Prepress Guide by Exaprint

MEET OUR TEAMP.2

A WORD FROM THE TEAM EDITORIAL This prepress guide is aimed at all creators of print ready artwork, to ensure you're equipped to send your orders to print with total peace of mind.Inside, you’ll find all the information you need to prepare your documentsfor printing: colour management, recommended formats, how toprepare your images, page layout, typefaces, and our recommendedsoftware for your print projects. Produced by our Exaprint experts, this guide will introduce you to some advanced DTP principles that will allow you to optimise your designs and ensure a flawless finished product! The EXAPRINT team www.exaprint.co.uk P.3

CONTENTS 3 12/15 A WORD FROM THE TEAM COLOUR MANAGEMENT Configuring the colour settings in all your applications ............................................P13 Downloading and installing icc profiles .......................P13 Converting your images to CMYK ....................................P14 Calibrating your monitors ..........................................................P14 6/9 EXAPRINT6 reasons to place your trust in the best.....................P.7 RESELLER TOOLS 16/19My Exa ..............................................................................................................P.8 PDF/X FORMATExaclub ............................................................................................................P.9 The 3 basic principles ......................................................................P.17 Download and install PDF settings ..................................P.17 Export to pdfx1a-2001 format ...............................................P.18 Display PDFs correctly ..................................................................P.18P.4

CONTENTS 20/25 Ben-day ...........................................................................................................P.30 Monitoring ink coverage ..............................................................P.30 FLAWLESS IMAGES Watermark images ..............................................................................P.33 Overprinting ..............................................................................................P.33Graphics frames ....................................................................................P.21 Customised format ............................................................................P.34Originals .........................................................................................................P.21 Front/reverse ...........................................................................................P.34Image resolution ...................................................................................P.21 Keylines and finishing specifications ...............................P.34Image mode ...............................................................................................P.21 Die-cutting tools ..................................................................................P.37Saving images ...........................................................................................P.22 Spot varnishing .......................................................................................P.37Image magnification .........................................................................P.22 Brochures: Folios and pagination .......................................P.38Moiré ..................................................................................................................P.22 Brochures: Right and left pages ..............................................P.38Gradients and banding .......................................................................P.22 40 26/39 TYPEFACES LAYOUT Vectorising your text .......................................................................P.41Bleed ..................................................................................................................P.26 Fonts ..................................................................................................................P.41Quiet zones ................................................................................................P.26Borders ............................................................................................................P.26 42Rich Black .....................................................................................................P.29Blue ......................................................................................................................P.29 RECOMMENDED SOFTWARESimulating gold and silver in 4-colour mode .........P.29Yellow ................................................................................................................P.30 44/46Chestnut and Chocolate brown ..........................................P.30 TECHNICAL GLOSSARY Find the definitions of words in italics and colour in the glossary. P.5

SHOWCASE YOUR ARTWORK We provide a free mock-up library to help you see and present how your finished product will look in real life. This image is just one of the dozens of PSDs we provide. Visit exaprint.co.uk for more details.P.6

EXAPRINTEXAPRINTThe printer of choice for the print and creativecommunities since 1998.Eighteen years ago, Exaprint came up 3 REASONS TOwith an innovative concept: printing PLACE YOUR TRUSTservices aimed exclusively at resellers. – White label as standardNow, with 45,000 active customers, We’re 100% dedicated to workingExaprint leads the European market exclusively with the tradein the online sale of communicationproducts to marketing and graphic — One stop shopdesign professionals including flyers, With over 3 million productleaflets, business cards, brochures, combinations, we've got all yourstands, POS, banners, posters, etc. Our print outsourcing needs covered.vision: to provide you with an onlineorder platform backed by industrial ˜ Reseller toolsproduction sites, so that you can o er Large range of sample packyour customers high-quality print and demonstrator kits, whiteat the most competitive prices. label catalogues, flipbooks, PSD mockup collection...ALL INCLUSIVE PRICING*Free prepress Free delivery Quality assured We’re on hand checks throughout the UK money back for any guarantee questions*See conditions on exaprint.co.uk P.7

EXAPRINTRESELLER TOOLSTo help you win over your customers, we have developeda set of white-label sales tools that can be customisedwith your company branding.CUSTOMISED FULLY SAMPLES ANDPRICE LISTS. CUSTOMISABLE DEMONSTRATOR A4 CATALOGUE KITSGenerate a customisedprice list using MyExa. Want to bring a paper To fulfill our aim of helpingChoose a product family, copy to help seal the resellers reach out toselect the relevant deal at client meetings? the market, we haveproducts and then Order our 12 page A5 created an excitingadd your margin as a saddle stitched mini range of white labelnumber or percentage. catalogue, containing demonstrator kits:Your customised price full details on all of our packaging demo kit,list will be generated in products. The content sticker rolls and morepdf, csv, or html format and four cover pages sample packs areso that it can be easily are fully customisable. available on our website.added to your website.P.8

