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Illustrator File Prep Guide |
Step 1: Create a new document (File > New) for each side of your project.
Enter the size of the document including the bleed (add 0.125'' on the width and height), and use CMYK Color for the Color Mode.
Examples:
PRODUCT |
FINAL SIZE |
SIZE WITH BLEED |
Business Card |
3.5 x 2 |
3.625 x 2.125 |
Postcard |
4 x 6 |
4.125 x 6.125 |
Flyer |
8.5 x 11 |
8.625 x 11.125 |
Step 2: Set Bleed Guides.
Drag four guides from the rulers (show rules Ctrl+R) exactly 1/16” (0.062) one on each side. This will be where your printed piece will trim and will leave you with the final size that you ordered (in this example, 3.5” x 2” ).
Be careful, as text, borders, or images that are outside of the BLUE SAFETY LINE may appear uneven or get cut off.
Also be sure to allow “full bleed” images to extend into the bleed area or the white of the paper may leak into the postcard image. Examples:
CORRECT
INCORRECT
FINAL PRODUCT
Step 3: Check Image Resolution, Quality and Color.
Roman Printing prints EXACTLY what is sent to us. Image resolution, quality and color will affect how your final printed product looks.
High Resolution 300 dpi |
Low Resolution 72 dpi |
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To prevent bad looking images your file(s) should meet some basic standards of quality and color:
Resolution: 300 dpi (dots per inch)
Color Mode: CMYK
Other image quality/color issues: JPEG Compression, Adobe Illustrator Color Settings, Digital Camera Settings.
Step 4: Make Large Black Objects and Images "Rich Black".
For black borders, headlines, and large black text to appear dark and saturated (or rich), you should set your CMYK (Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, and Black) values to:
RICH BLACK |
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BLACK |
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C=60%
M=60%
Y=20%
K= 100% |
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C= 0%
M=0%
Y= 0%
K= 100% |
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Never use a Rich Black for any small graphic objects or text that is smaller than 18-20 points in size.
Step 5: Set Output Resolution and Gradient Mesh Resolution.
Set Output Resolution (File>Document Setup>Printing & Export) to 2540 and Gradient Mesh Resolution to 300 ppi.
Step 6: Set Transparency (Illustrator 9 and 10 only).
Set the Transparency (File>Document Setup>Tranparency) to 100 Vectors (make sure that the slider is moved all way to the right side).
Step 7: Convert text into Outlines.
Convert all type in your document to Outlines. Select All (Ctrl+A) and go to Type>Create Outlines.
Step 8: Embed your images.
Go to to window>links
Select one link at a time, then>Embed Image.
Step 9: Flatten Transparency.
Go to Select>All then to Object>Flatten Transparency. All Spot Colors must be converted to Process Colors (CMYK) before this step.
Step 10: Save your file as .EPS and Prepare for Upload.
Save your file(s) in .EPS format: File>Save as> .EPS (Select from the list).
Be sure to save as CMYK with Level 2 Postscript.
After saving your file(s), place your order using our Online Ordering System, you are now ready to Upload them. Look for the UPLOAD FILES link at the end of the ordering process and follow the provided instructions.
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