At Galley Printing, we’re passionate about bringing your vision to life on paper. From vibrant flyers to professional business cards, the quality of the final product starts long before our presses start running. It starts with a well-prepared design file.
Sending a “print-ready” file is the single best way to ensure your project turns out exactly as you imagined, without costly delays or unexpected results. To help you get it right every time, we’ve created the ultimate printer’s checklist.
Follow these seven steps before you send us your file to save time, money, and frustration.
1. Set Your Colors to CMYK, Not RGB
This is the most common issue we see, and it has the biggest impact on color accuracy.
- RGB (Red, Green, Blue) is the color mode used by digital screens, like your monitor or phone. It creates colors by mixing light.
- CMYK (Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Black) is the color mode used for professional printing. It creates colors by mixing ink on paper.
If you design in RGB, the colors on your screen will look bright and vibrant. However, when those same colors are converted to CMYK for printing, they can appear dull or different. To ensure the color you see is the color you get, always start your design project in CMYK mode.
2. Ensure Your Images are High-Resolution (300 DPI)
Have you ever seen a printed image that looked blurry or “pixelated”? That’s usually because the image resolution was too low. For print, the standard resolution is 300 Dots Per Inch (DPI).
Images saved from websites are typically only 72 DPI, which looks fine on a screen but will not print clearly. Always use original, high-resolution photographs and graphics for your project. If you’re not sure, zoom in to 300% on your design. If it looks crisp, you’re good to go. If it’s blurry, you’ll need to find a higher-quality image.
3. Add Bleed and a Safety Margin
When we print your project, we print it on a larger sheet of paper and then trim it down to the final size. Because there’s always a tiny mechanical shift during trimming, we need a “bleed.”
- Bleed is a 1/8th inch (0.125″) border that you extend your background colors or images into, past the final trim line. This ensures that after trimming, there are no accidental white edges on your finished piece.
- Safety Margin is the opposite. Keep all your important text and logos at least 1/8th inch inside the final trim line. This guarantees nothing important gets cut off.
Your design software will have settings to show guides for the bleed and safety margin. Use them!
4. Outline Your Fonts
You’ve picked the perfect font to represent your brand—but what if we don’t have that specific font installed on our computers? When we open your file, our system would substitute a default font, completely changing your design.
The solution is simple: outline your fonts. This process converts your text from editable letters into fixed vector shapes. The words will look exactly the same, but our computers will see them as images, not text, ensuring your typography is preserved perfectly. Look for a “Create Outlines” or “Convert to Curves” option in your design software.
5. Proofread. Proofread. Then Proofread Again.
This may sound obvious, but you’d be surprised how easily a small typo can slip through. We print the file you send us, so it’s crucial to check every detail before it gets to our shop.
Read every word carefully. Check for spelling and grammar errors. Verify that all dates, phone numbers, and addresses are correct. It’s a great idea to have a friend or colleague give it one final look with a fresh pair of eyes—they’ll often catch something you’ve overlooked.
6. Save as the Correct File Type
The industry-standard file format for submitting print jobs is a high-quality PDF.
PDFs are fantastic because they package all of your images, fonts (even if you forget to outline them!), and graphics into one self-contained file that is easy for us to handle. When saving, look for a “High-Quality Print” or “Press Quality” preset. An even better option, if available, is PDF/X-1a, a specific format designed to make files print-ready.
7. Name Your File Clearly
When you’re ready to save your final, print-ready PDF, give it a logical name. This helps avoid confusion and ensures we use the correct version of your file. We recommend a simple format like:
CompanyName_ProjectName_Date.pdf
Example: GalleyPrinting_BusinessCard_071725.pdf
Ready to Go to Print?
By following this checklist, you’re not just sending a file; you’re ensuring a smooth process and a beautiful final product. You’re setting your project up for success from the very start.
Feeling confident your file is ready? Upload it now for a free project quote!
If you’re still unsure about any of these steps, don’t worry—that’s what we’re here for. Our pre-press experts can review your file and help you with any questions. Contact us today!