The first time you design a billboard or a large banner for a tradeshow is an intimidating experience. I had so many questions the first time!
Many of you might be wondering where I have been for the past few weeks. At the beginning of March, I took a cruise in the western Caribbean. It was wonderful! I’ll share some pictures from that with you soon. Then this past week I’ve been in New Orleans, LA at my company’s annual sales convention. I had the wonderful Vivien from Inspiration Bit keeping an eye on things here while I was gone, too. Many thanks, Vivien!
Because of the sales convention, I had ample opportunities to practice creating large format banners. Each time I produced a new banner, I learned a little more and I’d like to share that with you, along with a few photos of my work. It was so exciting to finally see all these designs printed in all their gigantic glory!
What is the First Step when I get a Job Designing Large Format Banners?
Check with the sign company for specs like preferred dpi, due dates, material restrictions and file type.
The final size of this banner is 52’ x 9’. Yes, that’s 52 FEET by 9 FEET–15.8 meters by 2.7 meters for my metric friends. This was the largest sign I worked on and I use a quarter scale (quadruple resolution).
What is the Ideal Resolution?
The printer will probably tell you to make your image resolutions between 72 and 150 dpi. Remember that large format prints are meant to be viewed from a distance, so don’t worry about this low resolution.
What is the Best File Format?
Vectors produced in Illustrator ( EPS or AI files) or InDesign are your best bet for small, easy to transfer files and sharp final products because they scale seamlessly. When you are working with large dimensions, bitmapped images are going to be enormous (we’re talking 300+ MB) and very difficult for your computer to handle; saves will take several minutes and don’t even think about closing it until you’re done—opening files this large might crash your computer. You can definitely use photos, you just need to know how (see below).
This is still print, so although you’re preparing files at a lower resolution than you are used to, you still need to make sure all your images are CMYK.
It was a little difficult to work on this registration booth because of the seams. I had to carefully plan my text and I used the CAD drawings from the tradeshow company to do so. When creating the InDesign files, I made the panel with the longest text first so that I could be sure it would fit with the font size I chose. For consistency, I made color swatches and a gradient swatch and then did a Save As to create a new file, so I knew the colors were identical and fonts were the same size and on the same baseline from file to file (panel to panel).
Can I Scale My Files Up to the Right Size in InDesign?
Yes and no. It depends on what kind of file it is.
I had questions about scaling EPS files (like logos) in InDesign because I know you can’t scale photos—it will reduce the resolution. I asked my friend and fellow design blogger, Tara, if it was ok to scale EPS files or if I needed to make them the right dimension in Illustrator first. She said it was ok to scale them larger in InDesign and she was absolutely right! Don’t worry about scaling vectors (EPS or AI files) larger in InDesign; they will print perfectly fine.
Tara did mention to me, though, that, at least in Quark, there is a maximum file output increase of 400%, meaning you can’t scale anything down smaller than 25% of the final size. I didn’t encounter any problems like this in InDesign (at least none that the printer notified me about and the final products turned out great!), but the smallest I scaled my files down to was 25% of final size. If you know of a restriction like this in InDesign, please leave a comment and let us know!
How Should I Handle Photographs?
Be sure to keep the final size of the banner in mind when sourcing images, especially if you will need to crop the photos. If your stock photo site offers “Supersize” images (like Shutterstock), don’t just look at the dimensions, note the file size, too. If it is a 20” x 13” photo, it should have a file size of at least 15 MB. If it’s less, you’ll know the file is being greatly upsampled, which is quite undesirable and will result in blurry, fuzzy or grainy images.
What Do They Mean “Work at a Scaled Percentage”?
The printer may tell you to work on your files at half the dimensions with double the final resolution (or equivalent proportions: 25% at 4x, 12.5% at 8x, etc) so that your computer can handle it. If you’re working in Photoshop, this makes absolutely no sense; a 10×10 image at 300 dpi is the same file size with the same image information as a 5×5 image at 600 dpi!
The way this makes sense is by using Illustrator or InDesign.
