Checklist

How to properly create files

Every printed product has its own specific features, but you should always comply with a simple set of rules in order to have a perfect finished product:

File Format

The printable file must be provided in PDF format. If you have different files such as JPG, TIFF, WORD or POWERPOINT you can convert them to PDF using the free online service offered by Adobe and then upload them in the order.

Colour Model

Your layout shall always be in the CMYK colour model and the sum of the colour percentages shall not exceed 275%. Pantone colours shall be converted into CMYK, unless spot-colour print is specifically required.

The pictures and images shown in your layout shall be converted in CMYK too. In this way, you will be able to check the colour effect the conversion has (if you want to learn more about how to have correct colour previews, please read our guide on profiles). Please bear in mind that the images in CMYK will look less bright than the ones in RGB.

Resolution

The images you will include in your layout shall have a 300ppi resolution (for 70x100cm or bigger images the resolution can be 150ppi).

The chart below shows the reference sizes (in pixels) to create images with a suitable quality for printing:

Black in images

Black in texts

As for texts, it is essential that these are only made up of black K=100% - above all when the font size is less than 20pt.

	Cyan	Magenta	Yellow	Black
Black text	0%	0%	0%	100%

FONTS

Fonts shall be embedded or – alternatively – converted into paths. The failure to embed or convert fonts may result in unexpected outcomes during printing, because the characters which cannot be found are replaced.

LAYERS

If you are working on a file with different layers (e.g. Illustrator, InDesign, etc...), it is important to delete all the layers you do not want to be reproduced. Deleting the view may not be enough. We suggest you delete them completely, because - during rendering - some machines’ RIP may make them visible and consequently print them.

INTERNAL SECURITY MARGINS

Always check with our templates the internal security margins. Avoid placing important graphic elements outside them.

COMMENTS OR NOTES

If you're using the function "Comments" or adding "Notes" in the PDF, you must know that these won't be printed. That's because these functions are meant to be used for the exchange of indications and corrections and they're not really included in the print file.

PATH

Do not use strokes that are less than 0.3pt wide on a white background; on a black or coloured background, instead, the minimum is 0.5pt. With the stroke colour we suggest not to go below 50% Black.

EMBEDDED IMAGES

All the images used in the layout shall be embedded in the document. This applies especially to Adobe Illustrator® Read Adobe’s User Guide on how to embed images. If you do not manage to do it yourself, please attach a .zip folder containing the images used to the order.

Transparency

In most cases opacity and blend mode are correctly read by modern RIPs for printing, but it can rarely happen that these are differently reproduced compared with what we see on screen. To avoid any surprise, our suggestion is to melt elements that interact between themselves in a single object (images, texts or vectors) through blend mode's methods as multiply, overlay, etc. This way we'll avoid unpleasant surprises after printing.

OVERPRINT

In order to avoid unexpected outcomes, always use the Overprint Preview mode in order to check that the objects set for overprint by mistake – especially, white elements or very light ones – will disappear during printing.

Right: White Element in Knockout

Wrong: White Element with Overprint