The sm@rt Artwork Guidelines define the quality criteria
that determine the readiness of each of four common artwork
formats. The guidelines cover both vector and raster art
files, as well as including instructions to avoid common
errors related to fonts and linked images.
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| Vector Artwork Files |
Must be saved in the Postscript Format and contain
no Postscript errors, stray points or colors assigned
inconsistently to the supplier's published requirements.
All type that has been set must be converted to
outlines (curves). If future changes to the text will be
necessary, the original font file must be supplied with
the art file for use on the supplier's specified
computer platform (Mac or PC).
All design elements in the file must meet the
supplier's published minimums for line thickness.
Failure to do so may compromise the final imprint
quality.
If the vector file contains any linked (placed)
raster images, these images must meet the supplier's
minimum requirement for resolution when rendered at 100%
actual imprint size and must be submitted with the
original vector file.
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| Raster Artwork Files |
All Raster elements and art files must be sized to
100% or larger than the actual imprint size.
All Raster images must meet or exceed the supplier's
published minimum resolution (pixels-per-inch) when
rendered at the actual imprint size.
All raster elements must be submitted in the proper
color space (RGB or CMYK) as published by the supplier.
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| Page Layout Document |
Page layout documents must be prepared to render the
artwork and all of its elements at 100% of actual
imprint size.
In addition to submitting the page layout documents,
all vector and/or raster files that are referenced by
the page layout document must also be included.
Include any fonts that were used in the production
of the page layout document or use on the supplier's
specified computer platform (Mac or PC).
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| Acrobat (PDF) Files |
PDF files created from vector files must retain the
editing capabilities of the program that was used to
create them (e.g. Illustrator or Freehand).
PDF files that contain raster elements must meet the
minimum requirements for raster art files as outlined by
the supplier.
PDF files that contain vector elements must meet the
minimum requirements for vector art files as outlined by
the supplier.
PDF files created from page layout documents should
be submitted together with the source documents, fonts
and all supporting files.
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| Proofs |
No matter what the format or transfer method,
artwork should NEVER be submitted without either a hard
copy proof or the electronic equivalent. Properly
prepared PDF files are often suitable as proofs.
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| Fonts |
Any fonts used in the production of art files should
be converted to curves (outlines) prior to submission.
If future typesetting will be required, the original
font files must be included with the artwork file to be
used on the supplier's specific computer platform (Mac
or PC).
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| Other Than Above |
Only professional software packages may be used to
produce artwork. Although programs like Microsoft Word
and Publisher are useful tools, they are not capable of
producing art files of a quality necessary for
imprinting purposes.
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