions and colored coating solutions.
- Activate scanners to produce positive or negative films for the black-and-white, cyan, yellow, and magenta separations from each original copy.
- Proofread and perform quality control of text and images.
- Select proper types of plates according to press run lengths.
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What Skills Do You Need to Work as a Prepress Technician?
Prepress Technicians state the following job skills are important in their day-to-day work.
Time Management: Managing one’s own time and the time of others.
Active Listening: Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
Speaking: Talking to others to convey information effectively.
Critical Thinking: Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
Monitoring: Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
Judgment and Decision Making: Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
Types of Prepress Technician
- Compositor
- Linotypist
- Intertype Operator
- Desktop Operator
- Job Lithographer
Job Outlook for Prepress Technicians
In 2016, there was an estimated number of 34,600 jobs in the United States for Prepress Technician. There is little to no growth in job opportunities for Prepress Technician. There will be an estimated 3,000 positions for Prepress Technician per year.
The states with the most job growth for Prepress Technician are Idaho, Maryland, and Nevada. Watch out if you plan on working in Kentucky, Kansas, or North Dakota. These states have the worst job growth for this type of profession.
Prepress Technician Average Salary
The typical yearly salary for Prepress Technicians is somewhere between $24,940 and $62,420.
Prepress Technicians who work in District of Columbia, New Jersey, or Delaware, make the highest salaries.
Below is a list of the median annual salaries for Prepress Technicians in different U.S. states.
| State | Annual Mean Salary |
|---|---|
| Alabama | $33,710 |
| Arizona | $39,910 |
| Arkansas | $35,880 |
| California | $42,670 |
| Colorado | $41,840 |
| Connecticut | $44,620 |
| Delaware | $51,020 |
| District of Columbia | $84,120 |
| Florida | $38,320 |
| Georgia | $40,320 |
| Hawaii | $37,310 |
| Idaho | $39,150 |
| Illinois | $48,110 |
| Indiana | $38,280 |
| Iowa | $35,930 |
| Kansas | $33,300 |
| Kentucky | $40,950 |
| Louisiana | $33,470 |
| Maine | $38,550 |
| Maryland | $44,840 |
| Massachusetts | $45,110 |
| Michigan | $41,320 |
| Minnesota | $48,000 |
| Mississippi | $35,990 |
| Missouri | $39,380 |
| Montana | $37,870 |
| Nebraska | $43,250 |
| Nevada | $45,000 |
| New Hampshire | $41,430 |
| New Jersey | $53,580 |
| New Mexico | $42,760 |
| New York | $45,860 |
| North Carolina | $40,830 |
| North Dakota | $36,840 |
| Ohio | $40,800 |
| Oklahoma | $36,590 |
| Oregon | $44,520 |
| Pennsylvania | $42,180 |
| Rhode Island | $40,810 |
| South Carolina | $38,940 |
| South Dakota | $33,930 |
| Tennessee | $37,480 |
| Texas | $38,980 |
| Utah | $38,050 |
| Vermont | $45,160 |
| Virginia | $42,770 |
| Washington | $41,750 |
| West Virginia | $35,880 |
| Wisconsin | $38,950 |
Tools & Technologies Used by Prepress Technicians
Although they’re not necessarily needed for all jobs, the following technologies are used by many Prepress Technicians:
- Microsoft Excel
- Microsoft Office
- Web browser software
- Adobe Systems Adobe Acrobat
- Adobe Systems Adobe Photoshop
- Adobe Systems Adobe Illustrator
- Adobe Systems Adobe InDesign
- Adobe Systems Adobe Flash
- Corel CorelDraw Graphics Suite
- Adobe Systems Adobe PageMaker
- QuarkXPress
- Adobe Systems Adobe FreeHand
- Adobe Systems Adobe FrameMaker
- Corel Painter
- Adobe Systems Adobe Director
- File transfer protocol FTP software
- Adobe Systems Adobe LifeCycle Enterprise Suite
How do I Become a Prepress Technician?
Learn what Prepress Technician education requirements there are.
What work experience do I need to become a Prepress Technician?
Prepress Technicians Sector
Below are examples of industries where Prepress Technicians work:
You May Also Be Interested In…
Career changers with experience as a Prepress Technician sometimes find work in one of the following fields:
References:
Image Credit: Auburn University College of Architecture, Design and Construction via Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International
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