Preparing Your Files for Printing

Before submitting your files for printing, we suggest that you take a few minutes to review your files to make sure that they meet the requirements outlined below. We've provided this information to help you properly set-up your design files for print. Checking your files for mistakes can greatly reduce the time your job spends in pre-press, and can prevent your job from being put on hold.

As a general rule you should follow these basic guidelines when submitting any files for printing. These rules are the same no matter which application or computer platform you use.

PDF

If you're submitting a PDF, then the page size should be larger than the final printed page (Trim) size. For example, if your page size is 8.5x11", your document should be at least 8.75x11.25" to include the bleed area. Do not make your document excessively bigger than your intend trim size—just large enough to include the bleed area (see Bleed).

You should NOT use four color Black for type. In your authoring application, be sure to only use the default Black in the color swatches, for all black text. Depending on your software application, this can often be defined within the application's Properties (or Preferences).

For more detailed information, please read Submitting PDFs.

Native Files

Files submitted in their native format (e.g: Adobe InDesign), should match the final printed page (Trim) size. Bleed should be included as part of the non-critical graphics, but the bleed should NOT be included as part of the page size. For example, a 2"x3.5" business card should still be created with a 2"x3.5" page size. Any non-critical graphics or images which need to bleed, should extend at least 1/8" beyond the edge of the page.

Bleed

Bleeds should be a margin around all 4 sides of the file that is at least 1/8"(3mm). Your art file should extend slightly past the trim size into the bleed area as well. This will prevent white lines from showing when the document is trimmed down.

Safe Area

To avoid critical images or text being cut off when the finished piece is trimmed, DO NOT place them beyond the safe areas, which is at least 1/8” from the final trim size.

For further details about Trim, Bleed and Safe Area, please read our Template Guidelines.

In the case of Envelopes: All text and images must be a minimum of.375" from each edge and images CANNOT bleed off the edge.

Crop Marks

Please ensure your files are saved WITHOUT crop marks. If left in the submitted files, these marks will be considered part of the artwork and will end up being printed on the finished product.

Folds

All document folds should be placed correctly, with plenty of safe area on either side of the fold. If you are uncertain, please download one of our layout templates or contact us.

Borders

If your graphic files contain a border, the border must have a minimum 1/8” (0.125”) from all surrounding edges. If you leave less than 1/8” (0.125”), your finished product may result in uneven borders; top to bottom and side to side. This is due to the final cutting process in which some “draw” or “slippage” might occur. Ideally, you want to create the border 1⁄4” (0.25”) away from all surrounding trim edges.

Orientation

The front and back sides of your graphic files should have the same orientation. If the front is in the portrait format and the back is in the landscape format, one page will need to be rotated 90°. Review our Artwork Orientation Instructions for details on how to set up your artwork files for printing.

Number of Pages

The number of pages in your document should match that of the final printed product. In other words, all document pages should be supplied either as single pages or as readers spreads. DO NOT supply as printers spreads. It will result in delaying your project if we have to fix it.

Multi-Page Documents (Booklets)

All pages should be placed into one document. This will help us in understanding your final printed product requirements. Spreading pages throughout multiple documents can be confusing, especially if your pages are not numbered. This can cause delays in the delivery of your printed product. Cover pages are the one exception…they can be in the same files as your text pages or in separate files.

Page Numbering (Booklets)

When designing your files, page numbering should be taken into consideration. Page numbers should alternate to coincide with the position of the page in the final printed piece. For example, if the page numbers are always on the bottom left corner, the left page will have the page number on the outside corner but the right page will have the page number towards the binding of the booklet. Whether you use page numbers or not, please submit multi-page documents with the pages in the order of their final appearance.

Image Color Mode

Full-color printing requires CMYK (Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Black) coloring. One-color and two-color documents require either grayscale or duotone images. If your files are saved in RGB (Red, Green, Blue) or some other color mode, then colors can shift dramatically in the final printed piece. To avoid this, convert all images to CMYK, grayscale or duotone before converting to a PDF or submitting.

For more information concerning color modes and preparing your color files for printing, please refer to our Color Printing Guidelines and Converting Your Colors for Print.

All image files should be supplied separately (unless you're submitting your file as PDF).

Resolution

To provide the best quality we can offer, all pages should be created high resolution. That means that your raster images should be at least 300 PPI. Your images should be saved at a resolution equal to 2-times the line screen. Most printed pieces are produced at 150 or 175 LPI (lines per inch), which means that your images should have about 266 to 350 PPI (pixels-per-inch). Use 300 PPI, and your files should print just fine.

Please read Digital Image Resolution Demystified for more information about image resolution.

Fonts

We suggest that you use OpenType fonts and avoid TrueType fonts. Postscript (Type 1) fonts are acceptable, but please include both the printer and screen versions of the font. It's critical that you submit all fonts used, including those embedded in EPS graphics. Even if you are using a common font such as "Helvetica", your font's version may differ from ours.

For detailed information about fonts and where to install your font files, click the appropriate link: Windows Fonts or Macintosh Fonts.

Typographical / Grammar Errors

Make sure you have proofread your artwork to ensure the spelling and grammar is correct. We are responsible for typographical or grammar errors.

Collecting Your Files

The last step in preparing your files for printing is to collect all of the necessary parts in one place.

The two major page layout applications QuarkXPress and Adobe InDesign (and some others) provide you with excellent tools for packaging your job. These tools work by collecting copies of the document, all linked images and the fonts used.

Not all applications are capable of collecting your files for you. However, nearly all programs can provide you with a list of linked images and fonts. It's a good idea to always know exactly which images and font files are associated with your job and where these are located on your computer or network. You may need to manually collect these prior to uploading.

Uploading Your Files

When you have collected your files and fonts, you may then compress them into an archive by using software such as WinZip (Windows) or using the Create Archive function (Mac OS X) or Stuffit (Macintosh). This compressed file can then be transferred using our file upload option, located in the Upload section of each individual Product page.

To prevent any loss of resource fork data, Macintosh users should always compress their files on a Macintosh.

6-Apr-2011 12:30 GMT-0400 (EDT)