Q. Can I email electronic artwork?

A. Yes, you can email it as an attachment to printmill@sbcglobal.net or go through the SEND A FILE button in the banner above. Call us at 269.382.0428 for further information regarding uploading files and design programs that we accept.

Q. What is digital printing versus traditional offset printing?

A. Thanks for asking. Digital printing was revolutionized when electrostatic technology was developed by Xerox. It has evolved into speedy, short run, high quality black toner as well as full color toner output. The traditional method of printing still exists and will be around for quite a while due to the limitations of digital machines. These offset presses still use inks and plates and can do larger quantities as well as short runs and small paper & envelope sizes.

Q. What are bleeds, and do I need them?

A. Bleed is the term for printing that goes right to the edge of the paper. The way to do this is to make your document .25" too big in both dimensions. For instance, if the final size is 8.5" x 11", make your document 8.75" x 11.25". Draw guides on the layout that are .125" from the edge all the way around. Now create your design with the idea that the layout will be cut off where those guides are....because that is precisely what is going to happen. Make sure that any photographs or backgrounds that you want to bleed go clear out to the perimeter of the document, past the guidelines. Then after we have printed your piece, we will trim off that extra .125" all the way around. And voila!, you have color all the way to the edges of your piece.

Q. What resolution should my artwork be set at?

A. All non-vector artwork should be supplied at a minimum of 300DPI. Any artwork supplied lower than 300DPI will print blurred.

Q. Will my printed piece look exactly like it does on my computer monitor?

A. There are some small differences. Scanners and digital cameras create images using combinations of just three colors: Red, Green and Blue (called "RGB"). These are the colors that computers use to display images on your screen. But printing presses print full color pictures using a different set of colors: Cyan (blue), Magenta (red), Yellow and Black (called "CMYK"). So at some stage your RGB file must be translated to CMYK in order to print it on a printing press. This is easily done using an image-editing program like PhotoShop. Caution: It's Best If You do the RGB-to-CMYK Conversion of Your Images!

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