Printing 15 pictures a second...

Steve Russell - Staff Photographer

I'd be lying if I told you I don't get a thrill out of seeing one of my pictures across a page in the paper when I open it up at breakfast.

The level of that thrill is tempered by a number of factors. Was it the best picture from that assignment? How did it reproduce? How could I have made it better?

However, I've discovered that the thrill of seeing my picture in print pales in comparison to seeing a picture of mine being printed.

I had to shoot something up at the presses in Vaughan as luck would have it the main art on the Entertainment front was mine. A picture of Rob Gregorini and a porketta (in Sudbury they spell it with a 'k' rather than the 'ch')

I was walking by the press with the plate with my picture on it. Very cool to see. Even cooler when the presses were fired up and began getting up speed.

At speed the presses, which are three stories tall, are printing close to 60,000 newspapers an hour. That breaks down to about 15 pages or papers per second. Wow, my camera shoots 10 frames per second.

The plate, several are made for each of the three presses and each of the colour separations.

The plate on the bottom picks up the ink that transfers to another cylinder that transfers it to paper.

The paper emerges from the press on the second level.

On the third level the paper is folded and lined up before being cut.

Like magic the paper emerges from the press, 15 a second.

Conveyors take the papers to the mailing room where they are loaded for delivery.

Not every paper make it to your newspaper box or door step.

Red ink sits by the press.

With the presses running 15 copies a second you have to be hyper aware of everything around you, I would not want to get close.

It is just ink, I still have all my fingers.

Whan they are done with the barrel, I want it.

The page.

 

 

Comments

[Phil Shao]

Woah,shouldn't that kind of technology be in a museum or something?

[Margaret Rose]

BRILLIANT. Now if we could only hear them roar.

[Michael Tansley]

What a pity that the world is so liability obsessed that places like these can't have guided tours available to interested members of the public. However, I guess that 99% of the public would just find something to complain about on the tour.

Interesting article and photos though.

[Bruce McIntosh]

Dandy capture of the "nightly miracle," Russ! Happy reminders of the press centre tour when I first when to work at 1 Yonge. Thanks. And I'll arm wrestle you for the barrel.

[Mike Bardeggia]

WOW!!! Porchetta! You've gotta come to Sudbury and stuff your face with Porchetta. Fly Porter airlines - or take the 3.5 hour drive.

[online sticker printing]

What a pity that the world is so liability obsessed that places like these can't have guided tours available to interested members of the public. online sticker printing However, I guess that 99% of the public would just find something to complain about on the tour.

Printing Company

[Mini Pocket Folders]

you need to get it right, nice photographs