EXAPRINTAND MUCH MORE!Let us become your preferred print provider: your loyaltywill be rewarded.ONE STOP SHOP CLIENT STATUSES EXACLUBWith over 3 million Based on the number of Don't forget to checkproduct combinations, orders processed via out our Exaclubwe’ve got all your exaprint.co.uk over a loyalty scheme:print outsourcing certain period of time, Increase your spendneeds covered. you will be granted a with us each month to status: SILVER, GOLD, gain access to rebates or PLATINUM. for the following month. This will give you access Find out more at: to a variety of marketing exaprint.co.uk/exaclub services and tools at preferential prices – to name just a few benefits! P.9

TITREP.10

TITREPREPRESSOur top tips for optimisingyour designs P.11

TITRE – — ˜P.12

COLOUR MANAGEMENTCOLOUR MANAGEMENTDTP software settings, paper type, and print finishes(lamination, varnish, etc.) all have an impact oncolour rendering.CONFIGURING THE COLOUR DOWNLOAD AND INSTALLSETTINGS IN ALL YOUR ICC PROFILESAPPLICATIONS To access the ECI icc profile pack, visit www.eci.org. We recommend thatBefore synchronising colours using you use ISO Coated v2 or Fogra 39LAdobe Bridge™, open one of your for all our materials and products.Adobe™ applications to define someinitial settings (Edit Menu>Colours). For PC:In Acrobat, you can find this option Right click > Install a profilein the preferences section. (C:/WINDOWS/System32/ Spool/Drivers/Color)– Select a commonly used RGBprofile such as sRGB or a profile For Mac:with a large gamut such as ECI- Download to Library/ColorSync/ProfilesRGB-V2 or AdobeRGB1998, or a (or the Library folder specific to each user)profile suited to your input device(digital camera, for example)— For the profile, choose ISO Coatedv2,Fogra 39L or Fogra 39, which are alltailored for sheet-fed o set and digitalprinting on coated paper (CoatedFogra 27 may also be used).˜ Save these settings so they canbe loaded into Adobe Bridge™where you can synchronise all yourAdobe™ applications in one go. P.13

COLOUR MANAGEMENTCONVERTING YOUR CALIBRATING YOUR SCREENIMAGES TO CMYK Consider the lighting in yourWe recommend using the “Convert o ce, avoid direct light and, in theto profile” function in Adobe absence of standardised lighting,Photoshop™ (“Edit” menu). opt for daylight (di use).You could use this function, for Linearisation/Basic calibration:example, with the ISO Coated V2 Make sure you have a high-quality300 profile in order to set the ink graphic design monitor and a colourcoverage for an image to 300%. calibrator, then launch the procedure with a white point of between 5000 andYou can play around with the attribution 6500K, a Gamma of 1.8, and brightnessor conversion functions depending of between 100 and 140 cd/m2.on your preferences. The importantthing is that you end up with a CMYK Pro calibration (ISO12646 standard):conversion using, or based on, a To display colours in accordancerecommended CMYK profile (ISO Coated, with ISO12647-2, you’ll need aFogra 39, Euroscale Coated, etc.) monitor that comes with calibration hardware and software, anIf you prefer to work in RGB EyeOnePro spectrophotometer andwe can perform the colour a certification tool (UDACT).space conversion for you.Just be aware that if you don’t Example: NEC SpectraView :associate any profile with your White point: 5800°K / Gammaimages and objects, we will use the 1.8 / brightness : 120 cd/m2ECI RGB V2 profile to perform theconversion to ISO Coated V2 300. To discuss these topics, and get some expert advice, drop us an email: prepress@ exaprint.co.ukP.14

TITREConvert to profile P.15

Add a proof to your order GOOD TO KNOW To check the colour before printing, opt for the Fogra prepress proof (UGRA/Fogra contract colour proof compliant with ISO 12647-7). Our certification systems are calibrated and checked regularly to ensure that they comply with ISO 12647-7 (ISO Coated v2 or Coated Fogra 39 profiles). Each proof includes a UGRA/Fogra MediaWedge to allow verification of compliance.P.16

PDF/X FORMATPDF/X FORMATIn the context of the ISO 15930 standard, werecommend that you provide us with a PDFx1a-2001 file,although we also accept PDF/x3 and PDF/x4 (as well asvarious other PDF formats for printing)THE 3 BASIC PRINCIPLES DOWNLOADING AND– You can use the PDF/x-1a-2001 INSTALLING THE PDF SETTINGSprofiles that we have made available onour website (or those published by the Visit www.gwg.org to downloadGhent PDF WorkGroup - www.gwg.org). the PDFx1a settings pack thatAdd the ISO Coated v2 profile as corresponds to your software andthe destination/output profile. its version (Adobe™ and Quark™).— We ask that you respect the usual GWG sheet-fed digital/o set:industry quality standards, such as the SheetCmyk_1v4standards for image resolution, bleed, and GWG large format digital:colour selection (do not use Pantone© or CmykVeryHiRes_1v4other spot colours for 4-colour printing), Exaprint sheet-fed digital/o set:as well as specific constraints relating EXAPRINT-PDFx1a-O setto the product you are working on. Exaprint large format digital: EXAPRINT-PDFx1a-GdF˜ Check your PDFs via a soft proof,i.e. on the screen (you can also use Install from File>Adobe PDF Presetsa printed proof). This is an essential EXPORT TO PDFX1A-2001 FORMATstep. Don’t forget to simulateoverprinting content, as that’s howthe document will appear whenprinted (use Adobe Acrobat™ only). P.17

