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arrow Acceptable File Formats
 
PDF
arrow Blank Templates
 
Our product size template do not contain any designs. They are specific application files which include predefined guide-lines indicating bleed, safe zone, and trim lines. This is to ensure your document will meet our artwork setting requirements. If we detect any problem in your document you will have to resend your file to us and it this may cause delay in completing your print job. Using our templates correctly will reduce this from occurring.

 

We have blank templates for the following products.

- Bookmark - Business Card - CD Jackets - Document Folders
- Key & Card Folders - Presentation Folders - Envelopes - Flyers / Brochures
- Greeting Cards - Letterheads - Menus - Note Pads
- Paper Bags - Postcards - Posters - Tent Cards

Our product size templates are available for the following design applications:

 

Adobe Illustrator Adobe Photoshop CorelDRAW

arrow 3 Principle Guidelines
 
All our blank templates contain the following guidelines to help you design your document according to our artwork setting requirements.

 


To understand what are these guidelines for, click on the relevant topics below.

 

 
arrow Full Bleed
 
> Full Bleed enables your background design to extend to the edge of your end product.

> Expand your background design to the edge of Full Bleed.

> If your background design is not in Full Bleed dimension, product will have a line along the edge.
arrow Trim Size
 
> This is the finished size of your document.

> Anything left outside this box will be CUT-OFF (trimmed away).

> Refrain from adding a border or frame along the edge of your document as it may appear uneven after trimming.
arrow Safe Zone
 
>All vital elements ( text, images, logos, etc.) MUST be kept within this area.

>Anything left outside this box WILL BE CUT-OFF during trimming.
arrow Colour

1.
We prefer that you prepare your document and submit it to us in CMYK colour mode. The use of other colour modes such as RGB and Pantone may cause colour inaccuracy during output. You must make provision for the discrepancy between the artwork printed from your home printer and the actual product from our offset presses. Do not depend entirely on the colour displayed on your monitor as printed colour of end product may differ from what appears on your screen.
   
2. AVOID setting colour tints (toning) lower than 10%. Moreover, lighter shades usually print much lighter than they appear on your screen.
   
3. When using the colour mixer to produce black, DO NOT  adjust to C=100, M=100, Y=100, K=100,
  Use SUPER BLACK instead for large areas on your document. However, refrain from using SUPER BLACK for fine text. Too much ink coverage may result in sheets sticking together and cause text or images to look blurry.
   
4. In order to make your tint/toning effect more obvious, make sure the value between colours are at least 10%.
   
arrow Images

1.
Ensure all the images are in CMYK colour mode.
   
2. Ensure resolution of all your images are set to or above 300 dpi. Set resolution for scanned Line Art/Black & White images resolution to or above 1200dpi.
   
3. DO NOT manipulate images using a Desktop Publishing application*.
  Moreover, lighter shades usually print much lighter than they appear on your screen.
   
4. When using the colour mixer to produce black, DO NOT adjust to C=100, M=100, Y=100, K=100.
  You are advised to manipulate images using Adobe Photoshop. Also note: resolution and size (dimension) are inversely proportional to each other, which means when you are enlarging the image in layout program, you are in fact lowering the resolution.
   
  Digital Imaging
You can add to your document digitized images taken from a variety of sources. Your designs, photos and images can come from a digital camera, scanner, or the Web. Any image you plan to use must be saved at approximately 300-dpi at 100% output size for the very best printing results. It’s helpful to know that shrinking an image on a product will increase its resolution. For example, an image captured at 600 x 900 pixels has 150-dpi at 4” x 6”. However, it can be printed at 300-dpi by reducing its dimensions on the product to 2” x 3”.

Images from a Digital Camera
If you wish to use images from a digital camera - before you snap pictures - make sure the camera is set at a high enough resolution to result in 300dpi at the intended photo print size. Most cameras have various settings for resolutions. The highest resolution for your camera depends on how many megapixels it has. You cannot increase the resolution of a photo after it is taken, except by reducing its printed dimensions (after you upload the image).
Be careful when cropping a photo after it is taken. Cropping will reduce the number of pixels in the final image.

Images from a Scanner
Like a digital camera, a scanner must be preset to the proper resolution before image capture. Many scanners default to 150-dpi (or spi). Set your scanner’s resolution so that it results in 300-dpi at the image’s final print size.
If your resulting scanned image is smaller than the recommended size or has less dpi than you need, you should either rescan your original at a higher resolution, or use the image for a smaller printed area.

Images from the Web
Images found on the web are typically at a resolution of 72-dpi. This resolution is much too low for quality printing. In addition, most images on the web are protected by copyright laws. For these reasons, we do not recommend using images from the web
arrow Text

1.
Minimum font size : 4 pts
  During printing, minute misalignment can cause the 4 separate CMYK inks to overlap imperfectly in small text and make them look blurry. Therefore, when you are working on small text, avoid:
1. White text on a coloured or black background
2. Light coloured text on a white background.
3. Font types that have thin lines
   
2. Desktop Publishing application* : Curve / Create Outline / Path all the fonts before you convert your document file to PDF file format.
Adobe Photoshop : Set resolution to or above 300 dpi and Rasterize Type before you save as PDF file format.
We advise against setting text using Photoshop as the text will not be nearly as clear as setting text in a Desktop Publishing application*.
   
arrow Line
DO NOT set line weight less than 0.25pts.
   
arrow Resolution
 
Resolution refers to the number of dots per inch (dpi), or the amount of detail the image has. Most documents prepared for upload should be 300 dpi at 100% of the final print size. Higher resolution means a more detailed image, and also larger file and longer upload time.
   
arrow PDF Settings
 
Portable Document Format (PDF) is a document format created by Abode Systems that enables you to capture, view and print in almost any application on any computer system. For information on how adjust PDF setting , see our Tutorial in Illustrator or in Photoshop.
   
arrow CMYK vs. RGB
 
CMYK (Cyan, Magenta, Yellow and Black) are the colors used in the printing process, where as RGB (Red, Green and Blue) are the colours used by screen displays such as your monitor. Please note that JPEG files are almost always in RGB. Your document should be created in CMYK mode so that the colors that you see on the screen most closely match the final printed product. If you create your document in RGB, the colors in your printed product may vary slightly. Many of the bright values produced by your monitor cannot be reproduced in print.
   
arrow Converting Fonts to Outlines
 
Text can be converted to curves (paths) in some Desktop Publishing application. This will fix upload errors that result when fonts are not embedded in your file. Following these easy steps will help ensure that your text prints clearly.
 

How to convert fonts to outlines in Adobe Illustrator

1 - Select all text.
2 - Click Type Menu> Type> Create Outlines
3 - Text now has a blue outline.
4 - Save a copy and re-upload.

   

 

arrow Vector vs. Raster
 
What are Vector Images?
Vector images use mathematical equations to define each component of an image. This allows vector images to retain their high-quality at any size. When possible, use vector graphics created in a Desktop Publishing application.

What are Raster Images?
A raster image is composed of a collection of tiny dots called pixels. When these pixels are small, and placed close together, they fool the eye into forming a single image. Raster images work well when subtle gradations of color are necessary. Because they contain a fixed number of pixels, a major disadvantage of raster images is that their quality suffers when they are enlarged or otherwise transformed. They are also large in file size.