Pick the screen press when one design is going on a lot of shirts. Pick DTF when the art is full color, detailed, or different for each guest. Plenty of Sacramento events run both from the same footprint.
Screen printing
- Strongest at: a one- to three-color mark on hundreds of tees, like an association's summit logo or a festival design at Cal Expo.
- What guests see: a printer pulling ink through the screen by hand and curing it on the spot. People stop to film that.
- The catch: screens are burned in Fullerton before the truck leaves, so a new design can't be added mid-event.
DTF transfers
- Strongest at: photo detail, gradients, small type, and anything personal, like a chapter name, a district number or a guest's first name.
- What guests see: a printed transfer laid on the garment and heat-pressed in front of them.
- The catch: it's quieter to watch than a hand pull, and the print sits thinner than screen ink.
How Sacramento events tend to split
A convention booth with a single logo is a screen job. An advocacy group that wants every delegation's name on its shirts is DTF. A Kings game-day activation or a food festival often runs both, with the main design on the press and a DTF table for names. Caps go to the hat bar or embroidery. Compare live DTF and live screen printing, or send the art and we'll choose with you.