Going to print for the first time can be a nerve-wracking experience. It doesn’t have to be! We’ve all learned some valuable tips on what to make sure to do and what to avoid at all costs. Let’s share some of those with each other and the new print designers out there.
I’ll get us started with some basics.
Make sure all images and colors used are in CMYK mode (not RGB!).
Include crop marks if your images bleed off the page.
Bleed should be between 1/8” and 1/4” (3mm, or 0p9 to 1p4).
Don’t expect your colors to be as bright once printed as they are on screen.
Communicate with your printer and don’t be afraid to ask questions. Better to know now than be disappointed when that vivid magenta you wanted turns out to be a rusty orange.
TIFF and EPS are preferred file types for images and vectors/logos respectively.
Images generally should be 300 dpi, though some will argue twice the lpi (lines per inch the printer can print) is sufficient, which is usually about 200-250 dpi. What’s the mantra? Ask your printer!
Convert text to outlines or include fonts with your native files.
Not all blacks are created equal.
Aside from design, proofreading is so important! Be sure to actually call those telephone numbers and visit the websites, saving your client from a typo embarrassment will be worth the extra time.
I know that’s not everything and there are some valuable lessons you all have learned in your experience. Share them with us so we can avoid those mistakes!
And just posted today, check out Purple Lemon’s interview with me! This is only part one. Check back with Purple Lemon on Wednesday for some more.
Great tips Lauren! They are things we all know, but it is nice to be reminded!
Kelly | Purple Lemon´s last blog post: New Stationery Design: Mom’s Christmas Cards
Kelly,
Thanks! Do you have any tips to add? I’m sure I didn’t list everything.
This is absolutely the perfect list on the web right now for any starting designer in the print field, or web designers converting over.
While it may be a little outside the scope of this article, what you’re printing on will also affect the outcome.
For example:
- Glossy vs. matte finish
- Stock (weight) of the paper
- Paper vs. other paper-ish types of material (scrolls, sand-based papers, etc.)
Tyler Hayes´s last blog post: 5 Songs Of The Week: Instrumental Post-Rock
Great post Lauren! Got a few more for ya:
» If dealing with spot colors or special varnishes make sure you specify and speak with your printer; usually they make you put the on a separate layer
» I always like to sharpen my photographs on screen by 5-7 percent to compensate for the printer’s lack on detail from screen to printout
» Make sure you trap colors where 2 adjacent colors meet so you don’t see fine little annoying white gaps
I love posts that teach – Keep up the great work!
Brian Hoff´s last blog post: 50+ Websites Submitted by the Designers – Part 1
Great list, Lauren!
I would recommend a few color-related things.
Depending on the program you’re using, you may or may not be aware what exact colors are used where. Always check before sending job out. Sending it to print to separations is always a good idea. It also might help you spot issues with overprint vs. knockout.
As far as WYSIWYG, a lot of printers actually provide you with profiles that can help you proofing the colors. But again, it’s still not foolproof, but might be helpful.
Last but not least. Use an extra pair of eyes. After looking at the job for a long time, it’s really easy to miss a silly little thing that can cause you some very unpleasant embarrassment if it slips by you.
RaShell´s last blog post: Doodle on Demand? Here You GO!
Great advise Lauren,
Lately, I’ve been sending a lot of work off to the printers for Digital Prints.
The printer used was an new Xeikon 5000 Digital Press, which yields fantastic results. However, my advise is the brighten colors slightly, as darker purples, etc seem to print much darker than expected — even when controlled by a Fogra 27 color profile.
It does though print magnificent Blacks, so much so that I wrote an article about my color-mix here:
http://www.andrewkelsall.com/the-ultimate-rich-cmyk-black-exposed/
Hope you don’t mind me dropping the link.
The link to Spoon Graphics you have included is a great resource, and I’ve read it before whilst doing research for another article. Great stuff.
BTW, I’m now on Twitter and following you, Still getting used to how it works though…
Andrew Kelsall´s last blog post: Large-Format Foamex Design for Next Distribution
Tyler,
Thank you for adding to the list! Definitely not outside the scope of this article. What specifically have you experienced with these different paper types? Like do colors turn out better/worse on matte vs. glossy (or satin!), any special print prep for different paper types?
Brian,
Glad you stopped by to add some stuff! Excellent point about the spot colors. I hadn’t hear the trick about sharpening images. Thanks for that! Do you use a special program/plugin/process to trap colors?