PDF/X FORMATEXPORT TO DISPLAYING PDFs CORRECTLYPDFX1A-2001 FORMAT – Once your PDF is open in– When reducing the file Acrobat, display the output previewsize, we recommend that you (Advanced > Print production).deactivate sub-sampling. This will enable you to identify anyIf JPEG compression doesn’t work unwanted spot colours, to checkfor you, opt for ZIP compression the ISO Coated V2 output mode(less compact but no alteration). (PDFx), and to display overprinted content in your document (activate/— Leave the trim marks only, deactivate to highlight any errors).but make sure to include a largeborder (so that the fold marks — You must check your documents byCan be displayed in the margins, displaying overprinted content. Youbeyond the bleed). also need to view your documents as they will be printed on our presses (function available in Acrobat™ and other DTP software). We will perform a systematic check on your files to verify the formats, bleed, image resolution, colour space, etc., just as we would with native files.˜ Use the ISO Coated V2 profile asthe destination profile. RGB objectswill be converted, but don’t forgetto click the Ink Manager to convertunused spot colours during export.™ “High resolution” mode producesgood results.P.18

TITRECheck the outputpreview P.19

TITRE Remember, the resolution must be between 200 and 400 pixels per inchP.20

FLAWLESS IMAGESFLAWLESS IMAGESGRAPHICS FRAMES IMAGE MODEUsing XPress™ or InDesign™, apply a You can work on your documents in thebackground colour to graphics frames. colour mode of your choice, but the printWe recommend white. If you choose file must be converted to CMYK (Cyan,\"no colour\" for the background of your Magenta, Yellow, and Black) mode beforegraphics frame, your images may be it is saved (if you create PDF/x-1a files asprinted with \"gaps\" (a kind of matting per our recommendation, the conversionis automatically applied to non-white will take place at this stage). If you don’tareas in images with no background). perform the conversion at this stage, you risk producing images that are dullORIGINALS or that don’t match the original colours.Avoid \"printed document\" or \"web We don’t reject RGB, LAB colour,image\" type originals as much as possible. indexed colour, or spot colour files, we justOpt for photos, slides, illustrations, convert them to 4-colour mode.drawings, or digital originals instead. However, our workflow’s automaticIMAGE RESOLUTION conversion process may result in discrepancies or a loss of image quality.This depends on how the image is It is possible for elements to disappear, ifto be used. When performing full- in spot colour, during CMYK conversionscale printing, it’s better to select a Exception: Some products are alwaysresolution of between 300 and 400 processed in spot colour mode, such aspixels per inch. A higher resolution silkscreened stickers or recyclable bags.is often redundant (don’t go higher Envelopes can be printed in eitherthan 400 dpi for colour or greyscale 4-colour or spot colour mode.images and 1200 dpi for line art). In Adobe InDesign™ and Acrobat™, display the Ink Manager to generate a separation preview and thereby detect any spot colours before sending the order. P.21

SAVING IMAGESSAVING IMAGES – Scan your images at 300 dpi for 150 lpi halftone images, 350 dpiImages must be saved in EPS or TIFF for 175 lpi halftone images, or 400format. All other formats, and image dpi for 200 lpi halftone images.compression in particular, should beavoided, given the risk of compromised — Never resize images when workingquality or incompatibility. However, the with them in page layout.use of CMYK images in JPEG format, atmaximum quality, gives good results. ˜ Check your images in Photoshop™ (at a zoom rate between 25% and 50%).IMAGE MAGNIFICATION If you can’t see any signs of moiré in your images here, the o set halftonesIn Quark XPress™ or InDesign™, should not produce any unwanted moirémagnification should be close to 100% artifacts when the images are printed.if your scans are good quality. However, if you can see a moiré patternWe recommend magnification of between in your images on the screen, it will75% and 130%, depending on image definitely appear when they are printed.resolution. Below 75%, the image willtake up unnecessary disk space. GRADIENTS AND BANDINGAbove 130%, and the imagewill start to pixelate. Exaprint cannot be held responsible for any banding flaws that appear onMOIRÉ linear or radial gradients (this is not caused by an issue with our workflowIf there is the risk of moiré artifacts or printing, it’s a mathematicalappearing in your images (fabrics, phenomenon associated with your file).for example, have a tendency toproduce a moiré e ect) and you Essentially, if you create a gradientwant to check how they look before with many more colour stops thanprinting, here are a few pointers: shades available in the colour channel or channels used (there are 256 shades per primary colour, between 0% and 100% - 256 4 = 16 million colours), your gradient will almost certainly appear with obvious bands of colour. This phenomenon is called banding, and occurs when colour stops are repeated several times or when the hue di erence is not su cient to produce a satisfactory optical e ect.P.22

