In a woodcut, a block of wood is carved with, a knife or gouge to create a design. The woodcut is covered in ink. When the woodcut is pressed against paper, the ink on the surface of the block is transferred onto the paper.

Similar to a woodcut print, linoleum is glued to a block of hard wood and used as a surface on which to carve a design. Also referred to as linoleum block.

A durable technique made by cutting the hard end grain (the cross-section of a tree) with a burin or other engraver's tool. It holds up for thousands of impressions.

A metal plate (usually copper) is covered with a coating of resin. A design is then drawn on the plate with a needle, exposing the metal where a line is to print. The plate is put in an acid bath that eats away exposed areas of metal. When the plate is inked and wiped, ink remains in the lines. Damp paper is laid on the plate and pressed, picking up the ink

A sharp graver is pushed into the copper plate, exactly like a plow into the earth, throwing up small shavings and leaving a line. The metal shavings (or burr) are then scraped away. The plate is printed in the same manner as an etching. This is the earliest of intaglio techniques.

Similar to engraving, the artist scratches lines into metal but does not scrape away the burr. It is left to produce shadows and highlights in the print

The artist roughens a metal plate's entire surface by creating small burred dots. In this state the plate would print as a solid black. Half-tones and lights are obtained by scraping off the burr, or polishing the plate smooth again. The plate in inked and wiped, and damp paper is then pressed against the plate, picking up the ink

Like mezzotint, aquatint is a tone process rather than a line method. But similar to etching, it uses a coat of resin and a series of acid baths to create varying tones of light and dark. When the plate is inked and wiped, ink remains in the grooves. Damp paper is laid in the plate and pressed, picking up the ink.

Rather than cutting into a block or plate, lithography is executed on a slab of stone or zinc. The technique is based on the fact that water runs off a greasy surface. The design is drawn on the stone with greasy chalk, and then the stone is wetted. When greasy ink is rolled on the stone it will not "take" on the wet parts of the stone, but it sticks to greasy chalk. When the paper is pressed on the stone, the ink is transferred to the paper.

The basic principles of silkscreen are those of a stencil. In a silkscreen, the design is divided into color areas. Silk or thin nylon is stretched over a wooden frame, and screen filler is then applied to block out areas that will not be printed. Using a squeegee, colored ink is pushed through the "open" areas on the paper or surface below. The ink is allowed to dry, and other areas of color are applied, one after another.