General FAQ

Your artwork files should be at 300 dpi.

Low-resolution files may be printed as is or will be placed on hold until we receive new files, slowing your turn-around.

Bleed must extend past the cut-line and will be trimmed from the product during the final cutting phase. When the image is required to extend all the way to the edge, bleed is needed to preserve the finished look and the quality of the final product.

Please keep all text at least 0.125" inside the cut-line.

• The bleed for Standard Products is 0.125".
• The bleed for Booklets and Presentation Folders is 0.25".
• For Grand4mat Products, please see the G4Mat FAQs for individual substrate guides.

Yes, but if the border is too close to the cutline, it may be cut off-center slightly.

We cut through many sheets at a time, so watch your borders to avoid an unwanted mistake.

Any transparency issue can be resolved before saving your file.

What a transparency problem looks like on screen... After a transparency problem is printed...

To prevent this, never use shadows, glows, or any other transparency (image or otherwise) on top of a spot color. Always convert your spot color to CMYK and flatten before sending.

SHADOWS, GLOWS, TRANSPARENCY

All of these effects will cause transparency problems.

When sending artwork, do not send extra files, like proofs or samples, because they might get printed. Only send the files you need printed.

We are not responsible for these kinds of files being printed. Unless requested by one of our employees, DO NOT send files that you do not want printed.

Primarily used to intentionally overlap inks for a number of reasons, overprint can cause unexpected results. We suggest that you turn all overprint objects off before submitting your files.

In this case, the logo was set to overprint. The colors in the logo are mixing with the colors in the background. Unexpected results may occur if you have accidentally set certain objects to overprint. Always check logos and other artwork before submitting.

White Type - Another common file setup error is using overprint for white type. If you are using white type and set it to overprint, it will result in the type "dropping off" the printed piece.

Our preflight system will give you a warning that indicates you have elements that are set to overprint. In order to prevent the type from dropping off in your printed piece, we recommend you turn off all type set to overprint. What can also solve this issue will be to flatten all the layers in your file and convert any Pantone and RGB colors to CMYK before submitting your files.

We only except seperate files for each side of your job. Please note, if you send us both sides on the same artwork your job will not print correctly.

2 FILES – 1FR, 1BK / 1 FILE – FR&,BK

When using a blue in your design, always make sure to leave at least a 30% difference in your Cyan and Magenta .

100% C 100% M 0% Y 0% K

Blue is close to purple in the CMYK spectrum. Remember, use a low amount of magenta whenever using high amounts of cyan to avoid purple.

Example: C-100 M-70 Y-0 k-0

Grayscale images that are converted to CMYK will have a color shift in the final print. That shift may be green or yellow.

Always check the CMYK of your grayscale in the final CMYK document. If there are other other than K in your grayscale image, there is a chance that the color will vary.

To eliminate all other than K, use your Channel Mixer (adjustment layer) in Photoshop, then click "Monochrome" and adjust accordingly.

Rich black is an ink mixture of solid black, 100% K, with additional CMY ink . This results in a darker tone than black ink alone. If you print black alone as 100% K, the resulting black may not be as dark as you might like.

We recommend using C 60 M 40 Y 40 K 100. This will give you a deep, dark, rich black.

*Products that are printed with dye-sublimation (9oz Premium Polyester Banner, Flags, Table Covers, Fabric Tube Displays, etc.) call for the following color :

C 100 M 100 Y 100 K 100

Cracking of the edges of a business card sometimes occurs when the card contains high ink, as in dark colors.

This usually happens on a small amount of cards in the run. To prevent this, use lighter colors or if you must use dark colors, use as little ink as possible.

Many things can cause banding. Banding can be caused by the program that it is exported from, such as Indesign or Corel. Also, too many gradient steps, for example going from a very light color to a dark color, in a small area will cause banding. To prevent this, check your digital files before sending them. If you use a gradient, make sure it has enough room for a smooth transition.

When a job is coated with UV then scored and folded the job may begin to crack. During use, the cracks will become bigger and the ink may start to chip off. Cracking is normal when coated jobs are scored and folded. Ordering the job without UV will help but may not prevent this. As the job is used and folded more and more, cracking will eventually happen.