One of the first things to think about when creating a brochure is how it will fold. Making a plain paper folding dummy can help you determine accurate sizes for the panels. A few of the more common folds are roll fold, accordion fold and gate fold. The panel sizes are determined by the fold you want to use. An accordion fold is one of the easiest because all of the panels are the same size because of the zig-zag. The roll and gate folds fold in on each other. To make the bro

Use the latest version of a page layout software — some programs require additional prepress steps Using the latest version of standard page layout software will cause the fewest problems for your printer. The reason for this is that the digital technician who prepares your digital files for printing has a high level of expertise. The standard page layout program is InDesign. Photoshop and Illustrator are not page layout programs. You can build pages using these programs, but

In InDesign, crafting well-formed documents will not only look better, but save you money in unexpected production costs. l. Images. Before you place images in your file, make sure to first save them as CMYK TIFF files. The final resolution after sizing in InDesign should be 300 dpi. Select the linked file in the InDesign Links Panel, and in the link info, check the "Effective PPI" to see the resolution after sizing. 2. Bleed . If anything creeps over the edge on your page,

Digital printing — which affords mail advertisers almost infinite opportunities for highly persuasive personalization — demands careful preparation. Sylvia Konkel of EU Services of Rockville, Maryland, offers these six tips on digital production: TIFF, EPS, and similar image files work best in digital reproduction. TIFF files take up a lot of computer capacity, but produce higher resolution, with more precise detail and color than JPG and GIF files, which may save capacity bu

Pointers on how to save on printing costs without hurting the eye-appeal and response rates of your mailing packages: Plan ahead and avoid costly last-minute changes. Make a full-size paper dummy of every mailing. Make sure that: All components are machine-insertable into the outer envelope. If in doubt, check your printer for allowable dimensions. The outer-envelope window is large enough to qualify for the USPS barcoding discount. The order form fits into the reply envelope

Red, green, and blue (RGB) are the primary colors of light. Cyan, magenta, yellow and black (CMYK) are the primary colors of printing. RGB color is used to display on your computer screen. RGB is called additive color. The more light you add the lighter your color becomes. When equal amounts of the RGB primary colors are at their highest level, the resulting color is white. CMYK color is used for printing. Dots of ink are printed on paper for each color: cyan, magenta, yellow

Considerations when printing images and special ink colors Viewing monitor colors as RGB Full color images viewed on a monitor are created by combining the colors Red, Green and Blue resulting in a continuous tone pixel structure. Photos print using dots Printing plates use a high contrast process that sees images as either black or white. Varying the size of printing dots will create various shades of gray. Printing colors made from CMYK 4-color process printing is commonly

Delete extra colors from your document to simplify prepress work Delete all non-used colors. Going through this process will eliminate the possibility of incorrect conversion of “extra” colors to four-color process. Do not use RGB colors in your document. RGB describes computer monitor color and must be converted to reproduce on paper. When using Pantone colors, use consistent color names in your documents Use correct and consistent names within a file and from project to pro

A Breakdown of Printing Costs The percentage cost for producing 10,000 copies of an 8-1/2" x 11" saddle stitched 16-page self cover booklet that prints eight pictures in four color process breaks down as follows: Research and copy 15% Art and composition 38% Prepress work 17% Paper 8% Printing and binding 13% Mailing and postage 9% Of course, if the number of copies required changes, the percentages would also change. When the number of copies is increased, paper, printing an

What are the statistics of paper consumption in the U.S.? The U.S. is the largest market for paper products in the world, producing 90 million tons of paper annually. In turn, the U.S. consumes about 100 million tons per year. In 2012, recycling awareness led to 65% of domestic paper being recycled. This collection effort and the use of post-consumer pulp resulted in recycled paper making up 33% of the nation’s paper making materials. Wood chips and sawmill scraps account for

Why print, paper and pencil remain highly effective learning tools.

The Fact: Sustainable forest management benefits people and the planet. While it’s true that collecting used paper and recycling it into new products is good for the environment, there’s a catch. The wood fibers in paper can be recycled only about five times before they get too weak and break down. That’s why we need fresh fiber harvested from responsibly managed forests, too. Using fresh fiber creates a sustainable cycle of high-quality recyclable material to continually rep

One or more of these production tactics can help your organization cut fat out of its printing budget — with no loss, or even gains, in...

We’ve all had that beautiful project: the one with the solid ink coverage that wrapped around from the front cover to the back cover. It was truly a picture of joy and happiness - until it was folded. Then it became unsightly because of the cracking and show through of the paper under the ink coverage. What do we do now? Let’s go back to the beginning, to the planning stages and maybe something will come up that can help us save this project. Here are some points to consider:

Stocks that have the same front and back surface save money Work-and-turn press forms require one set of plates that can be used to print both the front and back side of the press sheet. The requirement is that both sides of the press sheet have the same surface. If the press sheet has two different surfaces, i.e. a coated one side (C1S) cover stock, then a sheetwise press form would have to be used requiring one set of plates for the front side and a second set of plates for

Opacity refers to the property of paper which obstructs the passage of light and show-through of printing. This characteristic is expressed as the percentage of visible light that does not pass through a sheet of paper. For example, 98% opacity means that 98% of the light can not pass through the sheet, and is absorbed in or reflected by the paper’s surface. Low opacity means the paper will have more show-through, such as tracing paper. High opacity means there will be less s

The paper you use is a critical factor in the appearance of your printed projects. For most of our products, Castle Press has suggested paper options to those most popular for the usage. There are hundreds of different paper brands, colors and weights available depending on the budget for your project. About Paper Options There are three attributes that differentiate papers from one another: finish, weight and opacity. Finish Finish refers to the texture, feel and appearance

Standard Paper Sizes and Specifications for stationery, marketing collateral, commercial envelopes, catalogs, and more