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We support both Macintosh and IBM-compatible computers. We can read 3.5" floppy disks, 100 MB Zip disks, Compact Discs and DVDs formatted for either platform. We can also download files from USB "Flash" drives, iPods and digital cameras. (If you want us to download images from your iPod or digital camera, please bring the Firewire or USB cable along.) We cannot read 250MB Zip disks. We do not support obsolete storage devices such as Syquest drives or 5.5" disks.
We can output files created in most common page-layout and office applications. The following is a list of the ones we support. Note: please ensure that your documents are saved so as to be compatible with the programs listed here. Earlier versions of these programs (Quark 4, Microsoft Word 98, etc.) will work just fine. Later versions, though, need to be re-saved in the older format. For example, if you have Microsoft Publisher 2003, it would be necessary to save it as a Publisher 2002 file for us to use it.
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Adobe Illustrator CS2: See "Special Instructions for Adobe Illustrator". Adobe InDesign CS2: If you're creating PDFs with this program, please use the "Press Quality" preset. Adobe Pagemaker 7: Mac version up to 7; PC version up to 6.5 (.P65). Adobe Photoshop CS2: See "Raster Graphics" and "Special Instructions for Photoshop Users". Appleworks 6: Macintosh only. See "Special Notes for Office Applications". |
Microsoft Excel 2000: See "Special Notes for Office Applications". Microsoft PowerPoint: Version 97 SR-1 or earlier is acceptable. See "Special Notes for Office Applications". Microsoft Publisher 2002: See "Special Instructions for Microsoft Publisher". Microsoft Word 2000: See "Special Notes for Office Applications". Quark XPress 6.5: Preferred format. Please use the "Collect for Output..." command to send us all the fonts and graphics along with your Quark layout. |
PDFs: Many desktop publishing programs can save files in Adobe's PDF (Portable Document Format) format. We can use these files, but they must be set up correctly. If you're using Acrobat Distiller to create PDFs, select "Press" under "Job Options" for best results. Black-and-white files will generally work as is. If your piece is in color, though, we can't reproduce it in color unless we output it to our color copier. This is only economical for small quantities. The other alternative is to print the job's color separations to a PDF. If you choose to do this, please make sure the separations come out correctly before you send us the file. If you are not sure how to create a color-separated PDF, consult your software manual. |
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"Office Applications" include software that's part of the Microsoft Office suite, including Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, and Excel. It also includes Appleworks on Macintosh computers and many inexpensive consumer-level programs like Microsoft Home Publisher. The main issue with these programs is that they don't support color separations, which limits how the files can be reproduced. If you need a document printed in a single color, it's not a problem. However, if it contains more than one color, the only way to produce a color output is to print them off on our color copier. This may be a good solution for small quantities, but it's too expensive for large ones. Please keep these limitations in mind when using these applications.
This program can produce high-quality pieces if it's used right. Here's a few tips to getting professional results out of this program by using the Commercial Printing Tools feature:
Color Specification: When your Publisher document is finished and you're preparing to send it to us, select "Tools" from the top menu bar, select "Commercial Printing Tools", then select "Color Printing...". Then select from the options displayed.
If the document is going to be printed with a single color ink, choose "Single color publication". If we're outputting the document on our color copier, choose "Composite RGB". If you want a document with two or three colors (usually it's black ink and one or two color inks), choose "Spot color(s)...". This will allow you to add or delete solid colors that you can then apply to borders, text and graphics throughout the document. And, these will separate correctly for reproduction on a printing press. When you choose the Spot Colors option, select "Add..." under "Selected Spot Colors". A dialog box will pop up; choose "Pantone®" under "Color model", and you can select the exact ink you want to use. You can also specify one of our free second color inks this way.
Fonts: Select "Tools" from the top menu bar, select "Commercial Printing Tools" and then "Fonts...". Check "Embed TrueType fonts when saving publication". UNCHECK "Do not embed common system fonts, and also uncheck "Subset fonts when embedding". That's it!
Graphics: Again, select "Tools" from the top menu bar and select "Commercial Printing Tools". Select "Graphics Manager..". This will bring up a list of all the images used in the publication. Under "Placement", all the graphics should be listed as Embedded. If they're listed as "Linked", hit the "Break Link..." button, select "Embed the full-resolution graphic", and hit OK.
Color Specification: If the artwork you're creating will be output on our color copier, the document color mode should be RGB. Otherwise, please select "Document Color Mode" under the File menu and set it to "CMYK Color". If you want to specify Pantone® colors, please use Pantone® colors (under "Window" on the top menu bar, select "Swatch Libraries" and then "Pantone Coated").
