Artwork Requirements

We have listed the most important requirements for the preparation of your artwork.

  • File Types

    PDF files should in all cases be supplied.

  • Colours

    Colours must be set to CMYK (Cyan, Magenta, Yellow and Black) this is because these are the colours used in the printing process. The colours used to display your artwork on screen are made up of Red, Green and Blue (RGB) and it is not always possible to match the RGB colour range with CMYK. If you supply us RGB artwork we will convert it to CMYK but the colours may not be as you might expect!

  • Image Resolution

    PDF files that include images need to have a minimum resolution of 300 dpi (dots per inch), if not the images may appear pixilated or unclear. Image resolution for the web only requires 72 dpi which can look perfectly acceptable on screen or when printed on a desk top printer but are not generally suitable for professional printing.

  • Fonts

    All fonts should be embedded in your PDF file. This is to make sure that the font(s) you used in the creation of your artwork are replicated when printed. If you do not embed the fonts, the fonts will be substituted and may not match those used in your artwork! When you create your PDF the fonts are generally embedded but please check before sending us your PDF(s).

  • Bleed

    Bleed refers to printing that goes beyond the edge of the media after trimming. The bleed is the part on the side of your document that gives us that small amount of space to move around paper and design inconsistencies. If for example, you want the background of your business card to be entirely red, you must extend or bleed the background beyond the edge of the final size of your business card. This also applies to images that you want to extend to the edge of your media. If you do not add bleed you may end up with a fine white line down one or more edges of your print! Please include at least 3.0mm bleed on each side of your artwork. Please also make sure you keep your text a few millimetres from the edge of your artwork.

  • Booklet Files

    Files to be supplied as single pages.