Artwork Specifications

We all understand the importance of a truly creative process: Creativity wins clients. But poor production can lose them. Follow these best practices and you can’t go wrong.

Use an Organized File Structure

Using a well-​defined file structure and naming convention makes everyone’s job easier. A few simple rules help everyone stay on the same page:

File names should be less than 32 characters long, with no spaces or special characters.

Always include correct file extensions
(e.g., .pdf, .ai, .doc, etc.).

If you’re using FTP and your file name is too long, the server will automatically truncate the name.

Acceptable File Formats

While most industries battle over standards, prepress departments have their… uh… stuff… together, accepting only standard file formats:

Adobe Illustrator

Artisan Complete accepts all versions up to CS5

Adobe InDesign

Artisan Complete accepts all versions up to CS5

Adobe PDF (X-​1, X-​3, X-​5) For Print Productionr

NOTE: NEW LOCKED PDFS make it impossible for a prepress department to adjust graphic assets to address production problems or colour revisions.

QuarkXPress

Artisan Complete accepts all versions up to 8.5

File Size Specifications

For Screen production files, please deliver files at 100 – 150 DPI at full size.

For Litho production files, please deliver files at 300 DPI at full size.

For Digital production files, please deliver files at 100 – 150 DPI at full size.

Placed Image Formats

Layered Adobe Photoshop Documents

Artisan Complete accepts all versions up to CS5

ALL .eps FILES

ALL .tif FILES

Acceptable Computer Platforms

Mac and PC files are welcome.
NOTE: Typefaces render differently between platforms — making it a great reason to outline your fonts.

Convert RGB image files to CMYK

Ah the language of colour. RGB on screen. CMYK on press. Use the proper profile when converting from one to the other to ensure accurate colour. Here’s how:

  1. Display conversion options

    To display conversion options, choose Edit > Color Settings, and select Advanced Mode (Illustrator and InDesign) or More Options (Photoshop). In Acrobat, select the Color Management category of the Preferences dialog box.

  2. Specify the colour management module

    Engine Specifies the Color Management Module (CMM) used to map the gamut of one colour space to the gamut of another. For most users, the default Adobe (ACE) engine fulfills all conversion needs.

  3. Select the right option

    To view a description of an engine or intent option, select the option and then position the pointer over the option name. The description appears at the bottom of the dialog box.

  4. Choose a rendering intent

    Intent (Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign) specifies the rendering intent used to translate one colour space to another. Differences between rendering intents are apparent only when you print a document or convert it to a different working space.

  5. Choose “black point compensation”

    Black Point Compensation ensures that the shadow detail in the image is preserved by simulating the full dynamic range of the output device. Select this option if you plan to use black point compensation when printing (which is recommended in most situations).

  6. Use dither controls

    Use Dither (Photoshop) Controls whether to dither colours when converting 8‑bit-​per-​channel images between colour spaces. When the “Use Dither” option is selected, Photoshop mixes colours in the destination colour space to simulate a missing colour that existed in the source space. Although dithering helps to reduce the blocky or banded appearance of an image, it may also result in larger file sizes when images are compressed for web use.

  7. Compensate for “scene-​rendered profiles” in Photoshop

    This compares video contrast when converting from screen to output profiles. This option reflects default color management in After Effects.