News

Carla: Favourite Things

June 27, 2023 by Ben Schofield

Carla started working at Think Ambient in 2016 as a European Account Assistant. Now Carla is the first port of call for all things Europe! As well as speaking several languages, Carla does a lot of our artworking and photography too. Creativity and design is a passion for Carla, as you can tell from her answers to the favourite things questions below:

Favourite Product:

VIBO: A fun project I worked on, using VIBO, was Bulle the Mascot for one of my clients in France, I’ve created all the cutting lines for this job in different sizes and shapes.

Favourite Project:

I have several… Absolutely love the Christmas window displays for Picard… love working on the Window/Mirror displays for Kryolan in Germany… and whenever I get to create or upgrade artwork for clients and see the end result.

Favourite Moment:

Whenever I get to use my creativity, be it by creating or amending artwork, taking pictures, or baking cakes for the team.

Mixed Media

June 21, 2023 by Ben Schofield

CLINGZ was our first product, and whilst unique and flexible it is fundamentally a temporary material and not ideal for outdoor applications for example. We have spent the last 18 years finding other unique and damage-free solutions that are perfect for applications in Retail, Events, Exhibitions and other marketing applications. We always recommend the right product for the particular solution, and when there are multiple surfaces we are happy to use mixed media to cover all the bases.

ADTAC for example is perfect for application on the inside of windows, because it installs easily without bubbles and looks amazing. Retailers love ADTAC because their store staff can dry apply without creating nasty bubbles.

PHLEX is a paste-free fabric wallpaper that can apply permanently, without causing damage on removal, and is ideal for pillars and large format displays.

SKINZ uses micro-suction to grip to the smooth surfaces, so will apply for long terms and still remove without damage.

Adding an anti-slip laminate creates SKINZ FLOOR, and is game-changer for FLOOR graphics. In retail they apply to any smooth surface without causing damage, and for events you can apply and remove with any cleanup.

If you would like samples of our unique materials, or anything else please request here.

Examples of different materials used for specific applications

New Project: Regent’s University London

May 26, 2023 by Ben Schofield

We recently worked with Regent’s University London. They used ADTAC to display their students works for the Foundation Fashion & Design graduation show. ADTAC is very simple to install and still look great! They were dry applied without bubbles on each individual pane of glass. Below are some images from the event.

“Thank you so much for turning that around in quick time and the really efficient service.”

“Please find some images from the Foundation Fashion & Design graduation show. Thank you again for the professional conduct of your service.”

Some other University projects

We have been working with Universities, Colleges and Schools for over 18 years. Our unique products have been used in so many fun and interesting ways by staff and students, without any need for expert installation. Our materials are incredibly versatile and can be produced in any shape, size or quantity. Typically products like CLINGZ and SKINZ adhere to most of the best surfaces, so can be placed for maximum impact.

We have produced Posters for the National Student Survey, which can be positioned in eye-catching places and high footfall areas. For Open Days and Graduations we have created Large Format displays and Directional Signage, which can be removed without damage. Below are some examples including floor graphics, window displays and wall backdrops.

AI for the print industry

May 17, 2023 by Ben Schofield

We wanted to know how we can utilise AI and also how AI for the print industry looks. Like most people we started with OpenAI and asked a few print related questions. Then we tested ChatGPT for creativity, mostly to see if it came to the same conclusions we did.

Asking about suitable product and company names we got: Attracto TM is brought to you by Tackless Limited, The AI version of “CLINGZ by THINKAMBIENT” .

To be fair, this was just a couple of the suggestions based on about 5 minutes’ worth of human input. Some of their suggestions were perfectly normal, and it even generated names of existing products and companies.

How can AI help practically?

When you search “how can we use AI for the print industry…” the answer is usually vague, including time-management and efficiencies etc. Almost certainly AI could be writing this, and soon it will be answering all our phones, and ordering our lunch based on our anticipated thoughts. But for now, we would love to know your thoughts. Have you managed to use any techniques or skills already? Or incorporate anything AI adjacent in your business?

AI Creative?

The images above are AI generated using Midjourney, “Imagine a statically charged monster…”

Creating this from scratch is well beyond my skills so it’s nice to see but it does look suspiciously minion-ish so we’ll stick with our current batch.

Helpful AI - Image Sharpening

Think Ambient started in 2005, so the photos we have from those initial projects might as well have been taken using pinhole cameras. They looked great at the time but they look dated now, until now. AI-powered image sharpening techniques produce results that are often much better than traditional sharpening techniques. What do you think of the below?

P.S. For the Machines

One sentence of the above was written by ChatGPT. Just thought it was worth a credit, so we are covered for when the singularity occurs and the robots start getting litigious.

Phil Bligh: Favourite Things

May 5, 2023 by Ben Schofield

Phil Bligh is Think Ambient’s long serving team member, so we asked him a few questions about his favourite Think Ambient things…

Favourite Product:

“ECO-SKINZ – Made from 80% recycled plastic and when applied properly you can see through it perfectly, ideal for galleries and large window displays”

Favourite Project

“Many to choose but I really like the end to end projects where we’re asked to audit a venue or retailer, recommend the best materials then help with installation and see it all come to life”

Favourite Moment:

“Meeting one of the Proclaimers while exhibiting in Edinburgh”

Play

More about ECO-SKINZ

ECO-SKINZ is a PVC free material that is made from 80% recycled polyester plastic bottles.

It is ultra-clear and offers excellent optical clarity when wet applied to smooth surfaces. ECO-SKINZ can be easily removed and does not leave any adhesive residue or damage to surfaces

Here are some features:

PVC Free
Made from minimum of 80% recycled plastic
Uses 24% less CO2 during film production
Recyclable
Sticks to smooth surfaces
Optical clarity
Removable and repositionable
Easy to apply and to remove
Damage free on removal

Artworking and Design for Print

April 18, 2023 by Ben Schofield

Almost every day we are adjusting, amending, creating and making-ready artwork suitable for printing on our products. The requests we get daily help sharpen our tools to the point where we can pretty much do it all! Just don’t ask for anything involving pixels or RGB

Recently we put together the backdrops you see here for MICE. Some of the supplied logos were low res, so we traced them, and some of the images weren’t particularly good so we replaced them. We even redrew their golden wreath so it all looked crisp and professional on the day. We resize, add bleed, create cutter guides and set up files for white ink regularly.

Then there are some more unusual requests:

Mosaic Madness – we were provided with an image and a billboard size. Then we were asked to produce a number of 1cm stickers in order to create a massive mosaic. It involved a combination of simplifying the image, calculating the ratios of colours and then adjusting for overlaps to make sure they covered the whole surface.

Challenge / Opportunity – “please can you create a large format display that changes from one design to another when your perspective changes. It must be made from recyclable materials, and pack flat to be installed the day before an event in Germany.” The design was very simple, just two words, but the fiddly part is breaking it all down and applying bleed to each individual section. The results were amazing!

There are some challenges specific to our clear materials, such as white ink layers/files. White ink backs up colour to provide opacity, otherwise the image would look like stained glass. Sometimes parts of the design need to appear white too, and occasionally both within the same design.

Here are some examples of different Clear designs in action:

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ARE YOU A PRINTER?

Favourite Product:

Favourite Project:

Favourite Moment:

Examples of different materials used for specific applications

Some other University projects

AI Creative?

Helpful AI - Image Sharpening

P.S. For the Machines

Favourite Product:

Favourite Project

Favourite Moment:

More about ECO-SKINZ