The maximum dimension in InDesign is 216 inches in either direction. For those working with the metric system, that’s approximately 550 cm, but you may want to test the maximum dimensions yourself. Enter an outrageous number and InDesign will give you an error message telling you the number has to be between 1 and xxx. Leave a comment below and tell us your findings!
For Illustrator, maximum dimensions are a little larger, 227.5 inches in either width or height. Again, for the metric users out there, that’s about 577 cm, but please test it and leave a comment below!
Working on this entrance unit presented similar difficulties as the registration booth. See above caption for details.
If your banner will be larger than the maximum allowed dimensions, you must work on a scaled down file. Now the double or quadruple resolution makes sense, considering you are (or should be) working in InDesign or Illustrator where you should be linking–not embedding–your images.
While working on your images in Photoshop, make them half the scale and double the resolution, so a 120 x 80 inch photo at 100 ppi becomes a 60 x 40 inch photo at 200 ppi. When you link the images into your banner in InDesign or Illustrator, you will need this half-size image because your document is half the final size. The prepress operator will take care of making the final file the correct size.
It would be wise to note this scale in the file name–pretty-banner-quarter-scale.indd, for example. Also include an instructions.txt file and make a note to the printer which files on the CD or in the .zip file are scaled down and what the proportion is–be careful about zipping up TIFFs though, I’ve had “decompression” issues with them before.
Have you had any experience with large format printing? Any good advice you can share with us?
Hi Lauren,
This post will be of great benefit to me as I take on more jobs like this. I have to create a billboard or banner this large, but when I do, the info you provided will really help.
The work is great also, and turned out nicely at the show!
Thanks
My printers are asking for files at size, resolution 120 DPI. We’re producing 4metres tall by 1metre wide! Flat they are about 1GB! Layered they are coming in 7GB because all the images, logos and type are photoshop effects I haven’t worked out how to create in InDesign yet.
It’s taken 4 weeks of creative development to get to this stage and now the client is asking “adapt for China and Latin America”!!!!
Brian,
I’m so glad this post will help you out. If you have questions that I didn’t answer once you get some large banners, don’t hesitate to come back and ask!
Mark,
It sounds like you are doing these in Photoshop. If that’s the case, yes, you will have to give the printer the files at size because they are pixel-based and there is really no way to upsample without the fuzziness. I believe you that those files are gigantic! If you don’t know InDesign, do you know Illustrator? You can use Illy as a page layout program, too, though you should take the time to learn InDesign (or Quark, though personally I think ID is more intuitive). Yikes!! You should inform your client that it is a bit of a difficulty to change things at this late stage and that there will be significantly more fees involved (that usually makes them reconsider!). Good luck with those banners!
Very informing post, thanks! I always wondered about environmental graphics and their file sizes. I tested in illustrator and the width said 577.95cm at its widest.
I just wondered is working on graphics like this a bit tedious and boring? It just seems so in my opinion but I have never done it before. Maybe it is just the initial challenge that seems intimidating but I would love to give it a go.
Jacob,
It was very intimidating at first to work on these large graphics, but it was so awesome to see them at convention! I didn’t find it tedious at all; it’s just like any other kind of design, you just have a few more restrictions because of the sizes and you have to be very careful if panels are involved (like the booth and the entrance unit I created above). Unfortunately for me, the look-and-feel had already been established and I had to stay within those specs when creating these graphics. And thanks for testing the max dimensions of Illy!
That’s a huge banner. Talk about high impact.
It’s been a while since I ‘lurked’ here. Just dropping by.
George,
Hey! Welcome back!! Yes, that was a very huge banner! I was joking with my coworkers that after the show they were just going to throw it away, but I thought it might make for some nice wallpaper in my bedroom!
Hi Lauren,
These look great, a nice one for the folio
It is really tricky working out how to make banners when they are above the sizes your programs let you work. I have in the past ended up making up different documents to get really long banners to work, it feels like your back at school doing a maths class all the percentages and scaling up and down.
Tara,
Thanks! I totally agree with you about feeling like you’re back in school. That’s what I was thinking the whole time, too! Unfortunately many of my skills are rusty and I find myself needing a calculator to do even the simplest addition!
