At Express Press we work hard to streamline the prepress and graphic design process. As a result, we are able to spend less time fixing problem files, which results in significant savings for our customers.

From years of experience with art files, we've seen the same pitfalls over and over. This file preparation guide shows the most common mistakes we experience on a day to day basis for offset printing jobs and more.

File Types and Naming Conventions
Resolution, Images, and Fonts
Bleed, Trim, and Safety
Color Management
Instructions For Exporting From Design Programs

File Types and Naming Conventions

File Names
In order to make the pre-flight process more efficient, please use unique file names for files you are submitting. The file name should reflect the job name that was given when ordering. Example: jsmith_4x6_front.pdf

Flattened PDF is the BEST printable file
In the last 5 years the PDF has become the preferred type of file to print from. By using PDF we eliminate the risk of embedded fonts, overly compressed images, and other nasty problems. A flattened PDF can be achieved through ALL current design software suites. If not, you can use Acrobat or Distiller to convert your file to PDF. If you do not have Acrobat, there are many shareware PDF programs available.

MS Publisher and Word are great around the office...
but can create technical issues when printing.
Although we do work with Publisher due to customer demand, we really don't recommend it as a design program. Without getting too techinical- Publisher is NOT a professional design program, and may create problems within your files that we will be unable to fix. Namely, the JPG compression automatically compresses at the lowest quality possible, leaving your files blurry. Secondly, all text in Publisher or other MS programs are output as a "4 Color Black" which causes your small text to be fuzzy and at times unreadable.

If you are using Publisher because of a budget concern and would rather have a professional designer for your art, please contact us. We would rather substantially discount our design fees, over accepting substandard art / print files due to a software deficiency.

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Resolution, Images, and Fonts:

What to know before you print...
Please read these guidelines very carefully! Although we check all of our customer files for problems, we are not responsible for customers that submit incorrect artwork. To insure proper output, please follow all guidelines.

Resolution
We are a high resolution printer so we require all submitted files to be at least 300dpi (Dots Per Inch). If you design a job at 72dpi or lower we cannot use the file. Our prepress department will resize it to 300dpi therefore "stretching" the image out. See the example below where one image was created at 300dpi, the other was created at 72dpi and then stretched out to 300dpi

Image on Both Sides
Let us know during the ordering process if you want your project printed with the same image on both sides. If we are not notified early in the project and receive only one file, your project could be delayed in order to locate the second file. If we receive two of the same file, your project could be delayed until you verify that both sides are to be printed with the same image.

Fonts
Convert fonts to paths when possible. By converting fonts to paths in programs like Illustrator and FreeHand, you will avoid having to send the fonts with your files. When converting to paths, the text becomes a vector shape and will look no different than its original state.

In Photoshop, text can be rasterized and therefore does not need the fonts. Keep in mind that after rasterizing text, no changes can be made to it. Be sure that the document is at 300 dpi prior to rasterizing the text.

If your fonts are not converted to paths or rasterized, your design may not be viewed the way it was meant to be seen.

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Bleed, Trim & Safety

Bleed
About 1/8” on all sides will be trimmed off. Everything that extends past the original canvas size is considered a bleed. Make sure you do not have any important content in this area. Adjust your canvas size to compensate for this; allow another 1/8”.

Although our cutting staff is precise, we can not guarantee any print job cuts without the added bleed. Also, please keep your text at least 1/4" away from the edge of the piece unless it is an eighth page or smaller. This way your text is in a "safe" area.

Trim
The trim area is a space of 1/8" after the bleed. Its purpose is to separate any text or important content from the edge.

Safety
The safety area is the space where its "safe" to put your layout, design and content.

Size
Your print files should be designed in the size that is being ordered. We assume that you desire what you have ordered, and files will be re-sized in accordance to the job. We will not stretch and enlarge a file unless you request it. For example a 4.25" x 5.5" quarter page ordered as a 4"x6" postcard will print as a 4"x6".

Borders
If your job requires a border, please note that in order to have your border exact, we recommend AT LEAST a minimum of .25" on all sides. Although our cutters are specialists in their field, due to paper shift, we cannot guarantee it would be exactly balanced on all sides.

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Color Management

Color
There are two types of color spaces that are used for graphic and print design:

RGB
(Red, Green, Blue) These are the colors your monitor uses to display everything.

CMYK
(Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Black) These are the colors used for printing.

Color shifts are usually not visible in color photographs; however, rich and solid colors (like a background) can be affected by a color conversion. Most of the time, color shifts are minor and may not be noticeable.

Using the color BLACK

Rich Black
Large, solid black areas and text over 36 points should use Rich Black to prevent the color looking gray. Rich Black consists of 30% Cyan, 30% Magenta, 30% Yellow, 100% Black. For regular body text, do not use Rich Black.

4 Color Build Black
If you have small, thin text on your piece, it is strongly recommended that you do not use 4-color build black on your piece. Although using 4-color black is recommended on larger areas, 4-color text on small areas will make your text blurry and at times, unreadable.

If you use all 4 colors to create your black, they will not line-up precisely, creating a ghosting affect. Process printing uses 4 plates that overlay to make your full color spectrum on your paper. Although precise, the registration of the 4-plates will shift during the print process for offset printing.

This is especially evident on small text, or small lines 12pt and smaller. In order to fix this, we require that all small text be created as 100% black, 0% Cyan, 0% Magenta, 0% Yellow. This way, as plates shift, it will not affect the black color.

Please view this picture for an example.

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Instructions For Exporting From Design Programs

 

Quark Xpress®

• From the file menu in Quark, select: "Save page as EPS..."
• Name the file and press "Save".
• Open the Quark EPS file into Adobe Illustrator, "Select All" and go to the "Type" menu selection and "Create Outlines". All text on files must be converted to outlines with the outline set to zero to eliminate the need for fonts.
• Save file as Illustrator EPS with placed images included.
• Open Illustrator EPS file into Photoshop.
• In Photoshop, set the resolution to 300 dpi and mode to CMYK.
• Save files as "JPEG" or "TIF" with maximum quality.

Freehand®

• Go to "Edit"; "Select"; "All. Next, click on the menu selection "Text," then "Convert to Paths". All text within files must be converted to paths with the stroke set to zero to eliminate the need for fonts to be sent to us.
• Export file as EPS with placed images included.
• Open EPS file into Photoshop.
• In Photoshop, set the resolution to 300 dpi and mode to CMYK.
• Save files as "JPEG" or "TIF" with maximum quality.

Adobe Illustrator®

• In Illustrator "Select All" and go to the "Type" menu selection and "Create Outlines". All text within files must be converted to outlines with the outline set to zero to eliminate the need for fonts.
• Save file as Illustrator EPS with placed images included.
• Open Illustrator EPS file into Photoshop.
• In Photoshop, set the resolution to 300 dpi and mode to CMYK.
• Save files as "JPEG" or "TIF" with maximum quality.

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