TITRESave your image in.eps or .ti format. P.23

TITREP.24

FLAWLESS IMAGESHere are a few tips to minimise banding: Our final tips: For the best results, use our Choose your hues carefully (don’t use tried and tested method: a gradient with a small range, such as 0% to 20% black, to cover a large area – Create a 72 dpi CMYK document – and if you’re creating a gradient from in 16-bit mode (the default is 8 black to another colour, use a black bits = 256 shades per colour – 16- enriched with primary values from the bit mode is intended for specific colour at the other end of the gradient) purposes but has the advantage Use the blended object option in of significantly increasing the Illustrator rather than the basic \"gradient\" possible number of shades) function, in order to reduce repetitions. Create a hairline (using a contour line or — Create your gradient to suit even a fairly thin rectangle to indicate your requirements (choose an the start point and end point), and then appropriate hue and distance) apply the blended object on top As vector graphics applications cause ˜ Convert your image to 8-bit mode more problems than Photoshop™, you (it will be reconstructed based can also prepare your gradients in on 56 shades per colour more Photoshop™ cleanly than if you had worked Adding some blur or noise e ects to in 8-bit mode from the start) gradients can also soften the appearance of banding. ™ Add a small amount of noise Don’t use JPEG compression or or blur if required reuse JPEG images from the web (can cause compression artifacts that only š Add your gradient to the page complicate matters) layout (Illustrator or InDesign) while preserving its resolution. You will never get a better result with sheet-fed o set or digital printing using a linear or radial gradient. P.25

LAYOUTLAYOUTPlan for printing right from the design stageBLEED QUIET ZONEWhen an image or frame is These are the internal marginslocated at the edge of a page, within your documents that shouldyou will need to use bleed. be free from all text and logos.A bleed is when the image or frame The quiet zone is 3mm in mostis printed beyond the edges of the products, except in stapled brochurespage (2mm minimum for several where we recommend a quietproducts, but the width may vary), zone of 5mm around the page.to prevent any imperfections For perfect-bound brochures, this quietcaused by folding or cutting. zone should be increased to 10mm.Without bleed, there’s a good chance This margin prevents nastythat a white border will appear between surprises when it comes to binding,the image and the edge of the page. shingling (creep), folding, orThe same applies for Ben-days trimming your documents.(colour backgrounds).In InDesign™ or Illustrator™, you can BORDERSalso specify the full bleed dimensionswhen creating your document (or If you are planning on having a borderin the Document format menu). around your page, it must be at least 5mm (complete accuracy cannot beJust because you have used bleed guaranteed when using a guillotine,in your Adobe (Illustrator™ or and this limits the visual impact of evenInDesign™) software, doesn’t mean the slightest trimming discrepancy).they will necessarily be retained when If you have decided to add athe document is saved to PDF. border to the front and reverse, feel free to increase the size.When saving the document, alwayscheck in the marks and bleeds section We don’t recommend using whitethat only the trim marks are checked margins with brochures.in the marks section and that atleast 2mm of bleed is specified inthe bleed area and slug section.P.26

TITREP.27

TITREP.28

LAYOUTRICH BLACK BLUE To avoid producing a blue that isSolid areas of black won’t be dark enough too purple, we recommend keepingif you use just the colour \"black\" (which the cyan value 30% higher than theis closer to an anthracite grey). We magenta value in the ben-day.recommend that you create a specificcolour composed of 100% Black, 30% SIMULATING GOLD AND SILVERCyan, 30% Magenta and 30% Yellow. IN 4-COLOUR MODE100% Black, 30% Cyan, 30% The values indicated belowMagenta and 30% Yellow. give excellent results.K 100 % C 30 % M 30 % Y 30 % C 5% C 0% K 100 % M 0% M 0% Y 0% Y 0% K 20 % K 25 %This rich black technique will enhance C 5% C 5%your solid areas of black, making M 0% M 0%them denser and more intense, Y 0% Y 0%without resulting in overinking. K 25 % K 35 %The pure black (K100%) used in C 0% C 10 %vector graphics and fonts prints M 35 % M 35 %over backgrounds, while rich black Y 100 % Y 100 %(C30+M30+Y30+K100 or even K 30 % K 40 %C1+M0+Y0+K100) behaves like a classichue and knocks out other layers. C 10 % C 25 % M 25 % M 40 % We don’t recommend using this Y 100 % Y 100 %method with text. K 25 % K 40 %With large format digital printing,a 100% or 400% black(100C + 100M + 100Y + 100K)is preferable to a rich black. P.29