Fonts: To avoid problems with text reflow and font compatibility, it's best to convert any type used in a vector illustration to shapes before you send it to us. Just go to "Select" from the top menu bar, choose "All", then select "Create Outlines" from the "Type" menu. This step is especially important if you're going to be placing the illustration in a page layout program like Quark or Pagemaker.If you are creating an entire layout in Illustrator and want to be able to edit text, you may choose not to convert the text to curves, but please include a copy of the fonts used with your file.
We can accept files in native Photoshop (.psd) format. It is not necessary to flatten layers before sending it to us. However, if you have a type layer in your document, please save the file as a Photoshop EPS first. This will prevent text reflow and compatibility problems on our end.
If the image is a single-color "line art" type image, convert it to Bitmap mode ("Image" on the top menu bar, select "Bitmap" under the "Mode" submenu). To make a nice sharp image, the resolution should not be below 600 dots per inch at actual size. Please see the notes on "Raster Graphics" for additional information.
Color Matching: You can submit any Photoshop files in RGB color mode. We will convert them to CYMK mode on this end as necessary. For ColorSyncª users: please DO embed color profiles in your documents. If you're creating an image for four-color (CMYK) printing, you can use the "U.S. Sheetfed Coated v2" profile for your working space and proofing profile. If you're creating an image in RGB mode for output on our color copier, you can use the ICC profile for our color copier as your proofing profile. Our color copier is a Lanier LD160c.
Raster Graphics"Raster" graphics are images made up of pixels or "dots". This includes all photographs captured with scanners or digital cameras. For use on printed materials, this is how to obtain the best results:
Size/resolution: images should be resized to the size they will actually be on the printed piece. For a photographic-type image, the resolution should not be below 180 dots per inch. (NOTE: pictures that appear on internet Web pages are usually at a resolution of 72 or 96 dots per inch, and will NOT reproduce well in print...unless they will be printed at a considerably smaller size.) On the other hand, resolutions above 266 dots per inch don't improve image quality; they just increase the file size unnecessarily. A good rule of thumb is to save your images at 300 dots per inch. 180 is acceptable. Anything much below that will appear jagged in print.
For single-color or "line art"-type images (similar to old-fashioned woodcuts), the image resolution should be at least 600 dots per inch. Anything above 1200 dots per inch is overkill.
Colors: if a color photograph will be printed in black and white, it's better to convert it to a grayscale image first. This makes the file size smaller, making it faster to e-mail and print, and it also gives you a better idea of what the finished product will look like.
File Formats: if your software gives you a choice, the best formats for printing purposes are TIF and EPS. We can also use files saved in GIF, PICT, BMP, or JPG format. We would, however, not recommend the use of JPGs or GIFs for print purposes if you can avoid it, because those formats sacrifice image quality to make the size of the files smaller.
"Vector" graphics are images created by drawing programs like Adobe Illustrator, Corel Draw or Freehand. The images are made up of mathematically-defined shapes, not dots. The practical upshot is that these graphics print out clean and sharp at any size.
Colors: illustration programs usually allow precise color control. If you're designing something to be output on our color copier, specify the colors as Red-Green-Blue (RGB) numbers. If it's for full-color production on a press, specify Cyan-Magenta-Yellow-Black (CMYK) colors. If the piece will be printed in one, two or three "spot" colors, specify them as Pantone® colors. (Black should be defined as CMYK black.)
File Formats: we use Adobe Illustrator CS2 and can open files saved in its native format (.AI). If you're using some other vector program, such as Freehand, please save your artwork as EPS or Windows Metafiles (.WMF).
We print FREE second colors on different days of the week. If you want to take advantage of this, you can specify these colors in your file. They are: Pantone® 221 (Wine), Pantone® 185 (Red), Pantone® 286 (Blue), Pantone® 470 (Brown), and Pantone® 347 (Green).
VERY IMPORTANT!!! Please include, with the file you submit, copies of all the fonts used in the document. There are various ways to do this; see "Special Instructions" for the software you're using.
Our library includes all the fonts in the Adobe Font Folio collection, and the ones included with Nova Development's Gold Edition "Art Explosion" clip art package. You don't need to bother sending us copies of these fonts with your documents.
You may submit electronic files to us as e-mail attachments. If you're not sure how to do this, consult your mail program's manual or online help. If possible, files should be compressed as StuffIt (.SIT) or WinZip (.ZIP) files before sending, and e-mailed to art@imageprintingmn.com. If this is your first order with us, please contact customer service person by phone or e-mail (info@imageprintingmn.com) before attempting to transfer any files. We want to make sure we know what you want, and it also helps us avoid delays if we know about the job in advance.
If you need more information, please to call or email us during our regular business hours.
© 2007 Image Printing & Graphics • 763-784-6199 • All rights reserved.