Product Templates

Templates are located on the products pages under the tab, Graphic Templates.  To ensure your graphic is set-up properly, download and use the graphic template provided on each product page. Use templates to ensure artwork is printed correctly. These templates are required to be used for all products. Be sure not to leave template lines in your finished artwork.

Summary of Graphic Requirements

* Resolution – 125DPI at Full Size
* Color – CMYK
* Size – Full Size
* Preferred File Type – TIFF, JPG, PDF, PSD | Acceptable Files – AI, EPS
* Fonts – Outlined, Images – Embedded
* If you need exact color match, please read about PMS matching below under Preferred Formats
* If artwork is not print ready, we can setup your design or Step & Repeat for a fee, just email us your logo and images and text info and we will give you a quote on custom design work – [email protected]

Accepted File Formats

• Adobe PhotoShop CS6 or below ( .psd / .pdf / .tif / .jpg)
• Adobe Illustrator CS6 or below ( .ai / .eps / .pdf )
• Adobe Indesign CS6 or below ( .pdf )
• Adobe Acrobat ( .pdf )

Adobe Photoshop CS6 (or lower version)

• Files must be flattened without hidden layers; otherwise, it will not print.
• Submit only only the items that need to be printed.
• File should be saved as a TIFF in CMYK with LZW compression and ICC profiles checked on.
• Resolution must be 125dpi at full size. For close viewing increase the dpi but keep the file size to under 2gb.
• Convert all fonts to outlines and embed all images.
• Specify Pantone colors where appropriate.

Adobe Illustrator CS6 (or lower version)

• Files must be flattened without hidden layers; otherwise, it will not print.
• Submit only the items that need to be printed.
• File should be saved as an EPS in CMYK.
• All fonts MUST be converted to outlines (Type > Create Outlines).
• All raster images should be embedded and not linked.
• If any filters are applied (e.g., blurs or gradient mesh) the file must be rasterized in Photoshop and saved as a TIFF for final artwork submission.
• To help get a smoother gradient without banding, the gradient should be created in Photoshop with noise added (from 1 to 3), saved as a TIFF, then brought back to Illustrator and combined with the rest of the artwork.

Adobe Indesign

Preferred method is to save as PDF at ‘High Quality Print’ setting, no compression.  Alternative is export artwork and supply all relevant files as a High Resolution.

PDF Adobe Acrobat

All PDF’s must be set to ‘High Quality Print’ setting, no compression.

Preferred Formats

Photoshop and Illustrator files are preferred, as they are more suitable applications for large format printing. All files will print in the CMYK format. Please provide the layered native files if color matching to a specific Pantone color.

• PMS (Pantone Matching System) colors are provided for any critical colors for $35 per color – artwork printed on different machines or across different products can vary slightly in color, if you need exact color matches it is highly suggested that you request PMS color matching
• For a deep, rich black, use the following CMYK values: 0% cyan, 0% magenta, 0% yellow, 100% black
• File quality is checked. Tip: In Adobe Illustrator or Photoshop, zoom in to 100% and look at the image quality. This will give you a good idea of what the final print will look like.

Please do NOT provide the following formats:

• Adobe PageMaker, Adobe InDesign, Quark Express, Freehand, Microsoft Word, Microsoft PowerPoint, Corel Draw

File Setup

• To achieve the best results, we recommend setting files up at 125 – 150 dpi (dots per inch) at full print size. Graphics with dpi’s greater than 150 will create unnecessarily large file sizes without any visible gain in print quality.
• Files can be save at 100% if software allows, or half size is acceptable.
• For custom-sized graphics, please provide a 1/4″ bleed for trimming.

How to Outline Text Using Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop:

1. 1. Unlock all text layers
   2. Select all of the text (Mac: Cmd+A) (PC: Ctrl+A)
   3. From the “Type” menu, select “Create Outlines” (Mac: Shift+Cmd+O) (PC: Shift+Ctl+O)
   4. In Photoshop, go to Layer>Text and choose “Convert to Shape”
   5. From the “File” Menu, select “Save As” and save your file as a new document

Note: Keep a copy of the original file so you can edit the text in the future

Upload Artwork

After you have properly prepared your artwork according to the instructions above you are ready to upload your file. You will find the link to the artwork upload page on the menu bar located at the very top of every page.