LAYOUTYELLOW BEN-DAYIf you are creating your yellow in RGB When you are creating a hue in 4-colourmode, make sure that the Blue value mode for use in a solid area, it is better,is set to 0. During the conversion to where possible, to restrict yourself to just4-colour mode the blue will become cyan. 3 out of the 4 primary colours: your huesOn screen, it will look like your will be purer and easier to reproduce.yellow is the same, however, when For solid areas of halftones (a beigeprinted, it will look GREEN. background, for example), make sure that there is at least 20% between theCHESTNUT AND Cyan, Magenta and Yellow values, andCHOCOLATE BROWN your hue will be more uniform and easier to reproduce in the future.The values indicated below giveexcellent results (none exceed a MONITORING INK COVERAGETotal Area Coverage of 300%). Keep an eye on your ink coverage to C 50 % C 50 % prevent smears during printing or M 70 % M 85 % finishing. With sheet-fed o set printing, Y 100 % Y 85 % we recommend a maximum ink K 60 % K 60 % coverage of 300% for coated paper and 280% for all other paper. C 0% C 45 % C 60 % C 54 % M 85 % M 100 % M 100 % M 90 % Y 100 % Y 100 % Y 90 % Y 79 % K 60 % K 60 % K 75 % K 75 % C 50 % C 0% C 100 % C 90 % M 70 % M 75 % M 90 % M 40 % Y 100 % Y 100 % Y 100 % Y 88 % K 75 % K 60 % K 80 % K 80 % C 50 % C 40 % If you forget to adhere to this limit, we M 100 % M 65 % will reduce the Total Area Coverage to 300% Y 70 % Y 65 % during the standardisation of your files K 75 % K 60 % (sheet-fed o set and digital printing)P.30

TITREInk coverage above300% highlightedby AcrobatGOOD TO KNOW!Add all the primary colour values (CMYK) to get your total area coverage.Acrobat can show you where there’s too much coverage.With Photoshop, open the ‘Info’ palette and use the eye-dropper tool to view thevalues. You can use an ICC profile to ensure you have the correct ink coverage.In any case, at the point of checking your artwork, if your total areacoverage is too great, we will reduce it to 300% by default. P.31

TIP Remember, inThe colour 100% black is always overprinted, which is overprinting whitenormal. Versions 7 to 9 of Xpress™ and all Adobe™ becomes transparentapplications are able to display overprintedcontent and it’s with this overprinted contentthat your document will be printed.P.32

LAYOUTWATERMARKS OVERPRINTINGTo obtain a high-quality rendering of Be sure to display overprints for yourwatermarks, you must use maximum documents. This will ensure that you getCMYK values of between 5% and 20% an accurate view of your work beforewhen printing using uncoated paper. they are printed. With certain software, “overprinting” (i.e. a transparencyUncoated paper (used for letterheads) may e ect) may occur unintentionally forabsorb the ink, which could result in dot certain objects. To avoid nasty surprisesgain. As a precaution, lower the value for when it comes to printing, you need toblack by 50% in order to make the image double-check that this in your softwarevisible on your screen. For watermark and activate the option for previewingimages in a neutral grey rendering, we overprints in Acrobat™ or your DTPrecommend using black only. software (before sending the order).> Watermark – 7% Black (coated paper) We strongly recommend checking any overprinting if you are working in Illustrator™ or InDesign™. To do this, go to the “View” tab and click “Overprint Preview”. If nothing appears on the screen, it means you do not have any overprinting issues.> Its rendering on uncoated paper P.33

LAYOUTCUSTOMISED SIZES Make sure there is complete symmetry between the front and reverse sides duringWe have two di erent sets of the design process. Use a control file allowsguidelines for two groups of you to get a clearer picture of what theproduct. Below we explain how to intended product will look like.verify the customised sizes thatcorrespond to our product types. 2 43– Cards FRONTFRONT BACKThe area of the new customised FRONTproduct must be less than or equal to 1the area of the selected product (e.g.46cm2 for standard business cards), 2 BACKand the length of its sides no less 43than 4cm (sFmRaOllNfoTrmBaAt:C4Kx 4cm)— Flyers, leaflets, posters, etc. 1The length and width of the productmust be less than or equal to the KEYLINES ANDarea of the selected product (for FINISHING MARKSexample, a 15 x 15cm file correspondsto a 15 x 21cm product). Trim marks: Black hairlines located at each corner (outside the border)FRONT/REVERSE SIDES Fold marks: Dashed magenta hairlines (located outside the border)When you provide us with a file or when Perforation marks: Dashed cyanwe supply you with a digital prepress hairlines (located outside the border)proof, we’ll always take the front and Hairlines used to indicate scoringreverse sides as going from right to left. and folding (magenta or cyanBecause of this, it’s important to pay hairlines), as well as trim marks (blackcareful attention to the order in which hairlines), should be placed outsidethe pages are read. This is especially the the bleed area, on the front side.case for documents that are to undergofolding or binding at the top (folded Creasing / Folding Perforationcards, for example), or documents thatare flipped from top to bottom (e.g. COUPON Crop markspostcards with the front side in portraitformat and the reverse in landscapeformat).In the file:Page 1 = Front and Page 2 = ReverseP.34

