Letterpress printing is a technique of relief printing using a printing press, a process by which many copies are produced by repeated direct impressions of an inked, raised surface against sheets or a continuous roll of paper.

A worker composes and locks movable type into the "bed" or "chase" of a press, inks it and presses paper against it to transfer the ink from the type which creates an impression on the paper.

In practice, letterpress also includes other forms of relief printing with printing presses, such as wood engravings, photo-etched zinc "cuts" (plates), and linoleum blocks, which can be used alongside metal type, or wood type, in a single operation, as well as stereotypes and electrotypes of type and blocks.

With certain letterpress units, it is also possible to join movable type with slugs cast using hot metal typesetting.”

Hoban Cards answers that “Today, letterpress printing is loved by many for leaving a tactile and visual impression into the paper – some call it “debossed.” Although this practice is unique to contemporary letterpress printing, it communicates elegance and handcrafted quality that can’t be matched by any other printing method.“

Pros of letterpress printing are:

Letterpress printers work on an uncomplicated principle: create a raised image, often using a photopolymer plate, roll the image in ink, and then press the inked image to the paper with the printer. This printing style is especially useful for self-publishing handmade books or creating your own professional-looking invitations.

Letterpress printers create crisp, clean lines and bold images; also, prints are printed with high-pigment-level ink, making the images and typography sharp. The handmade, high-quality attributes of letterpress images lend a sense of intimacy and craftsmanship to the work, increasing its value both to the printer and consumer of the letterpress printed product.

Since letterpress printers print on top of the paper instead of feeding it through a tight space for printing, you can use letterpress printing with virtually any type of paper.

Cons of letterpress printing are:

In hand-crafted letterpress, each letter of type is placed into a holder called a composing stick. And because the printed image is a mirror image, the type has to be set left to right and upside down. Once on the press, ink rollers touch only the top surface of the raised area. The surrounding, non-printing areas are lower and do not receive ink. The ink is transferred directly to paper, and making a proof is cumbersome.

Color can be applied in letterpress printing, but each color has to dry before the next color is applied from a different set of letters placed on the press.

Another major disadvantage of letterpress is the printing of images. Photographs and drawings must be converted to photo-engravings, a slow and expensive process of turning images into raised metal dots and lines. In Benjamin Franklin's time, drawings were carved by hand.

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