1. Setting up your document
2. Using fonts and typestyles
3. Text reflow
4. Collecting files for printing
5. Copying fonts for printing
6. What to send us, and why
7. Are you ready to go to press?
1. Setting up your document
Page Layout
Define your page size as the final trim size of your document. To create a bleed,
extend your page elements .125 (one-eighth) inch off the edge of the document.
If your piece folds, pay attention to panel sizes. Generally, the width of a
panel that folds into another should be reduced by .0625 (one-sixteenth) inch.
If you have questions about panel sizes or folding, contact us.
Color
If your job prints in four process colors, convert all spot colors to CMYK
mode in both your graphics program (Illustrator or FreeHand) and page layout
program. Spot colors are fine if your job is a one, two- or three-color
job. Always provide PMS color number(s) for all spot color jobs.
Print a laser copy of each color plate to check your color breaks and help ensure the accuracy of your job.
If you have color scanned images, be sure they are converted to CMYK; RGB or Indexed Color images cannot be separated properly.
Rules
Define rules by their width in points. Instead of selecting a “hairline
rule,” specify a .25 or .5 point rule. Rules that are narrower than
.25 points will be difficult to hold on press.
Images
Line art should be scanned at 600–800 dpi (dots per inch), assuming
you are scanning at the percentage size that the image will be used. (For
example, if the original artwork is to be reduced to 25%, then scan at
25%. Import the image into your page layout file at 100%.)
Halftone images should be scanned at 266 dpi to the size that the art will be reproduced. They should be saved in or converted to EPS or TIFF format.
Imported hi-res scans should be placed as close to 100% of size as possible. Enlarging or reducing an image may compromise quality.
Photoshop users—Rotate images in Photoshop whenever possible.
QuarkXPress users—Picture box background color should be
set to white in QuarkXPress files.
Pagemaker users—Never cut and paste a graphic into PageMaker;
doing so will convert the graphic to an RGB metafile, even if the graphic was
grayscale to begin with. Use File > Place instead.
FreeHand users—Please include the original FreeHand document
when exporting EPS graphics from FreeHand.
2. Using fonts and typestyles
Computers use screen fonts to display your type on the monitor and printer fonts to send to the laser printer or for printing.
It is best to use Postscript Type 1 fonts. Avoid using TrueType fonts. (TrueType fonts contain the screen and the printer fonts in a single file.) They are fine for laser printers but can cause problems when used with an platemaker.
Always select font styles from the font menu. Do not use the measurement
palette style buttons or type styles menu to change from roman to bold
or italic. This creates a “false” bold or italic face that
can image incorrectly.
Never use a font named after a city (e.g., New York, Chicago, Geneva).
These fonts were originally for dot matrix printers or Web pages.
3. Text reflow
Because of kerning, tracking, hyphenation, and “target printer” preferences specific to your software, your job may reflow if you ask us to make type changes. If you request text changes, be aware that we may need to spend time fixing spacing and line flow, and that you will need to review your next proof carefully for these issues.
4. Collecting files for printing
Most recent layout programs have built-in commands for collecting the components (graphics and/or fonts) of your file. Once the files are collected, print a directory of these components and include it with your disk.
5. Copying fonts for printing
Mac Users—PageMaker, QuarkXPress 6.0, and Adobe InDesign will collect fonts automatically; if you are using QuarkXPress 5.0 or lower, you must collect fonts manually. They can be copied to a disk by selecting the fonts and dragging them onto the icon of the disk. Don’t forget to include both the screen and printer fonts.
PC Users—To copy PC fonts to a disk, select Start > Settings > Control Panels > Fonts. You will see a list of your fonts and their file names. Next, open the window of your destination disk.
Select the fonts you want to copy. Then click and drag with the right mouse button to your destination disk’s open window. Release the mouse button and select “Copy here.”
TrueType fonts for the PC are made up of one file per font with the extension .TTF. Each Postscript Type 1 font is made up of two files. The screen font ends with .PFM and the printer font ends with .PFB. When you copy fonts from the control panel, Windows will automatically copy the printer font with the screen font.
6. What to send us, and why
The page layout files
Your page layout files will be sent to a high-resolution imagesetter or
platemaker.
Please contact us if you are not using QuarkXPress, Adobe InDesign, or PageMaker, which are the industry standard in page layout programs. Compatibility issues with other programs may delay your project.
All EPS files and scanned images used in your files
Occasionally, imagesetters have difficulty reading files. When this happens,
we must open and check not only your page layout files, but all EPS files
and scans as well. Even if an object is embedded in a file (such as an
imported PICT image in QuarkXPress, or a graphic in PageMaker) we may still
need to check the original image file.
Please do not send FPO (For Position Only) files. They can be confused with the high-resolution images that replace FPOs. TIFF and EPS should be the only file formats placed into a layout; all other file formats (PCX, GIF, JPG, WMF, BMP, etc.) produce unpredictable results. Images in TIFF or EPS format should be scanned as close to the final size used in your document as possible, at a resolution of 266 dpi for single-color halftones, and 300 dpi for 4-color.
Please note: images downloaded from a website are unsuitable for printing as they are created in low-resolution formats.
All screen and printer fonts
The imagesetter/platemaker needs your fonts to properly reproduce the text
in your file. Please check all your files to confirm which fonts are being
used. Both the screen and printer fonts are needed.
If you do not supply a copy of your fonts with your job, we will need to use their version of the fonts, which can cause reflowing of text and incorrect styling—even though the names of their fonts may be identical to yours.
A list of all the files you are sending
Giving us a list of all your files helps us to process your job. In our “preflight” check,
we match a list of all the files we need with the list of files you have
supplied. If a file is on your list, it should also be on your disk—and
show up on our preflight checklist!
You can print out a list of files on the Mac by opening the window of your disk or folder and selecting File > Print Window.
Composite and color-separated laser proofs of your entire job
We need to see laser proofs (the output from your computer printer) to
know what your project is supposed to look like. We also must determine
whether your color separations are set up properly. If possible, please
print lasers at 100% size. Mark your lasers with any additional information,
such as color breaks, folding, cropping data, etc.
In addition to lasers, including a “dummy” or mock-up of what your finished project should look like is helpful to ensure the accuracy of your printed piece.
7. Are you ready to go to press?
Have you remembered to:
Include all page layout files?
Include all graphics used in your files?
Convert all RGB and index color graphics to CMYK or Pantone spot colors
where appropriate?
Include all fonts used in your files?
Include a list of all the files you have used?
Include PDF of files to be printed?
If you have any questions, please contact us at:
