Browse through our catalogs or specials to find great deals on great products.
It's not about file formats. . .
It's about QUALITY! Think about what makes "camera-ready" artwork acceptable: it's not the kind of artboard, ink or tissue used. The artwork's acceptability is its quality. Likewise, the standards for electronic artwork files are based on the quality of the files. Whether it's TIFF, EPS or any other format matters less than the way the file is prepared for the supplier's printing process.
Mechanical Artwork
The traditional standard for acceptable mechanical artwork is "camera-ready black and white" material. Typically, anything of a lesser quality may be subject to extra charges.
Vector Artwork Files
Vector artwork files must be written in the Postscript™ language. Files can contain no Postscript™ errors, stray points or colors assigned to elements in a manner inconsistent with the supplier's published requirements.
Any type set on paths must be converted to Postscript™ outlines (curves). If additional or future typesetting is anticipated or type left unconverted, the font files must also be supplied for use on the supplier's specified computer platform (operating system).
Any line thickness must exceed the supplier's minimum when the artwork is scaled to the actual imprint size. Files with any placed, parsed or linked elements require certain additional criteria described in the standard for "metafiles."
The art work file(s) should be accompanied by a printed proof, or its electronic equivalent, which communicates to the supplier the desired result of the use of the e-artwork file(s).
Bitmap Artwork Files
Bitmap files should render images at 100 percent of actual imprint size.
Images that contain halftones, tints, grayscales or are intended for process color separation should have a bitmap resolution (pixels-per-inch) that is a multiple of no less than 150 to 200 percent of the line screen frequency specified by the printing process.
Images that contain line art or areas of solid color should have a bitmap resolution (pixels-per-inch) of no less than the supplier's specified minimum.
Unless suppliers specifically request CMYK files, the color space of images submitted for process color separation should remain in the native RGB color space to permit suppliers to apply their own separation setup preferences.
The artwork file(s) should be accompanied by a printed proof, or its electronic equivalent, which communicates to the supplier the desired result of the use of the e-artwork file(s).
Page Layout Documents
Page layout documents must be prepared to render the artwork and/or other elements to be printed at a scale of 100 percent of the actual imprint size.
In addition to submitting the page layout document(s), there must also be the submission of all vector
and/or bitmap files that are referenced by the page layout document.
The font files and document preferences necessary to properly render any text in the page layout file must also be supplied for use on the supplier's specified computer platform (operating system).
The page layout file(s) should be accompanied by a printed proof, or its electronic equivalent, which communicates to the supplier the desired result of the use of the page layout file(s).
Metafile Artwork Files
Any metafiles that make reference to externally linked or imported images must be submitted together with those separate elements.
All vector elements in the metafile must comply with the quality standard for vector files. All bitmap elements must comply with the quality standard for bitmap files.
The artwork components in the metafile should be submitted at 100 percent of the actual imprint size. When rendered at 100 percent scale, the bitmap elements in the metafile must comply with quality standard for bitmap files.
The artwork file(s) must be accompanied by a printed proof or its electronic equivalent, which communicates to the supplier the desired result of the use of the e-artwork file(s).
Acrobat (PDF) Files
PDF files created from vector files must be suitable for reverse-conversion to vector files or for use in the PDF format such that the file meets the quality standard for vector files.
PDF files created from bitmap files must be suitable for reverse-conversion to bitmap files or for use in the PDF format such that the file meets the quality standard for bitmap files.
PDF files created from metafiles or page layout documents should be submitted together with the source document, all fonts and imported graphic components unless the supplier specifically waives these requirements.
PDF files are acceptable as proofs (both for submission of the order to the supplier and pre-production examination by the distributor and customer)subject to the limitations of the Adobe PDF file format and any other limitations published by the supplier
Other Than Above
Unless digital files satisfy the readiness standards for vector files, bitmap files, metafiles, page layout files or PDF files - or they are otherwise specified as acceptable by a particular supplier - those digital files DO NOT meet the readiness standards for e-artwork.
E-mail Guidelines
Before sending any artwork file, you should use compression software to protect it from damage-in-transit. Compression can make large files smaller to decrease the online time, but the more important benefit is the way it encloses the delicate artwork files inside a file type that was designed for proper transmittal.
The two most popular compression formats are "zip" and "sit." (Do not confuse "zip" with the popular Iomega-brand disks fo the same name.) Each compression format is also capable of creating "self-expanding" editions with the file extension "exe" (for Windows only) and "sea" (for Macintosh only).
Compression software varies in price and is frequently updated to keep pace with evolving operating systems. A convenient Website you can use to obtain these utilities is www.download.com where you can read user reviews, compare prices and features, and select the version most suitable for your use. Another popular site is Aladdin Systems, found at www.aladdinsys.com.
Email artwork to: artwork@lwbarrett.com