Print Image Blog

OK… The graphic designer does not get your drift, so you take the plunge and you are going to do your own print design.

Here are some of the biggest design mistakes you should avoid:

1. When doing a business card always print it out actual size. A 4 pt. font size is hard to read!
2. Always design with a safe cutting/folding margin in mind, these are there for good reasons.
3. How do we print to the edge of the page? Simple we don’t. We print on oversized paper and cut it after printing. The print over the edge of the finished piece is called a bleed… design with that in mind.
4. We don’t print RGB, that is the colour model used for screen display. Talk to us to ask what colour model to use. CMYK is commonly used for full colour printing or spot colours. Ask before you start the design.
   

   A tent (triangle) calendar

5. 100c 100m 100y 100k is not a valid colour, please show me which printing process lays down an ink coverage of 400%. Ask us about what is the correct rich black. Ask me why. DTP programme designers should not allow this as a option.  Rich black is specified differently for different types of printing so please check with us first.
6. The width called hairline is not a valid width and should be banned from all DTP programmes! Either use none or the next widest, because each print driver outputs it differently.
7. White or “knocked out” text should be done in bold or a bold font used. When you have a thin white line you get actual and optical closing of those lines so don’t use it.
8. In South Africa the standard size of business cards is 50mm x 90mm finished and klaar. The other sizes belong to other countries.
9. Although the Americans use “letter” size, we use the ISO “A” sizes. The common size is A4, “letter ” size should only be used in America and not in South Africa.
10. Most times less is more, and especially if you design your own artwork remember it will always be work in progress.
11. Only use one document or file for multipage prints… please don’t give us a file for each page, and we will impose. If you want business cards, we just want the front and back and not imposed. Each printshop will run a job differently especially for imposition.

Ask us how the artwork must be submitted and we will be happy to tell you.

While this will seem as not being customer friendly they are guidelines to make our interaction as fruitful as possible. If you have comments, no matter what side of the fence, let me know and I will change the post.