Artwork files can be uploaded on the order page whilst you are ordering or emailed to us at info@thepadprinters.co.uk please remember we print your order directly from the file you supply so the higher quality your artwork the better your finished job.
NCR from Your Own Design Artwork
Artwork should be supplied ready to print at the size it is to be printed and all artwork must have a minimum 5mm border, we do not print edge to edge. If you cannot provide your artwork ready to print we offer an 'Artwork Upgrade' service where, for a fixed price depending on the complexity of your design, we can get your artwork print ready, please visit our Design Services Page via the main menu for more information.
Acceptable Files
We can accept image files in the formats PDF, PNG, PSD & JPEG (although we advise against the latter as they have a tendency to pixelate around words and where colours transition sharply.) Images should be created at a minimum of 300dpi preferably from an original document. Taking an image created at 72dpi and making it 300dpi will not improve the quality.
We can also accept Microsoft Publisher (PUB) & Word (DOC & DOCX) documents, but would really suggest that you save these as PDF's to avoid compatibility issues. Please note these will have to be emailed to us after your order has been placed as our site is only designed to upload image files. (Please put a note in the 'Additional Info' box with your order to let us know that you've emailed us your artwork.)
Please embed all fonts in the document or email us the fonts used in the document.
When creating PDF files please embed all fonts. Always view your PDF with Output Preview open before submitting it for print as this gives the most accurate view of how the file will look when printed.
PDF Checklist — Get your Artwork Right First Time
PDF’s aren't all equal any print job can only be as good as the artwork its printed from so please review the following points to make sure your artwork is Print Ready. By insuring you supply a Print Ready PDF you can be sure that the NCR Pads we print fully match what you can see on your screen giving you the high quality job you expect.
- The page size of your file should match the finished trim size you require.
- Any scans are at 300 dpi and 100% of the final image size.
- Black text is 100% black, not a mix of CMYK.
- All images are embedded within the file.
- All Fonts are either embedded within the file or converted to outlines. (Many programs, such as Microsoft Word, will embed fonts automatically when creating a PDF).
- The design must be a minimum of 5mm from the edge of the page.
Font
We recommend a minimum font size of 6pt. Please use 100% black if text is between 6pt to 7pt.
Colour
Due to the ink tolerances involved in the printing process slight variance in finished printed colour is inevitable. This means the finished colour may turn out to be slightly different and may not be an exact match to the original colour in your file.
We recommend avoiding large areas of solid colour in your designs as this is prone to banding.
Colour matching from what you see on screen
When viewing your design on screen you are looking at colours made up of red, green and blue which cannot be exactly replicated with ink on paper. The colours on your screen will also vary depending on how your screen is calibrated.
Logo Images
Please make sure all of your images are high resolution about 300dpi (dots per inch). The lower the dpi the worse your images will look when printed. Images & logos cut from websites are usually 72 dpi and are generally not suitable for print.
How big should my logo be?
This is the most frequently asked question and really depends on the detail of your logo and the file format. PNG files are better quality than JPG (the most commonly used format) and so are usually larger file sizes but as a rule, in order for your logo to be of decent quality when printed it must be at least 300dpi and around 5cm wide (that's about 600px). That should put it at between 50 to 150kb (kilobytes) for JPG files and 300 to 400kb for PNG files. Larger file sizes are naturally better quality but please try not to send any image over 1mb (megabyte) as this will be much larger than needed.
If in any doubt or you're not familiar with producing Print Ready artwork we now offer an Artwork Proofing Service available from the Drop Down Menu in the Product order pages.