HERE YOU CAN FIND ALL THE TECHNICAL ADVICE TO CREATE YOUR ARTWORK LIKE A PRO.
Fonts
Automatic fonts
Do not use automatic fonts (bold, italics, etc.) of your layout software (usually in the menu bar at the top, button to switch to italics or bold with a single click), but prefer bold fonts or appropriate oblique, directly in the choice of the selected font (font). This will avoid interpretation and bad appearance of typography when printed. If in doubt, produce a PDF “Printing quality”, you will then be able to control the appearance of your texts such that they will be printed on the presses.
Vectorization
The fonts are attached to source files (True type font; TTF, postcript or OpenType), to avoid any problem interpretation of the font it’s possible to break this link, by vectorizing the font, that is, transform it into a vector line. In Illustrator and InDesign, select your texts, then in the “Text” menu, choose “ Vectorize ”. Be careful in Indesign, be careful when vectorization, certain enrichments (type underline, paragraph net, table, block with colored background…) may disappear.
Minimum bodies
To meet readability rules for everyone, the minimum body is 6pt but depends on the typography, type of product and technique printing.
For business cards and all small formats, it is recommended not to go below 8pt. If you add finishes, forget too thin fonts, especially if they must be covered with a varnish. For medium-sized products like brochures the recommendation is 8pt and 10pt for the current text, and for the large format, as the display will require from a minimum size of 20 pt. For very large formats (letters, vinyl, wood, pvc) the size is expressed in mm and no longer in body text (pt) and depends on the medium.
Ask about on the technical constraints upstream of the creation avoids starting over or increasing
the implementation budget at the end of the project!
To prepare your pictures
It is important to control your pictures before we start. Why ? Because very often an image is at the center of the process Creation. If you start your composition with a bass definition you will orient your work according to it. Yes unluckily you cannot get high definition you you will have to make visual choices out of spite, whereas by checking as soon the start you can always direct the creation towards another visual or vector illustration. Prepare your images well, before to start, saves a lot of time and back and forth with your customers or worse have a poor quality printed document.
The originals
Avoid originals as much as possible printed (scan of documents coming out of printing) or web images.
In both case, the visual will appear to you at least blurry and pixelated. Prefer photos, slides, drawings, paintings or digital originals.
Image resolution
With the advent of the web, image resolution became the bane of printers or graphic designers who respect the wagering codes on page. To understand, it is necessary to differentiate what you see on the screen (at 72 dpi) of what is printed (between 300 dpi for 2400 dpi images for vector graphics). The same image can be “clean” on the screen (because the computer displays it by default at 72 dpi) and be completely pixelated in print (because printed at 300 dpi, more dots, pixels per inches).
For large frormat printing, it is preferable to choose a resolution between 75 and 150 pixels / inch. A lower resolution may show blur or artifacts. One resolution too important is useless (no more than 400 dpi for color or level images gray and 1200 for line images).
RESOLUTION (DPI)
Resolution is the precision of
the impression. The resolution is expressed
in Point Per Inch (PPP or Dot
Per Inch (DPI). The resolution is a
information found in the
image file (metadata)
useful at the time of printing.
RGB
Computer screens restore
a color by additive synthesis to
from three primary colors,
a Red, a Green and a Blue,
forming a mosaic on the screen
too small to be seen.
CMYK OR FULL COLOR
Cyan, Magenta, Yellow and Black
are the 4 primary colors of
the impression. Their density varies
between 0 and 100% for each
PIXEL
The definition of an image is defined
by the number of pixels contained in
this one (the pixel being the most
small constituting an image). It will be the
number of pixels of the width multiplied
by the number of pixels in the height.
Image color mode
We do not block files in RGB, LAB color, indexed colors or spot colors, we convert them to four colors. However the automatic conversion in our feed can generate random deviations or cause a deterioration of the visuals. Exception: certain products are processed exclusively direct tone as is the case of the adhesive screen printed or of recyclable bags. Others like the envelopes, can be printed in four colors or in a direct tone (Pantone®).
To have an overview of the separations and thus detect the presence of spot colors before ordering, display in Adobe InDesign the Ink Manager and in Acrobat the Preview of the output Failure to comply with this instruction may result in a tarnished image or one unrelated to the original colors.
Conversion and save an image
• I verify or convert my images to 300 dpi (without resampling)
• I pass them in CMYK
• I save them
It is imperative that the print file is converted to CMYK (Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Black) mode before being saved. If you produce PDF files, the conversion can be done
at that time, but will not be well managed. For example, dark blues and bright oranges in RGB become dull in CMYK.
We therefore advise you to convert them in Photoshop.
The jpg or Jpeg
Universal and very practical, it is a format file to allow to reduce the weight of an image is a compressed format. The problem with this format is that it compresses and decompresses an image each time it is opened and saved. Each manipulation, compression is Actually, it is irreversible, therefore, we do not know, but from the 5 th opening the image degradation begins to see.
Magnification rate of a non-vector image
On XPress or InDesign, the enlargement rate should be close to 100% if your sources are of good quality. The rates recommended must, in correlation with the resolution of the image, be between 75% and 130%. Below 75%, the image will take up unnecessary disk space. Above 130%, the image will begin to pixelate.
Save image
The image (pixel) must be saved in EPS or TIFF format. Any other format and especially any image compression should be avoided given the risk of loss of quality or incompatibility. Nevertheless, the use of CMYK JPEG images in maximum quality, gives the results satisfactory.
If you do not have to keep an image, or do not open it too many times, this format is very practical, but it is better to manage it options: high or maximum quality (option), basic “standard” format.
Even better, prefer the JPG 2000 (not very widespread, available on Photoshop) and tick “without loss”. Photo with too high an enlargement rate vector image that can be enlarged endlessly.
The Layout
At the beginning, prepare your margins
It’s the inner margin of your documents, called quiet zone or even white turning for brochures, where you will avoid to place texts or logos.
This is at least 3 mm , but it is more pleasant at 5 mm. And if for formats larger than 100x150cm you push up to 1 cm is even better.This will avoid unpleasant surprises related to for flushing, cutting cutter of your documents.
The bleed
In InDesign or Illustrator, you can also specify the dimension of the lost edges of the page when creating the document (or in the menu “Document Format”). As soon as an element (image, block or text) is located at the edge of a page, it is essential to provide for the bleed. The bleed consists in overflowing the image or the block outside the page (2 mm minimum on many products, but that may be plus) , to prevent blemishes from crease or cut. Without bleed, the risk of see a white border appear between the image and the page edge is very important. This costs also for bendays (colored backgrounds).
