A method of forming a magnetic transition pattern in a magnetic material by contact printing comprises steps of providing a stacked assembly including a workpiece including a surface comprised of the magnetic material including a plurality of initialized, unidirectionally aligned magnetic domains, and a high saturation magnetization stamper having an imprinting surface in intimate contact with the workpiece surface, the imprinting surface comprising a plurality of projections and depressions arranged in a pattern corresponding to the magnetic transition pattern to be formed in the magnetic material, and selectively magnetically re-aligning the initialized, unidirectionally aligned magnetic domains by placing the assembly in a fixed gap contact printing apparatus including a magnet means having a pair of spaced-apart, stationary magnetic poles providing an oppositely directed, uniform intensity, unidirectional re-alignment magnetic field.