RaShell,
Color seems to be the big thing, doesn’t it? Care to explain overprint vs. knockout? What would be some situations where one might be prefered over another?
Andrew,
I like Twitter a lot. It’s a great networking tool as long as you don’t get sucked into keeping up with 10 pages of missed Tweets.
I don’t mind you including links to your articles at all! If they help us learn more, perfect. Thank you! You know, I never ask what brands of presses my printers use. It might be good to know, huh? I saw the Twitter follow, too
Glossy finishes tend to make certain colors pop more. On the other hand, it also feels strange in your hand and smudges from fingerprints like there’s no tomorrow, so it quickly becomes apparent that matte finishes may still be a better choice as long as you can find a way to make the colors stay true to their original tones (most importantly, as we all know, is black).
I’ve never had any prep method differentiations for matte vs. gloss. Typically, I just use glossy finish for something that really looks like it deserves a *pop* (i.e. creative art, ads that rely heavily on eye candy). Whereas I would never use glossy finish for something like stationary
Tyler Hayes´s last blog post: 5 Songs Of The Week: Instrumental Post-Rock
Good article Lauren!
A couple I’d suggest –
Always provide a mockup if you have anything with folds in it, even when you specify what you want — it’s always good to give those folding a guide.
always ask the printer what their floor stocks are if your budget is an issue — floor stocks are often far cheaper as they buy huge amounts at a time.. not always nice stock, but sometimes you’d be surprised.
Try to get their PDF presets if you can.
ask the printer if they have any interesting ideas in mind — they see more print work than we ever will, so know whats fun for them to do and what gives interesting results.
And a big one I hope you never, ever have to use — if you get your 10,000 copies of a job back and you notice an error on THEIR end, absolutely, without a doubt, mention it and tell them to either reprint or give you a discount if you can live with it — you’d be surprised how many people go “nah, forget about it, i’ll live with it” which leads the printers to get lazy about the details
be careful with gradients! Add a little noise to a PSD for a gradient, rather than using one in indesign, unless you do it properly and use a gradient formula to figure out the right values to avoid banding
Alex Charchar´s last blog post: Music and the Artist
Really quick additions I thought of while preparing a file!
Print it out. You can see things you couldn’t see on screen. Creating a mockup might be a good idea, too.
Check your text. Look for orphans, widows, and consistency with dashes. Check your superscripted items (SM, TM, registered marks).
Thanks for all the great infromation! I’ve never had to go to a printer before because the printers at our high school are good enough for what I need.
Invest in a set of pantone chips. I bought a full set 2 years ago and it’s paid for itself in print costs by calling printers on their bluff for color processing. I really almost never pay too much attention to the colors on my monitor even though it’s calibrated. Another thing to do is order sample packs from the printer if it’s online so you can see the quality before you actually print there. It’s great to show clients what they get for their money, ex: printer “A” is going to look and feel like this and printer “B” has better stock and color but more expensive prices.
Excellent tips, Lauren.
I’d second Alex’s point about asking your printer for advice. They’ll know how best to save your money, such as printing two jobs on one plate and running them together.
Another tip is to give your printer a realistic print deadline, and allow for unforseen circumstances.
In addition to your addition
My personal pet peeve – inch marks vs. smart quotes. I notice them used incorrectly everywhere, and it drives me nuts 
Re: overprint vs. knockout. Well, as a rule of thumb, black should always overprint. That helps to avoid some major trapping issues. Unfortunately, some programs don’t have this setting as default so it’s always a good idea to check separations to see if indeed black overprints everywhere. Otherwise, when two objects of different colors overlap they usually knockout (don’t print on top of each other). Of course there are some exceptions from that rule too
RaShell´s last blog post: Doodle on Demand? Here You GO!
Tyler,
Thanks for coming back to clarify the paper types! Heh, I agree with you that using glossy for a letterhead would just be weird.
Alex C.,
Hey! Long time no see. Yes, folded mockup can help clarify, especialy for those clients that have a hard time visualizing. I need them for me too because I have a hard time with spacial thinking and turning/folding stuff in my head. Interesting tip on the floor stock! I just recently asked our printer what he would recommend for a certain project. I had a sample of what I wanted and he told me about 10 different ways we could achieve it or something similar. That was so educational! Your other tips are awesome as well. Why not write an article and share all this experience with your readers?? I for one would love to read it!
Alex,
The first time you print with a print shop/house is a little scary because generally a sizable amount of money is on the line. Be sure to bookmark this post as sort of a checklist! I wish my professors had taught me this stuff.