TITRE˜™—– P.35

TITREP.36

LAYOUTCUTTING TOOLS SETTING UP A SPOT VARNISH?For pocket folders, you can use ourcutting guide templates, available on Please submit a separate file in 100%request. If you decide to create a black indicating where the spot varnishbespoke cutting design, use one of our should be applied (halftones shouldexisting templates as a start point, and never be used in UV spot varnishing).feel free to submit your own version We don’t recommend using hairlines withfor checking to prepress@exaprint. a weight of under 0.5 pt, or charactersco.uk before sending the order or with a point size of below 7 pt.when making a pricing request. When To ensure your spot varnish registerssubmitting your order, you can send a with your CMYK artwork, use thePDF file for printing, another for die- layers feature in your application.cutting, and a control file indicating You can also add a contour to yourthe die-cut marks on your image. varnishes (0.25 pt), to give you a safety bu er for the registration process Use cyan or magenta dashed lines to (try not to use very thin characters).indicate scoring/creasing marks, and black Be careful not to run your spot UVhairlines to indicate trim marks (a weight of varnish across a fold because the varnish0.25 pt is su cient). tends to crack when scored and folded.We advise you to create a mock-up Therefore we recommend leaving aroundin order to check the final product. 2 - 3mm clear space around the fold.Specific guidelines apply to laser The bu er margin around the spotcutting, which is o ered for certain varnish is 0.6 pt.products. Further details can befound on our product pages.Please be aware that certain limitationsapply to the conventional die-cuttingprocess. If your design goes beyondthose limits unfortunately we won'tbe able to process the order. P.37

LAYOUTBROCHURES: PAGE BROCHURES: RIGHT ANDNUMBERS & PAGINATION LEFT-HAND PAGESUse the automatic page numbering For stapled and perfect-boundfeature provided by your DTP software brochures, you can generally use the(this is usually found in the software’s function in your DTP software forpage templates). Folios should be placed viewing facing pages together to ensureat least 5mm from the edge of the that the pages of the brochure are in thepage (and always within the quiet zones). correct order (rather than using readerIf you choose to split files, make sure spreads or printer spreads).to use sections so that automatic pagenumbering is still carried out. For other documents (individual sheets, posters, and flyers, for example), pagesUsually, pages are counted starting from should be displayed one under the other,the first cover page, the first printed folio with surrounding borders.(no. 3) is therefore on page 3. You can alsoset page numbering to start with the Odd-numbered pages are always on thenumber 1 on the first inside page of the right-hand page, and even-numbereddocument (the 3rd page). In this case, pages on the left-hand page. The firstthe cover is not counted. Do not number page is always a right-hand page (foundblank pages, even if they need to be alone at the start of the document). Thecounted. last page is also found on its own at the end of the document (and is a left-hand Remember that for brochures, the page). The only exception is the cover,number of pages must usually be a multiple which should be displayed in a spread, inof 4, regardless of the number of blank order to facilitate perfect binding.pages it contains.P.38

TITRENB:For brochures, black or grey text should contain black only (100%or halftone). If you use rich black (mixed with the 3 primary colours),there may be issues when it comes to the registration processand your order will be rejected during our prepress check. P.39

TITREP.40

TYPEFACESTYPEFACESCONVERTING TEXT TO FONTSVECTOR FORMAT: The minimum accepted font size for text is 4pt, or 7pt if you haveWhen you convert your text to vector opted for a light typeface.format, you will avoid any problems Avoid bitmap fonts and excessively thinrelating to typeface recognition when fonts (Light typeface) if the text is to beit comes to ripping. It will also eliminate coated in varnish (no \"ultra-light\" fonts).potential issues associated with the You should also avoid placing whiteuse of fonts that are under license. text rendered in a light font on solid blocks of a single colour in order to In Illustrator™ and InDesign™, highlight prevent legibility and display issuesyour text, then in the “Type” menu, select once the document has been printed.“Create outlines”.Non-vectorised textVectorised text P.41

RECOMMENDED SOFTWARERECOMMENDED SOFTWAREWe recommend that you use professional ADOBE INDESIGN™DTP software as opposed to standard All versions. DTP software (veryo ce software, which is not very suitable useful for brochure work).for high-resolution, four-colour printing.However, if you provide us with PDF/x- QUARK XPRESS™1a files (which meet the necessary print All versions. DTP softwarerequirements), you can select your own (brochures and other products).software, and any platform of your choice. ADOBE ACROBAT™The following is a list of the professional As of Version 4. Suite of softwaresoftware packages that are used most often products for converting (Distiller),in Exaprint (Mac or PC) and as such are editing (Acrobat Pro), and viewingstrongly recommended: (Reader) PDF files. ADOBE PHOTOSHOP™ All versions. Software for editing digital images. ADOBE ILLUSTRATOR™ All versions. Software for creating vector illustrations.P.42

