Design Best Practices

1. Start With the Correct Document Size

Your document should be created at the finished size of the product you are ordering. If the product requires bleed, your artwork may need to extend beyond the finished size by the specified bleed amount.

Avoid designing at a different size and simply scaling the artwork during export. Scaling can affect text, images, spacing, and the amount of bleed in your file.

2. Understand Bleed

Bleed is the extra artwork that extends beyond the final trim edge of a printed piece. It allows backgrounds, colours, and images to extend fully to the edge of the finished product.

Bleed is not required for every product. Whether you need to include bleed depends on the specific product you are ordering and how that product is produced.

3. Keep Important Content Away From the Edge

Cutting is a physical process, and small variations can occur. For this reason, important information should not be positioned directly against the trim edge.

As a general guideline, keep important text, logos, faces, and other critical elements approximately 0.25" (6.35 mm) inside the finished trim edge.

• Keep important text approximately 0.25" (6.35 mm) inside the finished edge.
• Keep logos and important graphics away from the trim.
• Avoid placing borders extremely close to the edge.
• Keep faces and other important parts of photographs away from the trim.

4. Use High-Resolution Images

Images used for print should have sufficient resolution for the size at which they will be printed.

5. Pay Attention to Colour

Colours displayed on your monitor are produced using light, while printed colours are produced using ink or toner. Because of this, the colour you see on screen may not exactly match the final printed result.

6. Be Careful With Black

Not all black is created the same way. Depending on the type of artwork and printing process, different black constructions can produce different results.

7. Use Fonts Carefully

Fonts can cause problems when artwork is moved between computers or exported incorrectly.

• Use fonts that are properly licensed for your project.
• Avoid using fonts that are missing from your document.
• Check your text after exporting your final PDF.
• When appropriate, embed fonts or convert text to outlines according to your software's recommended print workflow.

8. Be Careful With Transparency and Effects

Transparency, drop shadows, blending modes, filters, gradients, and other special effects can sometimes behave differently during PDF export or RIP processing.

9. Check Your Layout

Before exporting your artwork, look at the entire design as a finished printed piece rather than focusing only on individual elements.

• Check alignment and spacing.
• Make sure nothing important is accidentally cut off.
• Check that images and backgrounds extend far enough into the 0.125" (3.175 mm) bleed when required.
• Keep important content approximately 0.25" (6.35 mm) from the trim edge.
• Make sure borders and thin lines are positioned intentionally.
• Check front and back artwork separately.
• Review every page of multi-page documents.

10. Export Your Artwork Correctly

For many print products, PDF is the preferred file format. When exporting your artwork, use the PDF settings recommended for your specific product.

If your product requires bleed, make sure the exported PDF includes the required 0.125" (3.175 mm) bleed. If your product does not require bleed, do not add extra bleed simply for the sake of making the file larger.

11. Multi-Page Documents

Books, brochures, booklets, calendars, and other multi-page products require additional attention.

• Make sure all pages are included.
• Make sure pages are in the correct order.
• Check page orientation throughout the document.
• Check the first and last pages carefully.
• Make sure the total page count meets the product requirements.
• Check that the 0.125" (3.175 mm) bleed is applied consistently where required.

12. Think Carefully About Borders

Borders placed close to the edge of a printed piece can make small trimming variations much more noticeable.

13. Always Review Your Proof

If a proof is provided for your order, take the time to review it carefully before approving the job.

• Check all spelling and contact information.
• Check images and logos.
• Check page order and orientation.
• Check colours and overall appearance.
• Check the size and layout.
• Make sure the proof represents what you want printed.

Final Pre-Flight Checklist

Before uploading your artwork to PrintVie.com, check the following:

A Final Reminder