|
How to Prepare Adobe Illustrator CS
Files for Output |
 When
setting up a job for Adobe Illustrator the most common
overlooked problems are document (artboard) size and
bleeds.
Please set up your document 1-up at the Finish Size (ie:
8.5" x 11", 5.5" x 8.5", etc.) and we will do the
imposition of the document to best fit our presses. Be
sure that your important artwork/text is at least .125"
away from the edges of your document, and that any items
which you wish to bleed extend .125" outside of the
document boundaries.
(This can easily be verified by turning on Rulers and
Guides in the "View" Menu) |
|
|
Since Illustrator does not
check/report for you, you will have to verify that any
placed art is in CMYK mode. Please check all linked
items, modify and update links if necessary. |
|
 Once
your document is satisfactory for printing, we recommend
you save a copy with all of the fonts "intact" and also
save a copy with the fonts "outlined". You can easily
outline the fonts by going to Select > All and then
going to Type > Create Outlines. This will make the
document free of all fonts and will reduce problems
while printing. However, be careful and check your
document without fonts for problems caused by
strokes/fills applied to text changing when you create
outlines. |
|
|
Now that your images (and
possibly fonts) are taken care of, we prefer you to save
your Illustrator document as a PDF file from
Illustrator. |
|
|
Go to File > Save As...,
when the window pops up, select Adobe PDF and name your
document appropriately, and click the Save button. This
should make another window come up offering PDF options.
Please follow the steps below to create the most
"Press-Ready" PDF possible. |
|
|
Saving as PDF - General
Options |
 Choose
Compatibility: Acrobat 6 (If possible) or choose Acrobat
5 if you do not have Acrobat 6.0+.
Select the following
Options:
- Preserve Illustrator
Editing Capabilities
- Embed Page
Thumbnails
- View PDF after
Saving
|
|
|
Saving as PDF - Compression
Options |
 On
this page you need to turn off all Downsampling and
convert any Compression to ZIP encoding, as well as turn
all Image Quality to the highest available.
Be sure to turn off
"Compress Text and Line Art". |
|
|
Saving as PDF - Marks and
Bleed Options |
 Select
to include All Printer's Marks, and for the document to
include 0.125" bleeds on all sides. |
|
|
Saving as PDF - Advanced
Options |
 Select
the Fonts to be Subsetted at less than 100%. |
|
|
Saving as PDF - Security
Options |
 On
this page you need to be sure NOT to check any of the
boxes requiring passwords to open/print/modify the
document.
If you select any of
these options, we may not be able to correctly output
the file. |
|
|
Saving as PDF - Summary
Options |
 This
page gives you a final run-through of what you have
selected on the previous options screens.
If you are happy with
everything it displays, you can select "Save Preset" and
save all of these settings for the next time you need to
output a PDF for a Printing Service.
Give the preset a name,
and hen proceed with saving your PDF file. |
|
|
When your PDF is created,
please send it to us using
the instructions here. |