TITREP.43

GLOSSARYTECHNICAL GLOSSARYBANDING: Stepping e ect visible quality. The base screen resolution, whichalong the shades of a gradient. determines how an image is viewed on screen (whether for printing or digital imaging), isBEN DAY: Printing process named after defined in DPI. 300 DPI is generally usedAmerican Benjamin Day, who invented this for digital photographs destined for print.technique at the end of the 19th century. Itinvolves superimposing halftones of primary DIE CUTTING TEMPLATE: Custom designcolours in order to obtain a CMYK hue without in which cutting and folding lines aregradient (for example: C20/M10/J0/N0). displayed in order to produce a particular shape (pocket folders, gate folders).BINDING: Binding consists of joiningor collating one or more folded or non- DIGITAL PRINTING: Printing system thatfolded sheets into a signature. is controlled directly by a computer.BLEED BORDER : Creating a bleed area DTP: Desktop publishing, generallyinvolves extending the content or images abbreviated as DTP, is the set of computeron a page beyond the final print area so processes (PC, software, input andthat the page is printed without margins writing peripherals, etc.) that are used(3mm minimum for brochure work). to create documents destined for print. It is the logical and historical successorCMYK: Letters designating the four of typography and photocomposition.primary colours used in printing:Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, and Black. EPS ENCAPSULATED POSTSCRIPT : A document in EPS vector format is aCOVER PAGE, FRONT AND REVERSE; file encoded in PostScript language thatBACK COVER PAGE, FRONT AND describes the content of an image orREVERSE: Set of external pages that entire page (text, hairlines, importedform the cover of a document. images). Unlike conventional PostScript, which cannot be used for printing, anCOLOUR BLOCK: Printed area comprising EPS file can be viewed and imported intoa solid block of a single colour, either in most design, DTP, and layout software.the form of spot inks, or Ben-Day dots. FACING PAGES FUNCTION: Option thatCREEP: This phenomenon can occur allows you to display the left-hand side andwhen collating sheets into signatures for right-hand side pages of a 2-page spread,a stapled brochure. When the sheets are as in the case of books and magazines.folded, the width of each sheet increasesand displacement occurs between the edge FINISHING: Finishing describes the finalof the innermost sheet and the edge of the series of operations – such as folding,outermost sheet. This \"creep\" can become cutting, collating, inserting, stapling,quickly visible during trimming if there is stitching, and binding – that gives thetext/images positioned on the safe margin. printed product its final look and feel.DPI: Dots Per Inch is a convention used FOLIO: A page number in a book.to define the print quality of a digital file(digital printing and imaging). The number FOUR COLOUR PROCESS: Four-colourof dots per inch is a precise unit of measure. process or CMYK (cyan, magenta, yellow,The higher the number, the better the black) is a print process that is used toP.44

GLOSSARYreproduce a wide colour spectrum from works on the immiscibility of oil and water,three base colours (cyan, magenta, and therefore the oil based ink is attracted toyellow), to which black is added. a hydrophobic area of a flexible aluminium printing plate whilst the water basedGRADIENT: Progressive transition solution (fountain solution) is attracted tofrom one shade to another. the hydrophilic area of the plate, allowing the image to remain in the desired area.HALFTONE: Any colour that is processedin four-colour mode is a halftone. If you OVERPRINTING: The overlaying of 2zoom in, you’ll see a multitude of tiny dots colours, deliberately or otherwise.that combine to form the halftone. PAGINATION: The number of pages.ICC PROFILE: An ICC profile is aparticular digital file format describing PANTONE®: In contrast to the four-the way a computer peripheral renders colour process, which involves the opticalcolours. This file type was created by the combination of colour, Pantone involves theInternational Color Consortium (ICC) physical combination of colour, i.e. the inkto allow DTP professionals to control is combined by the press operator beforecolours right along the graphic chain. printing. As such, the original Pantone system was based on 14 primary colours,INKING RATE: Or TAC (Total Area as opposed to four. The Pantone colourCoverage). This is the total value of the chart, also known as the \"Pantone Matchingprimary colours in a file. If the inking rate is System\" by those in the industry, includestoo high there is a risk of set-o , the paper no less than 800 colours and provides thewill be unable to absorb all of the ink. mixing percentages of the 14 base colours that make up their 800 derivatives.JPEG JPG : File format in whichimages are compressed at the expense PDF: Portable Document Format, or PDF,of a slight drop in quality. is a digital file format created by Adobe Systems that builds on the PostScriptKEYLINES: Continuous or dotted format. The advantage of the PDF format islines on a document. that it preserves the fonts, images, graphic objects, and layout of all source documents,LASER CUTTING: Production regardless of the application or platformprocess that consists of cutting that produced it or is used to read it. A PDFpaper using laser technology. file allows you to set the image and text compression and print quality. PDF hasLIGHT: Term used to describe a character become the standard format for exchangingwritten in a “light” typeface. and archiving electronic documents.MOIRÉ: Undesirable visual e ect that occurs PDF X: PDF-X is a digital file format createdwhen repeating patterns overlap because by Adobe Systems. The specifications ofthe screen angle is misaligned. Fabric or a this format ensure the reliable exchangedocument that has already been printed of PDF documents in the prepress sector.can also su er from the moiré e ect when The letter \"X\" in PDF-X stands for Blindreproduced on a press (the o set screen eXchange, the objective of this formatis superimposed on the image screen). being to allow a \"blind exchange\" of PDF files in any graphic production workflow.OFFSET: This process is used in conjunctionwith Lithographic printing. The \"o set\" PERFECT BINDING: Brochure inprocess refers to the fact that an image is which the signatures are collated and\"o set\" from a plate onto a blanket and thenonto the paper. The lithographic process P.45

