The Beginner’s Guide to Quality Printing: Part 2 November 30, 2022 Edge OneUncategorized No Comments In part 1 of this guide, we went over how to choose your design/layout program and why bleed is important in printing. This time we are discussing guidelines for images, color, and fonts. Guidelines for Images and Color in Printing Images Resolution for all images should be at least 300 pixels per inch. Preferably, all images should be saved to .eps files. Images that are to be at the edge of the page should be extended ⅛-inch beyond the final size. Images should be created in/converted to CMYK, not RGB. Vector Images Always “Create Outlines” (Illustrator) or “Rasterize Type” (Photoshop) to avoid font issues when submitting files for printing. Pixel-Based Images Avoid over-scaling images (125% or more) when placing into your layout program. Sample down (reduce the size) a copy of larger images and link them to your file to save disk space and processing time. Color Never use RGB. Always create or convert all text, images, and files to CMYK or Spot Color values. Avoid transparency effects when working with spot colors. Use the Pantone names for spot colors and avoid calling them things like “Company X Yellow.” Keep in mind that the colors you see on your screen may not match the printed result. Work with your printer to make sure colors turn out the way you want them to. All About Fonts PostScript® Fonts PostScript® fonts have two important files. Each of these files must be present in order to render the font properly both on screen and in print. The “Screen” Font The “screen” font is a font suitcase containing all the information necessary to render a scalable font on your computer monitor. Often the name of this file will be the full font name (Futura-Bold). In addition to this screen font, you must also include the linked printer font (the blue and red lines show the relationship between two printer and screen fonts). The two “screen” PostScript fonts in this example are Futura-Bold and Futura-Book. Note: The description for the “Kind” attribute in the Preview pane (on the right in the image) is “Font Suitcase.” The “Printer” Font The “printer” font contains vector outlines of the font and is often named with an abbreviation of the full font name (FuturBol). In addition to this printer font, you must also include the linked screen font (the blue and red lines show the relationship between two printer and screen fonts). The two “printer” PostScript fonts in this example are FutuBo (linked to Futura-Bold) and FuturBoo (linked to Futura-Book). Note: The description for the “Kind” attribute in the Preview pane (on the right in the image) is “PostScript Type 1 outline font.” When you use a PostScript font in your design, make sure you include each of these files with your output. This is quite easy to do in InDesign. TrueType® Fonts TrueType fonts were designed to eliminate the need for multiple files. They incorporate both PostScript fonts into one file. When packaging your file, you will not see two files for each font as you will when you use PostScript fonts. Note: The description for the “Kind” attribute in the Preview pane is “Font Suitcase.” This is the same as with a PostScript font. We will cover how to tell the difference between the two in a moment. OpenType® Fonts OpenType was built on TrueType and also contains, in one file, all the information necessary to render fonts correctly both on screen and in print. Its main benefit is that it is cross-platform. The same file will work on both a Windows and Macintosh system. OpenType fonts with the .otf extension contain PostScript information while those with the .ttf extension are TrueType-based. For more information on OpenType fonts, visit the Adobe Fonts website. When packaging your file, you will not see two files for each font as you will when you use PostScript fonts. The two OpenType files used in this example are ACaslonPro-Bold.otf and ACaslonPro-Regular.orf. Note: The description for the “Kind” attribute in the Preview pane (on the right in the image) is “OpenType Font.” Distinguishing Between Font Types You can tell what most font types are by looking at the extensions. Mac .ttf = TrueType .otf = OpenType with PostScript Content .dfont = a version of TrueType No extension = PostScript (either screen or printer) Windows .ttf = TrueType .otf = OpenType with PostScript Content .pfb and .pfm = PostScript .CompositeFont or .cff = compressed .pfb and .pfm PostScript files .fon = For use in on-screen menus and Graphic User Interface (GUI). NOT for printing. Keep reading in Part 3, where we discuss packaging in InDesign and common mistakes in print design.