Timothy,
We have Pantone swatch books at my work, but I don’t often reference them and I usually trust my monitor (maybe not the best of ideas). It’s been pretty true to color with one printer, but way off with another. I’m not usually too picky about color, but when my blue looks purple in print, that’s a bad thing!
David,
Thanks for linking to your 12 Questions article (another link in case readers missed it). Printers are wonderful sources of information. I know ganging print jobs can save money, but I’ve never asked about the specifics. There is SO much to learn and understand in the print world!
RaShell,
Ugh! Yes! Smart quotes vs. prime marks. And on that subject, true vs. faked small caps and italics. I didn’t used to notice the difference, but now that it’s been explained properly to me I can’t stand the fakies!
Overprint: see, this is another one of those things I wish my professors would’ve taught me. I think this happen on a project just recently (though with dark blue, not black). It’s the first time I’ve seen it and I was never taught about separations and overprinting. I know what they are, but now it makes sense on why to use it for something other than a “special effect.”
Just thought of another tip:
For vectors (EPS or AI files) save them down to about CS or CS2 if you can. Older versions of Illustrator can’t open newer files. I have CS2 and have a lot of problems with this. You can open a newer version in Photoshop if you need to see what it looks like, but then, of course, that rasterizes it.
Which reminds me of another:
If you need a company’s logo, try opening in Illustrator a PDF from their website that has the logo in it (even if it’s just a flyer or technical document). You will probably find the vector logo in it
This has saved me several times!
I wish someone would write a complete article on this subject, because most of what I send to printing, is something I never see in real life. Often its just a pdf I pass along with a phone number and hope everything goes fine.
Great list, Lauren. I don’t often get that involved with the printers my clients send their books to. But since printer-ready PDFs are almost always how they want final files, I’ve taken to asking for my clients’ printers’ job option details before distilling those final PDFs.
Steve Tiano´s last blog post: The Subtle Art of Pairing Serif and Sans Serif Typefaces, Part II
Esben,
Ha, me too! (about the article, that is) Kinda why I started this article. I’m glad to see all the fantastic reader responses!
Steve,
One thing I think about PDFs, they have made us lazy. They are really all I’ve ever known and everything goes smoothly, sure, but I think there is so much more to know that I was never taught or really had a dire need to learn myself. Can’t ask questions or research when you don’t know what you don’t know!
Sound tips, Lauren. I’d agree with … (can’t find who wrote it) that one should always, always have someone else with a keen eye look over your work; and make sure you have a specimen of something printed by your printer on the equipment that they’ll be using to print your stuff. And, as mentioned above, talk — really talk on the telephone, or better still, visit your printer). Your printer should be your friend!
johno´s last blog post: An interview with Seb Lester
Johno,
I was watching an InDesign tut today and the guy said, “Better to have a paranoid discussion with your printer beforehand than a heated, angry argument after the fact.” I would encourage young designers (speaking to myself!) to not be afraid to ask any questions. I would love to sit down and do an interview with a prepress person one day, too, just to get their take on setting up a really proper job.
I’ve compiled a list of mistakes I made over the years to help me avoid them, maybe they could be useful to you guys:
1. Uncoated paper needs different pantone references
2. Two pantone colour job is not much more expensive than a 4-colour process job
3. Certificates should be printed on uncoated paper
4. Always specify the final print size especially for business cards
5. If possible send physical paper and colour samples to the printer
6. If printing over 2000 units my printer will favour the litho to the digital press
Another great article and some great comments. And your tip in the comments about opening PDFs in Illustrator? I do this all the time!
Try to not include any spot colours in a CMYK job and checking the separations in Acrobat Professional in Advanced (> Print Production) > Output preview is another top tip. I wrote a couple of articles about this process a while back I hope you don’t mind me including them here:
http://robcubbon.com/preparing-artwork-for-print/
http://robcubbon.com/supplying-artwork-to-printers/
Keep it up, Lauren, yours is definitely one of my top 3 design blogs!
Rob Cubbon´s last blog post: How to market yourself #3: How to install a WordPress blog on your site
Lots of customers confuse CYMK and RGB.
RGB – for web
CYMK – for stationary
If you supply a printer artwork please make sure it’s saved in the correct colour mode in photoshop.
These are amazing tips. Before beginning always make a dummy to be certain the correct numbers of pages are set up. Be aware of the type of paper, used for the printing process and the amount of pages must be multiple of four.
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