Frequently Asked Questions

If you want your final document to have content that runs to the edge of the sheet, you will need to set your artwork up slightly bigger (usually 2mm on all edges). We then cut the excess content off to end up with the desired page size and all of the images will run (bleed) to the page’s edges. We usually also prefer to have crop marks included.

Crop marks are thin dashes that are included in the artwork which guide us to where the final cutting needs to go. These dashes are placed a bit away from the edges, so they get cut off without a trace. Any content that needs to bleed off the page will need to extend past where the crop marks indicate a cut.

Bitmapped images like .jpg, .png are described in the file as coloured dots to form an image. These dots will become more noticeable as you enlarge the image to beyond its optimal size. For images where fine detail is important, you should not stretch the image past 200 DPI (dots per inch). Most web images are usually around 72 DPI, but for images that will be seen from a distance, the lower DPI settings may still be okay.

We are fast, however some processes go through many stages before completion. Rest assured that if we commit to a deadline, we will do all that is humanly possible to complete your project by that time. We pride ourselves on that ethic, and we will never compromise quality along the way.

Colour management is a field on its own. Different display screens, print devices, paper stocks and even ambient lighting will all affect what your eyes see. To help us achieve more accurate colour, use the PMS colour standard for any corporate colours and convert all of your RGB images to CMYK. Talk to us if you are concerned about particular colours and we will work towards getting exactly what you want.

Some internet service providers do not allow large files to be emailed. Although they vary in size limits, most attachments will be okay below 10Mb. Any larger attachment may not get to us, and we’ll be unaware of its absence. If you need to send large files, it is best to use a free file transfer service such as ‘we transfer’. But please inform our team that you have used this alternative.

Your file should be print ready if you can answer YES to the questions below.

• Does the file have at least 2mm bleed?
• Have all fonts been embedded or outlined?
• Have you exported the file as a PDF with crop marks?
• is the resolution at least 150dpi at final size.

If you answered no to any of these, it is best to call us and discuss how you can get them fixed, or we can provide you with a quote and make the changes for you.

When you create your document, you have a huge range of fonts to choose from. Your font information is usually embedded into a PDF. However, if you cannot supply a PDF, we may not have the font in our system. The result will be a substituted font that will not look as you expected and may cause other layout issues. Outlining fonts is an option in most reputable design packages. This process removes the font dependency at our end.

Professional packages such as the “Adobe Creative Suite” are a strong choice if you have demanding design elements and experience using them. However, you may be using the Microsoft suite in your office environment and need to collaborate on documents regularly. If you supply us with PDFs of the final product, then it will not make much difference to us.