Printing Tips and Guidelines
Here is a list of things to consider before sending us your documents so you can have a print ready file. If you have any questions on setup or design, please give us a call and we will be happy to help you.
Application
Use programs that are good for printing (illustrator, InDesign, Publisher, etc.) Sometimes when using Word or PowerPoint the file doesn't transfer over to the printers properly.
File Size
Make sure your file is designed to size. For example if you want a 24" x 36" poster and give us and 11" x 17" file, it might not print out with the result that you want.
File Type
Save your file as a High Quality PDF. Even when using Microsoft Applications (Word, PowerPoint or Excel) make sure to save as PDF. Moving from one Windows computer to another or to a Mac may change the format or fonts of your files.
Image Resolution
Make sure your images are at least 300 dpi. Images downloaded from the Internet may look fine on your computer screen but may not print out as well. The image may become pixilated or blurry.
Bleed
Bleed is a term for printing that goes right to the edge of the paper. You can either design it this way by making your document .25" bigger all around or we can just trim off the white border. Make sure all design elements and text are at least .25" from the edge. If you don't want a bleed there will be a 1/8" border.
Crop Marks
Also known as trim marks, are lines printed in the corners of your publication’s sheet or sheets of paper to show the printer where to trim the paper. They are used by commercial printers for creating bleeds where an image or color on the page needs to extend all the way to the edge of the paper.
Our office generally can’t actually print to the very edge of the paper, so instead they print on a larger sheet of paper and then trim it down to the correct size, and crop marks are used to define where to trim.
Example
