Typophile

LetterMpress for iPad vs. a real life letterpress

vincentlee

Hey everyone.
I'm a university student and I'm taking a typography paper.
The assignment brief is around the idea of fakery.
And my topic is based around the comparison between LetterMpress which is an iPad app (which I've purchased) vs. a real life letterpress.
I've been a lurker on these forums for a while but thought I'd post here to see if anyone has used LetterMpress and/or a proper letterpress and see some opinions on the upsides and downsides to both.
So far I've found out the act of locking up using magnets and the pieces of wood doesn't actually matter on LetterMpress, it doesn't affect the outcome of the print.

Here's a link to the video overview of the iPad app: youtube.com/watch?v=uzMRPW9fwSE

Thanks in advance to anyone who takes the time to reply.

I always thought the idea of LetterMpress was a little silly. There's a tactility and richness to the actual process of letterpress that simply does not translate in the iPad simulation.

The upside of the iPad app is that it's $5 and you don't get ink all over your hands. The downside is that it's not the real tactile analog craft that printing is and removes all the variances that come from working directly in the medium.

...but it's fun as hell and you can do it in a coffeeshop.

M/F

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