We will do our best to make your digital files print as you expect regardless of how they are prepared. The following information should help you prepare digital files successfully. These suggestions will also help save money on individual jobs, keep our prices low, and keep your project on schedule.

Proofreading

Be sure to proofread your job before sending it to us, checking your copy carefully for spelling, grammar, and content accuracy. If we are providing a proof, please review it carefully.

For all external products, Public Relations provides free editorial services, as well as a final proofreading before your job goes to print.

File information

When submitting a file, provide the name of the file to be printed and the name and version of the software used to create the file.

Printout/Separations

Always send a printout of your file when submitting your job.

Page Size

Be sure to create your files with the same page size as the finished printed piece.

Appropriate Software

Choose appropriate software to create your job. Use a page layout program like Illustrator or InDesign to create your work. If you are using Microsoft programs such as Word or PowerPoint, save your files as pdf to make your files usable.

Art/Scans/Graphic Files

Provide all of the original art files along with the page layout file. Always place art in the file in a manner that will create a link to the original art, rather than pasting art into your file. Do not store or embed images into InDesign or Illustrator. Supply all embedded tiffs and linked EPS for Illustrator and Freehand files.

Image Resolution/Scale/Rotation

Use proper image resolution. The DPI should always be two times the LPI times the percentage placed. For example, if the LPI is 150, the DPI should be 300 when placed at 100 percent.

Do not attempt to increase the resolution of an image in Photoshop. This will give you false resolution and may print substandard quality.

A rotated or skewed image within a picture box can cause a distortion of image quality. We recommend you rotate your image in the application in which it was created.

Image Types

Save scans as TIFF format as much as possible. Outlines and duotones in Photoshop can only be saved as EPS files. Do not use Index Color or JPEG files. Images must be in CMYK mode for four color process printing. Convert RGB or Lab files to CMYK.

Fonts

Please include all fonts used in the document, including fonts used in working files. Include screen fonts with all corresponding printer fonts. It is generally accepted that mixing fonts on a page (using Type 1 along with TrueType) can cause unexpected results. We recommend using only Type 1 fonts.

Menu Styles
Avoid styling text with the application's Style Bar. This is generally not a problem if the font supports the style and a printer font exists.

City/System Fonts
Most fonts named after cities, such as Geneva or Chicago, are commonly TrueType fonts and should be avoided. If you use Multi Master fonts that have been edited, the complete set of fonts must be supplied in order to achieve the desired type attribute.

Non Adobe fonts
Mixing various types of fonts on a page can lead to unwanted or unexpected output problems. These issues can be avoided by creating your document using corporation fonts, such as Adobe.

Colors

Use the same color in your file that will be used in printing. For example, if you want Pantone 200 ink, do not use "red", use PMS 200. Confirm that all Pantone colors have corresponding tags, i.e., CV, CVU, CVC. For example, if a file is assigned Pantone 282 CV and another file is Pantone 282 CVC, two separate plates will be output.

Remove all unused colors.

RGB colors will work for digital color copying.