How to Send Us a File We Can Actually Print

The most common reason a print job gets delayed isn't the press, the materials, or the weather. It's the file. A file that isn't set up correctly for print requires back-and-forth, revisions, and sometimes a complete rebuild — all of which costs time and occasionally money.

This isn't a criticism — most people don't work in print every day, and the rules aren't obvious. Here's a plain-English guide to sending us something we can go straight to press with.

Vector vs. Raster — The Most Important Distinction

There are two fundamentally different types of image files, and understanding the difference will save you a lot of headaches.

Vector files

Vector graphics are built from mathematical paths — lines, curves, and shapes — rather than pixels. This means they can be scaled to any size without losing quality. A vector logo that looks sharp on a business card will look equally sharp on a billboard. Vector files are what we want for logos and most graphics.

Common vector formats: .AI (Adobe Illustrator), .EPS, .SVG, .PDF (when exported from a vector program)

Raster files

Raster images are made of pixels. They look great at the size they were created for, but when you scale them up, they get blurry. A logo pulled from a website (typically 72 DPI, a few hundred pixels wide) will look terrible printed at 4 inches wide on a banner. This is the source of most file problems we see.

Common raster formats: .JPG, .PNG, .TIFF, .PSD

Resolution: The 300 DPI Rule

For raster images that will be used in print (photos, textures, backgrounds), resolution is measured in DPI — dots per inch. The rule of thumb:

• 300 DPI at final print size — for business cards, brochures, postcards, anything viewed up close
• 150 DPI at final print size — acceptable for large-format prints viewed from a few feet away
• 72–96 DPI — screen resolution only, not suitable for print

The key phrase is "at final print size." A 300 DPI image that's 2 inches wide can't just be stretched to 10 inches — the effective resolution drops to 60 DPI and it will look soft and pixelated.

Color Mode: CMYK for Print

Screens display color using RGB (Red, Green, Blue). Printers use CMYK (Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Black). Colors that look vivid on screen — especially bright blues, oranges, and greens — can print significantly differently if the file isn't converted to CMYK first.

If you're designing in Photoshop or Illustrator, set your document to CMYK from the start. If you're handing us a file created in RGB, let us know — we'll convert it and flag any colors that shift significantly so you can approve them before we run the job.

Bleed and Safe Zone

When a printed piece is trimmed to its final size, cutters aren't perfect to the millimeter. Bleed is the extra area beyond the trim line that ensures your background color or images extend to the edge without leaving a white border after cutting.

• Standard bleed: 0.125 inches (⅛") on each side
• Keep important text and logos at least 0.125" inside the trim line (the "safe zone")

If you're not sure how to add bleed, just tell us what you're creating and we'll provide a template.

The Formats We Love

• .AI or .EPS — vector files with fonts outlined, ideal for logos and artwork
• .PDF — a press-ready PDF with bleed and crops marks is our favorite all-around format
• .PNG — fine for photos and supplemental images if resolution is adequate
• .TIFF — excellent for high-resolution photos

When in Doubt, Just Ask

We'd rather you send us what you have and let us evaluate it than have you stress over the technical details. If the file needs work, we'll tell you what's needed and what it'll cost to fix. In many cases it's a quick adjustment. And if you don't have a proper file at all, we have designers who can build your artwork from scratch.

The goal is to get you a great finished product — and that starts with a file that's ready to print.