Comments on: How To Set Up Files For Printing

By: ceejay90

ceejay90 — Fri, 04 Nov 2011 17:51:13 +0000

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By: ceejay90

ceejay90 — Fri, 04 Nov 2011 17:51:13 +0000

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By: Scott Adams

Scott Adams — Wed, 27 Apr 2011 21:06:01 +0000

I have not seen many blog posts out there on printing and your blog post was very informative. Thanks for sharing! A lot of designers know how to design, but do not know how to design for print. I worked in the publishing industry as a ad designer and also a web designer so learning this stuff is valuable and always good to refresh.

By: julie green

julie green — Sat, 01 May 2010 20:07:53 +0000

i loved this article and the comments. i've been learning the hard way about different printers needing different stuff. one question I have regarding fonts: is embedding fonts in Illustrator enough or do you really have to convert everything to outlines? i've always been curious about this. My recent post must-see print design blog? this little old blog? well shucks!

By: Bryan Troche

Bryan Troche — Sun, 28 Mar 2010 02:34:55 +0000

Just a quick comment:

Now days you can print white on a Colorspam, in big format printing. You can do it in Static Clings, Styrene and PVC stocks, among others. Obviously you print white in a non-white material. In offset printing there are not as updated as in big format printing.

By: Peter

Peter — Wed, 24 Mar 2010 23:35:13 +0000

These are all good tips for offset printing but large format is a different beast altogether. For most quality large format printers RGB will give much better results than CMYK files (due to the fact most printers are 6-9 color now). CMYK may still be true for some of the largest production based printers but not any of the fairly recent HP, Canon or Epson printers that are run with a quality RIP. Also the ppi needed for large format ranges between 100-150 ppi except for the most demanding photographers/artists. Anything larger is really a waste of resolution. This is all coming from a large format printer. Read more: http://www.nikibrown.com/designoblog/2010/03/08/s...

By: Angie

Angie — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 12:03:33 +0000

I agree, Chad. If we didn't package larger files, we'd always have to make changes and send files back to printer.

By: Kelly L

Kelly L — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 18:04:53 +0000

This is a great article! I'm just going to chime in with some random thoughts – I work as a project manager/production coordinator for a commercial printer so I get to deal with this stuff all the time.

- you don't always need to specify 100% black for all blacks. If you are covering a large area or have an image, rich black will look much nicer.
- that said, if you are covering an area with heavy ink, especially a black or blue (blues take forever and a half to dry), check into an aqueous coating – this helps seal the ink to keep it from rubbing off on other sheets and can help with the dry time. Aqueous is different than a varnish or a UV – not all presses can run an aqueous. Varnish acts as a spot color and takes up a "space" on the presses, whereas aqueous is a different beast and usually much cheaper if your press can accomodate it – and your final pieces look much, much nicer. We try to coat whenever possible – it helps immensely with the final print quality.
- Pantine -> CMYK = you forgot to mention the gloriousness that is the Pantone Color Bridge… it will show you how your PMS will look given a straight conversion. Reds tend to convert okay; you really gotta watch your blues. They will 90% of the time, not look right at all… generally, spot color those if you can.
- Bleeds should extend at least 1/8" off the page – ideally 1/4" off the page. Prepress departments can usually add them in if necessary but it is sooo helpful if you can take that into consideration and add those into your file up front.
- As far as packaging files – we love love love getting the native files when we can. We can print from high-res PDFs, but if ANY changes need to be made – even if it is a resize or adding a bleed – we can't do it without recreating it. And that sucks for everyone. If you can package up your working files, that is always ideal.
- Proofing: if you are printing anything other than a flat sheet, it is helpful to provide a mockup as well. Not all folds and such are immediately obvious, even if they are to you.
- Instructions: if you have special spot colors or directions – feel free to write them on the proof! Then you will know they will see them and it helps to have them reinforced. That way not only pre-press will see them, but press operators as well. It helps everyone to understand the project.

I just realized what a huge printing nerd I am turning into… haha.
My recent post bah and humbug.