Setting Up Artwork Guidelines : Save-a-Tree Printing

Artwork

It is important to create your files to the correct Trim Size or Document Size. These are the dimensions your printing will be delivered back to you. The Bleed Size means your artwork is designed to go beyond the Trim Size.

A good standard bleed is 1/8" making the artwork larger than the printed piece, but the extra will eventually get cut off. This bleeding over or past the trim line ensures any movement or shift in the printing process will not yield a hard white, unprinted area along the edges.

Live Area (Margins)

Designing too close to the edge of the paper will cause production issues. Keeping a healthy distance away from the edge keeps art inside what's called the Live Area. A quarter inch away from the edge and away from folds is a good design rule.

Proofs to Check Your Work

One Soft Proof is included with each order Hard Proofs are printed press sheets that cost an additional $25 each plus shipping.

Programs

The printing equipment uses Adobe PDF files to produce the work. PDF is an industry standard and is short for Portable Document Format. Most design programs can generate, export or Save As into the PDF format.

We also accept a variety of other program files. It is best to stick with the industry standards such as the Adobe products like InDesign, Illustrator and Photoshop. Quark express is another popular program.

When sending these ‘native’ program files, also include the fonts and the placed graphics and links used in the design file.

Uploading Artwork

It is easy to upload final PDF files. When using native files, please combine the files into a folder and compress it into a .ZIP or .SIT file. File sizes are limited to 10 Megabyte maximum. For larger files, please use our FTP site.

Setting up Business Cards

We prefer business cards to be designed and provided to us one up, or in a single card layout with bleeds. The press will position the art for maximum sheet efficiency.

Color

We use a CYMK printing process that stands for Cyan, Yellow, Magenta and Black inks. In this way, all images and colors should be converted to CMYK mode for the best results.

Computer screens and Internet web sites use RGB mode (Red, Green, Blue). This format will print onto paper, but the quality of the color will be low and probably not match the way it appears on the screen.

Images and Links

Placed graphics and pictures are usually called Links within the program you are using. There are two basic kinds of artwork, vector and bitmap. Vector art is usually smooth and created in a drawing program like Illustrator.

Bitmap artwork is made up of the pixels that show a photograph or a company logo. These files should always be at least 300 dots per inch (dpi) resolution. Save these files in either a .TIF or .EPS file format. JPEG files are very popular, however they can output incorrectly or blurry.

Fonts and Typefaces

Fonts generally export into final PDF files successfully. When working with the native files (like InDesign) you must be careful to provide the font family used on your computer. Fonts are created in different formats, like TrueType and Type 1, but however you use them, they need to be included with your native files.

Solid Colors and Heavy Blacks

Digital Printing is a very effective tool. Designing within the limits of the printing process always creates a better looking final product. Large areas of solid colors should be avoided. Too large an area will show streaking and sometimes press roller marks.

Breaking solids up visually with a pattern or by overlapping type or some other design can divert the eye from seeing any technical shortcomings.

For solid black, the best CMYK recipe is 100% Black, 50% Cyan, 20% Magenta and 20% Yellow. Adding these numbers together gives you total ink coverage of 190% and is well within industry guidelines. Black text should NOT be set up as a tint build. It should be 100% black only.



	PRINTING Our in-house digital presses deliver the highest quality products in the fastest time possible. PAPER Choose from a variety of top-quality recycled papers. Great printing starts with great paper!	SETTING UP ARTWORK GUIDELINES Artwork It is important to create your files to the correct Trim Size or Document Size. These are the dimensions your printing will be delivered back to you. The Bleed Size means your artwork is designed to go beyond the Trim Size. A good standard bleed is 1/8" making the artwork larger than the printed piece, but the extra will eventually get cut off. This bleeding over or past the trim line ensures any movement or shift in the printing process will not yield a hard white, unprinted area along the edges. Live Area (Margins) Designing too close to the edge of the paper will cause production issues. Keeping a healthy distance away from the edge keeps art inside what's called the Live Area. A quarter inch away from the edge and away from folds is a good design rule. Proofs to Check Your Work One Soft Proof is included with each order Hard Proofs are printed press sheets that cost an additional $25 each plus shipping. Programs The printing equipment uses Adobe PDF files to produce the work. PDF is an industry standard and is short for Portable Document Format. Most design programs can generate, export or Save As into the PDF format. We also accept a variety of other program files. It is best to stick with the industry standards such as the Adobe products like InDesign, Illustrator and Photoshop. Quark express is another popular program. When sending these ‘native’ program files, also include the fonts and the placed graphics and links used in the design file. Uploading Artwork It is easy to upload final PDF files. When using native files, please combine the files into a folder and compress it into a .ZIP or .SIT file. File sizes are limited to 10 Megabyte maximum. For larger files, please use our FTP site. Setting up Business Cards We prefer business cards to be designed and provided to us one up, or in a single card layout with bleeds. The press will position the art for maximum sheet efficiency. Color We use a CYMK printing process that stands for Cyan, Yellow, Magenta and Black inks. In this way, all images and colors should be converted to CMYK mode for the best results. Computer screens and Internet web sites use RGB mode (Red, Green, Blue). This format will print onto paper, but the quality of the color will be low and probably not match the way it appears on the screen. Images and Links Placed graphics and pictures are usually called Links within the program you are using. There are two basic kinds of artwork, vector and bitmap. Vector art is usually smooth and created in a drawing program like Illustrator. Bitmap artwork is made up of the pixels that show a photograph or a company logo. These files should always be at least 300 dots per inch (dpi) resolution. Save these files in either a .TIF or .EPS file format. JPEG files are very popular, however they can output incorrectly or blurry. Fonts and Typefaces Fonts generally export into final PDF files successfully. When working with the native files (like InDesign) you must be careful to provide the font family used on your computer. Fonts are created in different formats, like TrueType and Type 1, but however you use them, they need to be included with your native files. Solid Colors and Heavy Blacks Digital Printing is a very effective tool. Designing within the limits of the printing process always creates a better looking final product. Large areas of solid colors should be avoided. Too large an area will show streaking and sometimes press roller marks. Breaking solids up visually with a pattern or by overlapping type or some other design can divert the eye from seeing any technical shortcomings. For solid black, the best CMYK recipe is 100% Black, 50% Cyan, 20% Magenta and 20% Yellow. Adding these numbers together gives you total ink coverage of 190% and is well within industry guidelines. Black text should NOT be set up as a tint build. It should be 100% black only.