You’ve spent a lot of time working on creating your design and making it look great, so why wouldn’t you do all the steps necessary to make sure it would be printed correctly? Below are some things to keep in mind when you’re working with a printer to have your design printed.
Fonts Missing
Sending fonts that are within your file to the printer is a must. Forgetting to do so can cause confusion and slow the process of your file being printed as you can’t assume the print house will have your font. Just create a .zip folder that contains the file which needs to be printed and a sub-folder labeled ‘Fonts’ and have all of the fonts used in the file within this sub folder – your printer will thank you.
Additionally, if you’re using Illustrator to create your file for print, you can convert all fonts into outline form. This will actually remove all font from the file, allowing you to not send the font when submitting to the printer. The only downside of this option is that once you have converted the font to outline form, we can no longer edit the words.
When you create a PDF file you must embed your fonts. This ensures that even if the person who opens the document does not have the font you used on their computer that they are able to view and print the file correctly. If you send application files (InDesign, Quark, etc.) we will also need the fonts to print your job correctly.
Incomplete/Corrupt Files
Before sending, check to see if your file will open correctly and has all necessary pages, images, etc. You’d be surprised at how often this actually is an issue. Don’t be “that” client. Please don’t.
RGB to CMYK & Labeling Spot Colors For Match
You might design in RGB, proof in RGB, preview in RGB, however, we print in CMYK format. It is very rare that a computer monitor will accurately display the colors chosen in your layout. Your images may print in black and white or with inaccurate color if you neglect to convert images.
RGB (red, green, blue) is a colorspace that represents the emittance of light. RGB is an additive color spectrum, and when all the primary colors are combined, form white. This is analogous to an actual light spectrum, where if you combine all the colors of natural light (for instance, all of the colors on a rainbow) white light is created. Displays (such as computer monitors) use the emittance of light to create colors, and, thus, use the RGB colorspace. This is why most computer programs have RGB colorspace as the default when designing files.
However, with actual printing, ink and toner does not properly represent the emittance of light. Since colors from non-light sources are really observed by the absorption of light, a new colorspace needs to represent that spectrum of color. Thus, the CYMK (cyan, yellow, magenta, black) colorspace was created. This colorspace represents the absorption of light, and when all the primary colors are combined, forms black, which is the absorption of all light.
Inadequate Bleeds
A bleed is any area on a printed sheet where ink extends to the cut edge. One problem of inadequate bleeds is that an image that you expect to extend to the edge will show a tiny white line on the trimmed edge. It leads to an unpolished, unfinished look that you want to avoid. We require at least 1/8 (.1250) bleed.
300dpi Images
A scan resolution that is too low results in a low quality image. A resolution that is too high increases the file size and printing time, without increasing the image quality. Images downloaded from the internet do not print clearly due to their resolution being somewhere between 72 dpi and 100 dpi.
Vsellis has a fantastic article over on their blog that dives into DPI, PPI, Resolution and more; if you’re interested in learning more.
Using The Right Files
Use TIFF, AI, INDD, or PSD files when possible. JPG, PNG, and GIF are great for photographic images on the web, because they compress the file, making the file smaller in size for faster downloading). Not ideal for printing, because every time you save it, you lose more color and detail. TIFF, AI, INDD, and PSD are best for printing without loss of color or detail.
Using The Right Program
Use publishing programs like InDesign, Illustrator, and Photoshop. MS Word is great for word processing at your desk, when you can print to your printer, but software limitations make it difficult to do proper, efficient layout. Any MS Word files presented for offset printing will have to be converted to PDF. MS PowerPoint is useful for creating slides for a presentation, but limitations prevent this from being an efficient layout program. Any PowerPoint files presented for offset printing will have to be converted to PDF.