Free Shipping Over $200 to Canada's Biggest CitiesAll Prices in Canadian Dollars ($CDN) 
Customer Service Hotline : 877-503-2679
Free Shipping Over $200 to Canada's Biggest CitiesAll Prices in Canadian Dollars ($CDN) Customer Service Hotline : 877-503-2679
Great printing starts with great artwork. Following a few simple design and file-preparation practices can help ensure your project prints the way you intended. Whether you're creating a business card, brochure, poster, book, sticker, or other printed product, these guidelines will help you prepare artwork for CanadaCopy.com.
Create your artwork at the finished size specified for your product.
Bleed is not required for every product. When required, the standard bleed is 0.125" (3.175 mm).
Keep important content approximately 0.25" (6.35 mm) from the trim edge.
Carefully review your artwork before submitting it.
Your document should be created at the finished size of the product you are ordering. If the product requires bleed, your artwork may need to extend beyond the finished size by the specified bleed amount.
Avoid designing at a different size and simply scaling the artwork during export. Scaling can affect text, images, spacing, and the amount of bleed in your file.
Standard bleed when bleed is required for the product being ordered.
Average recommended distance between important content and the finished trim edge.
Bleed is the extra artwork that extends beyond the final trim edge of a printed piece. It allows backgrounds, colours, and images to extend fully to the edge of the finished product.
Bleed is not required for every product. Whether you need to include bleed depends on the specific product you are ordering and how that product is produced.
Standard bleed amount when bleed is required. Always follow the specifications for your product.
Recommended average distance for keeping important content away from the trim edge.
Cutting is a physical process, and small variations can occur. For this reason, important information should not be positioned directly against the trim edge.
As a general guideline, keep important text, logos, faces, and other critical elements approximately 0.25" (6.35 mm) inside the finished trim edge.
Images used for print should have sufficient resolution for the size at which they will be printed.
Whenever possible, use the original photograph, scan, or artwork rather than an image copied from a website or social media.
Increasing the size of a small, low-resolution image does not create additional detail. Enlarging it too much can result in a blurry or pixelated print.
Colours displayed on your monitor are produced using light, while printed colours are produced using ink or toner. Because of this, the colour you see on screen may not exactly match the final printed result.
| Colour Type | Best Used For | Things to Consider |
|---|---|---|
| CMYK | Standard process-colour printing | Designed specifically for printed output. |
| RGB | Screens, websites, digital displays | Colours may change when converted for printing. |
| Spot Colours | Specific specialty colour requirements | Availability depends on the printing process and product. |
Not all black is created the same way. Depending on the type of artwork and printing process, different black constructions can produce different results.
Small black text should generally use a simple black colour rather than a heavy combination of multiple CMYK colours.
Large solid black areas may use a richer black construction when appropriate for the printing process.
Fonts can cause problems when artwork is moved between computers or exported incorrectly.
Transparency, drop shadows, blending modes, filters, gradients, and other special effects can sometimes behave differently during PDF export or RIP processing.
Always open your exported PDF and inspect it before uploading it. Make sure transparency effects, shadows, gradients, and other special effects appear as expected.
If an effect isn't necessary, simplifying the artwork can reduce the chance of unexpected results during production.
Before exporting your artwork, look at the entire design as a finished printed piece rather than focusing only on individual elements.
For many print products, PDF is the preferred file format. When exporting your artwork, use the PDF settings recommended for your specific product.
If your product requires bleed, make sure the exported PDF includes the required 0.125" (3.175 mm) bleed. If your product does not require bleed, do not add extra bleed simply for the sake of making the file larger.
Confirm that the PDF page size matches the artwork you created. If bleed is required, make sure the page includes the specified 0.125" (3.175 mm) bleed.
Open the exported PDF and look for missing images, incorrect fonts, colour changes, transparency problems, or objects that have moved.
Once you have confirmed that the PDF looks correct, upload that final version when placing your order.
Books, brochures, booklets, calendars, and other multi-page products require additional attention.
Borders placed close to the edge of a printed piece can make small trimming variations much more noticeable.
If a proof is provided for your order, take the time to review it carefully before approving the job.
Once artwork has been approved for production, changes may not be possible. Carefully review your proof before approving it.
Before uploading your artwork to CanadaCopy.com, check the following:
Our production process follows the specifications provided with your order and the artwork submitted by the customer. We do not automatically redesign or correct your artwork.
Please carefully review your files before submitting them. Problems such as incorrect dimensions, missing bleed when required, low-resolution images, spelling mistakes, incorrect colours, or improperly positioned artwork may result in an unexpected finished product.
Taking a few extra minutes to check your artwork before ordering can help prevent costly reprints and delays.
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