We produce our film on the Apple Macintosh platform. There are a number of todays PC type applications that work cross platform with the MAC.
Listed below are the guidelines that you should follow in order for us to process your data files and produce composed color separated film. There are many quality PC and MAC applications that can produce digital files, such as:
Quark Xpress
Photoshop
Freehand
Illustrator
Corel Draw or Photo Paint
or any 3D program with resolution control and ability to make an EPS, JPG or TIFF file format are acceptable.
Quark Xpress (general info both formats)
Make sure you dont use hairlines (very thin lines) in your document. All lines must be a minimum of 1 point in width to be printed.
No picture boxes with a fill of none, unless it is Vector Art or EPS with clipping paths being used in that box.
When using the colorlist menu in Quark to fill a large box or area with "BLACK", the film will only produce that black color with the BLACK plate. To achieve a rich or deep BLACK, make a new color in your list called "process black" with these values:
CYAN: 40% MAGENTA:40% YELLOW:20% BLACK:100%
This only applies to large fill areas. NEVER use rich black for small type or lines. This could cause blurring in those areas.
To export a file from Quark: (option A)
In the "File" menu, select "Export Page as EPS".
Click "Yes" in the "Download fonts with this EPS file" box that appears.
In the resulting dialog box, choose a location for the file, and make sure the settings are as follows:
Scale: 100%
Format: Color
Data: Binary
OPI: Include Images
Spread: Unchecked
Click "Save"
If a box appears that says "Some disk files for pictures in this document are missing or have been modified.", click "List Pictures"
Select any files in the list that are marked "missing" or "modified" and click update.
When there are no more files in the list, click "Save as EPS". Click OK in any resulting dialog boxes. Your file is now saved as an EPS format.
Next, open the EPS file you just created in Photoshop. Click OK in the "Rasterize Generic EPS Format" window.
In the "File" menu, click "Save a copy..."
Save the file as a .JPG file with the following settings:
Quality: Highest setting
Format: Baseline ("Standard")
Congratulations, you have successfully exported a file from Quark XPress!
To export a file from Quark: (option B)
You will need Adobe Acrobat Distiller and a PostScript Printer Driver to use this method.
In the "Edit" menu, select "Preferences", then "PDF Export..."
In the "PDF Export Preferences" box that results, click on the "Job Options" tab and be sure the settings are as follows:
Override Distiller's Job options: Checked
Embed all fonts: Checked
Subset fonts below: Unchecked
ASCII Format: Unchecked
Compress text and line art: Unchecked
Color Images:
Compression: None
Resolution: Keep Resolution
Grayscale Images:
Compression: None
Resolution: Keep Resolution
Monochrome Images:
Compression: None
Resolution: Keep Resolution
Click the "Output" tab and be sure the settings are as follows:
Printer Description: Select your printer from the list
Separations: Unchecked
Use OPI: Checked, select "Include images" from list
Registration: Off
Bleed: Page Items Only
Click OK to export the PDF file
Next, open the PDF file you just created in Photoshop. If it is a multi-page document, select a page in the next window and click OK.
In the "File" menu, click "Save a copy..."
Save the file as a .JPG file with the following settings:
Quality: Highest setting
Format: Baseline ("Standard")
Congratulations, you have successfully exported a file from Quark XPress!
Adobe Photoshop (PC or MAC format)
This is a great photo manipulation program. When sending Photoshop files make sure the resolution is proper so that image quality is never sacrificed. The general rule is
always start your design with a resolution of 300 ppi/dpi. On the web, resolutions can be low for file size reasons. But when making good color printing, resolution is everything.
Heres a common mistake people make when designing
They start a file with a lower resolution, and when they are done they increase the resolution to the correct dpi. (300) Wrong! Even though you increased the resolution and the end, the image will still be soft or blurred.
When done in Photoshop, save the image as either a Photoshop (.psd) file, a TIFF file, or a JPEG file (quality setting of 10 or higher).
Adobe Illustrator (PC or MAC format)
This is the preferred vector based program. It is very easy to export a file from Illustrator that is compatible with Photoshop. Simply go to the File menu, then to Export...
From this menu, select "Photoshop 5" from the list of file formats. Next, check the box labeled "Anti-alias" and uncheck the box labeled "Write Layers". Now choose where to save your file and click "Save". That's it! You've exported a high res file from Illustrator that requires no fonts or support files.
Macromedia Freehand (PC or MAC format)
This is a good vector based program. When completing your design make sure to convert all type used to "paths" (from the text pull down). This will prevent the need to supply fonts with your file.
Also, when placing images in your Freehand file, make sure to place only TIFF or EPS formats with no compression. (TIFF uses LZW compression EPS uses jpeg compression) These compressions should never be used. They will impair the placed image.
Make sure all colors used are CMYK. Before sending the file to us, you need to turn that file into a Freehand EPS. This will lock all paths and images in position. If you want extra assurance, send the placed images also.
Corel Draw (PC format)
This is a good vector based program. It is very easy to export a file from Corel that is compatible with Photoshop. Simply go to the File menu, then to Export...
From this menu, select "TIFF" from the list of file formats. Next, make sure the image resolution is set at 300 on the list of choices. Now choose where to save your file and click "Save". That's it! You've exported a high res file from Illustrator that requires no fonts or support files.
"Bleed"
Bleed of your printed material is included within the specified dimensions. This means that you will need to provide an eighth of an inch, from the edges of your material, to facilitate proper cutting.
Final Trim area This refers to the final size of the printed item. So a business card is 3.5"x2" final trim area. Or, a 1/2 pager is 5.5"x8.5" final trim area.
Live area This refers to the area where type should be inside the final trim area. We ask that the live area be 1/16" to 1/8" from the final trim area. Example: if a 1/2 pager has a final trim area of 8. 5"x5.5" the live area should be 8.25"x5.25". This ensures good balance with the printed product and prevents the possibility of cutting type when final trimmed. Click here for an example.
Here are guidelines in regards to bleed and cutting areas.
Business Cards - 2" x 3.5"
Since business cards are very small, we ask that you place a .05" bleed on all sides of your business cards. These dimensions should be 2"x3.5" Now remember, many people make the misconception of placing type too close to the edges of their business cards. The live area of a business card should be 1.75"x3.25" or an 1/8" from the final trim area.
Additional examples of Postcards & Flyers sizes.
1/8 page flyer - 2.75 x 4.25 or 2.125 x 5.5 (wide version)
"Live area" - 2.5 x 4 or 1.87 x 5.25 (wide version)
1/6 page flyer - 3.66 x 4.25 or 2.83 x 5.5 (wide version)
"Live area" - 3.41 x 4 or 2.72 x 5.25 (wide version)
1/4 page flyer - 4.25 x 5.5 or 2.75 x 8.5 (wide version)
"Live area" - 2.5 x 4 or 1.87 x 5.25 (wide version)
1/3 page flyer - 3.66 x 8.5 - "Live area" - 3.41 x 8.25
1/2 page flyer - 5.5 x 8.5 or 11 x 4.25 (wide version)
"Live area" - 5.25 x 8.25 or 10.75 x 4 (wide version)
Postcard - 4"x6" (standard size postal mailer) "Live area" - 3.875 x 5.875
Return
© Copyright 2003 - All Rights Reserved - Photographic Impressions
|