Hi Lauren,
I work for a large format printing company and run large printers of a number of sizes and have been working with designers and designing myself for the last 12 years. From reading your article on file setup for large format print i can see there are a lot of people that could benefit from a clearer understanding on how we determine the image size for the required viewing distance. I have worked on a number of design and manufacturing projects ranging from outdoor billboards, event based shelf scheme, Banners, displays, Interior and exterior building Signage, backlit and posters of all shapes and sizes.
The process we use is governed purely by the end result and size. Viewing distance governs the file setup and image quality. I use the following rules of thumb:
- Close viewing less than 1 metre but larger than half a metre 200 dpi Minimum.
- Medium viewing 1 to 3 metres 150 dpi Minimum.
- Distance 3 metres and above can range from 150dpi, 4 to 6 metres 100 dpi and 6 metres above 75 dpi at full finished size.
Output quality is dependent on the type and quality of the machinery. I would suggest a sample of any area image or colour of importance.
File type for Vector is AI or EPS and becoming more common INND Package. PDF is what we recommend for Image and vector based designs as both vector quality and image compressions can be managed EPS also can carry both the compression is not a comprehensive as PDF
Please excuse the long winded reply.
Ammon
From down under.
Ammon,
Thank you!! How wonderful to get a printer’s perspective! No excuse needed for your reply; I really appreciate it!
So the viewing distance determines the dpi? What about the size of the poster? I suppose that is also dependent on viewing distance, but what if you know you’ll have a meterboard (2 meters tall by about a meter wide) that is on the floor with info. It can be viewed close up, but will probably be seen from farther away. How do you determine the final dpi?
And the file types… do you ever prefer INDD when it includes both images and vectors? I just sent my INDD packages to the printer and let them handle exporting it at 200-400% because I wasn’t exactly sure how to do it. Everything turned out fine, but I would love to make things easiest on the printer if I can.
Hey Lauren, I came across your post searching for Illustator’s size limitations. I’m no stranger to the concept of downscaling vectors, but what about a job that mixes vectors and bitmaps? I must place two photoshops along with vectors and degradés in a 3×8m banner. Any thoughts?
Daniel,
For your pixel-based elements, you’ll want to fix those up in Photoshop. If the banner you are laying out in Illustrator is half the size it will be once printed, the Photoshop files should also be half size, but DOUBLE the final resolution.
For example, you are building your banner at 1.5m x 4m. Your Photoshop image is going to be 3m x 3m at its final size and since this banner is so huge, it will be printed at 72 dpi. You will want to make the dimensions of your Photoshop image 1.5m x 1.5m (half final output) at a resolution of 144 dpi (double final output).
Always do things on a half-scale:
1/2 size (50%), 2x resolution
1/4 size (25%), 4x resolution
1/8 size (12.5%), 8x resolution
Make sense?
Hi Lauren, great post, and extremely helpful to me (a newbie at large format). One question, which maybe a stupid one as I don’t think anyone else has mentioned it, but do you still need to include any bleed at these sizes?
Andrew,
There are no stupid questions. I had lots of similar questions when I first started dealing with large format stuff (like can you scale the vector up in InDesign or do you have to do it in Illustrator?). You should check with your printer on the bleeds. I think it largely depends on the material you’re printing on. Sometimes you need bleeds and other times you don’t… and sometimes bleeds need to be like 2 inches! I’ve only had printers request the 2 inch bleed for fabric banners, but still, I never would’ve guessed that!
Great article…
This is really helpful to those of us designers who may not be very experienced in print media.
Thanks for the info!
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Hi Lauren,
Awesome article. I just stumbled across it accidentally looking for help in how to bypass the width limit in Illustrator to make large format prints. I would have never guessed designing at a smaller scale in the same ratio. Your article has been a lifesaver! It’s the essential kind of nitty-gritty problem-solving that they never teach you in college. I’ll be following your blog, thanks for sharing!
Agent,
You’re welcome. Come back any time if you have questions!
Jessica,
Looking forward to seeing you in the comments on future articles!
I totally agree about the fact that they never teach you this stuff in college. That’s one of the big reasons I started Creative Curio! I’m so glad you found the answers to your problem here
I really appreciate all the info; I’m working on a Banner Stand for a trade show in July, and had no clue where to start. Your site definitely gave me the info I needed to begin, and feel confident in designing. =) Thanks for keeping this info online!
Very helpful information. Thanks!
As many other previous posts have mentioned, I, too, am inexperienced with large banners. I am starting to design a 2×6 ft. banner with a simple logo and the printer is requesting it at 600 dpi. I am designing it in Illustrator, so would you recommend creating the .ai document at the actual 2×6ft. size, or should I scale it down? The trouble I’ve discovered when trying to export as a TIF at 600 dpi is that the combination of artwork size and resolution exceeds the maximum that can be rasterized. Any tips?
Sara,
No problem! I’m here to help. In my experience, the AI (or EPS) file should be fine (in fact, usually preferred), you don’t need to rasterize it. DO outline your text if there is any, though, to minimize problems.
I don’t think Illustrator can go up to 6ft, so you would need to scale it down proportionally. You can probably do 1/4 size, so make your document dimensions 6″ x 18″ (that’s inches). See how I got those numbers? 2×12 (2 feet, multiplied by 12 inches in a foot), then divide by 4 (for 1/4 size); same with the other side: (6×12) / 4. Now you will have to make sure your printer knows it is 1/4 size. I name my files something like “logo banner quarter size” just so they know, and then I also tell them. They will be able to scale it up on their end.
Come back if you have any other questions!
This is an awesome post, and great replies! This helped me out a lot!
Nice and effective post. I’ll publish it in our new LinkedIn group http://bit.ly/8hOPqJ
Hi Lauren
Awesome post. It really helped clear up many issues when dealing with big banners however I am still confused >__<
This is my first time dealing with large workfiles and I am suppose to design a 7m by 3m backdrop on stage. I would be working in photoshop mainly using vectors to reduce problems of pixilation and I would need to add several logos at the end of it.
Is the best solution to use a lower value of 100dpi and work at the actual size of 7m by 3m?
Should I be working at 72dpi instead?
Any tips for me?
Stacey,
A backdrop on stage can definitely be at 72 dpi. But if you are mainly using vectors anyway, is there a reason you’re not using Illustrator? Illustrator doesn’t have a dpi setting because vectors are infinitely scalable (no quality loss) and with Illustrator, I would definitely recommend working at 1/2 or even 1/4 size (be sure to tell your printer you’ve done this!! Let him/her handle the upscaling necessary for the full scale final product). If you have a combo of raster images (JPG, TIFF, etc) and vectors, you can create them separately and combine them in InDesign (also working at scale), unless they interweave too much and this isn’t possible. With InDesign, you would make your raster images at scale, say 1/2, with double the resolution, and work in InDesign at half scale, too. That way, when you place your raster images in the InDesign doc, they will be the correctly scaled size. If you’re only working in Photoshop, working at half scale, double resolution is pointless because the file size and load on your computer is exactly the same.
Most importantly, talk with your printer and find out what s/he recommends. Printers generally have a lot more experience in this area than designers do and the good ones don’t mind that you ask questions, in fact they welcome them! That further insures that you end up with a final product that meets your needs.
Okay I got it!
Thank you very very much Lauren! 
This post was a great help, I’ve just got a job in for a 8×2 metre banner and I’m working at 72dpi and have left a mimimum bleed line of 2 inches. I’ve set my canvas to 96 x 24 inches as that was requested by my printer.
Don’t most printers who have Large Format Printers have software that can upscale an InDesign file? So if I need a 120″ x90″ output, couldn’t I create my InDesign file 1/4 of that size (30 x 22.5) and be ok?
Moses,
Yes, that’s the right idea! Be sure to make any raster images you’re using (JPG, TIF, PSD, etc.) at 4x the resolution and 1/4 of the scale, too, so they will be the correct size when the printer scales them.
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