Here are a few things you should know about printing...

Focus on running your business and let us handle the rest. If you have any questions about what we are able to do, or how you can speed up the process, feel free to give us a call or stop in. Otherwise, please keep in mind these file preparation tips are here to help ensure your files are ready for printing.

1. Proofing
Once your file is submitted, we will supply you with a sample (proof) prior to printing. It is important that you thoroughly check this proof for content, spelling, and style before giving your approval to print.

2. Color
The colors in your printed piece will not look exactly like it does on your computer monitor. Computers display full color images in RGB (the primary colors of light - red, green, and blue) while printing presses print full color images in CMYK (the primary colors of pigment - cyan, magenta, yellow, and black).

For full color printing, please use CMYK colors. For spot color printing (1, 2, or 3 colors) please use the Solid Pantone Matching System (PMS). We have a range of solid, coated and uncoated swatchbooks available in our office for reference.

In full color printing (CMYK), to prevent blues from tending toward purple when printing, please keep your magenta (M) values lower than M - 70. We’ve found that using C-100 M-70 Y-0 K-0 produces a nice royal blue whereas C-100 M-80 Y-0 K-0 will produce more of a purple than a blue. The higher the magenta value, the more purple your blue will appear.

Also for full color printing, to produce a rich looking black, please use color values of C-60 M-40 Y-40 K-100 instead of C-0 M-0 Y-0 K-100.

3. Graphics
Please supply all of the linked graphics used in your layout. All graphics should be 300 dpi or above. Lower resolution images (72 dpi, for example) may look okay on your monitor, but will be fuzzy when printed. We prefer the following graphic formats: .eps, .pdf, .jpg, .tif, and .psd. Files specifically formatted for the internet, such as .gif, is low resolution and will be fuzzy.

4. Fonts
To ensure that your job prints correctly, please supply us with all of the fonts used in your layout. There are thousands of fonts available on the internet, so it’s possible that we may not have the font that you’ve used.

Have a question or a concern? Contact Us and we’ll be happy to help you!