GLOSSARYglued to a square-back cover. the material underneath, reproducing the open shapes from the screen.PIXELLATION: Pixellation occurswhen a digital image is enlarged to SET OFF: This is the undesired result ofsuch an extent that the pixels that wet ink transferring from the sheet belowmake up the image become visible. to the sheet above under pressure. It can be caused by the quality of the paperPREPRESS PROOF: Signed acceptance (non-porous paper that does not allowprovided by the customer to the printer the ink to absorb, leaving it to collect onconfirming that they agree to proceed with the surface), the quality of the ink (whichprinting. A signed prepress proof based on a doesn’t dry fast enough), or excessivelyhi res digital print out, or a contract colour high ink coverage (more than 300%).proof such as cromalin® or matchprint® proofabsolves the printer of any responsibility in SPOT VARNISHING: Partial coating of acases where errors or omissions are noted printed or non-printed sheet, to emphasiseafter printing (we do not produce cromalin the contrast with the material used.proofs only colour proofs on a 120gsmproofing paper). It constitutes an important SPOT COLOURS: A specific print colourlegal document in the event of a dispute. other than the four traditionally used colours (cyan, magenta, yellow, black). SpotRGB: Chromatic model used for screen colours are most often Pantone colours.display based on an additive colour system(whereby the 3 primary colours are SPREAD: A series of pages thatcombined, and the colour white formed are assembled together.by light). Never used in o set printing. SADDLE STITCHED BROCHURE:RIP: In the graphics industry, a Raster Brochure in which the pages are heldImage Processor (RIP) is a software utility together by means of metal wires stitchedthat is used to rasterise data in order through the paper to look like staples.to make it printable. The RIP forms thelink between the digital data and the TIFF .TIF OR .TIFF : Tag(-ged) Image Filedata that can be used for printing. Format, generally abbreviated as TIFF, is a file format used for digital images. Non-RIPPING: Process of compressed TIFF is a popular format andtransferring files to a RIP. can be read by all raster imaging software. TIFF is an extremely flexible format.QUIET ZONE: Area at the border of adocument in which no key element should TRIM MARKS: Small horizontal and verticalbe placed (neither logos, nor text). hairlines that are placed at the corners of a document, perpendicular to the outerSCORING: Indented crease on heavy- edge. Trim marks are used for trimming.weight paper to facilitate folding. VECTORISING: Process of convertingSCREEN AND PRINTER FONT: text into curves and dots.Group of files that make up acomplete set of PostScript fonts. WATERMARK: Image produced when manufacturing the paper by flatteningSCREEN PRINTING: Silkscreen printing fibres in the sheet to produce a mark that(from the Latin ‘sericum’ for silk and the becomes visible when held up to the light.Greek ‘graphein’ for writing) is a print Watermark image: Image printed using atechnique that can be used for various light halftone on the background of a page.materials. The technique involves spreadingink across a screen (which acts as a typeof stencil). The ink is then deposited ontoP.46

FURTHER QUESTIONS? WE'RE HERE TO HELP! / ©Exaprint 2016 Sales and Customer service Design by [email protected] 0203 475 7475 Prepress support [email protected] 0203 475 7475 Quality issues [email protected] Feedback and comments [email protected]

WHITE LABEL LITHO DIGITAL WIDE FORMAT UNLEASYOHUR POWERS WITH WWW.EXAPRINT.CO.UK- Photos: Master le, Fotolia, GraphicObsession, GettyImages, iStock, 123RF - T&Cs apply, please visit exaprint.co.uk. ONLINE PRINT SERVICE EXCLUSIVE TO PRINT, DESIGN AND MARKETING PROS www.exaprint.co.uk