ARTWORK AND ELECTRONIC FILE GUIDE

GETTING ART TO US:

OUR EQUIPMENT: PC Platform: CorelDraw v 10, Adobe Illustrator v 9, Abobe Photoshop v 7

general information

Your final print is only as good as your artwork! Please follow all requirements listed here.

All electronic artwork must by accompanied by a written purchase order, a contact name and phone number. Please do not send artwork before speaking with a representative.

We make every effort to achive your electronic artwork files and film positives in a safe environment. However, we cannot guarantee that these files with remain accessible and uncorrupeted indefinitely. We strongly urge you to maintain backup files. Disk or paper copies of artwork are available in most cases to all accounts in good standing. The first copy will be provided at no charge. Thereafter copies will be charged at $10.00 each.

Blue Duck will not be held liable for any artwork in any format wich becomes unusable while being held in our facility, and replacement charges will apply to recreate any destroyed artwork.

COSTS

$10.00 Minimum art charge - applies to ALL artwork not supplied as film positives. All jobs will be quoted prior to beginning artwork. Black and white paper art will require the creation of an electronic file and film output and will be charged accordingly.

Art charges will apply to electronic art for the following reasons:
                          Output of film/vellum positives
                          Color separation or any necessary file modification

E-FILE TYPES ACCEPTED:

VECTOR TYPE: all artwork is created as curves/outlines. This is the preferred type.
      .cdr  CorelDraw v 10 or earlier      .ai  Adobe Illustrator v 9 or earlier

      .wmf  Windows Metafile

We will accept the following formats only when absolutely necessary: These files are not designed for our process, will most likely incur art charges.
      .psd  (photoshop)  .tif  (TIFF)  .bmp  (bitmap)  .jpg  (JPEG)

      .gif  (Compuserv bitmap)  .eps  Encapsulated Postscript
     (For EPS, all placed images must be sent as a separate file)
     Eps files are not always usable! Please call for help!

We DO NOT accept the following types of files:
These files will be returned to you!
      .txt,  .doc,  .wpg      any word processing files

      .ppt,  .xls      powerpoint or any other spreadsheet files

    Quark of Freehand files.

Acrobat  .pdf  Portable Document Files are for viewing purposes only and do not allow us to manipulate the file. We cannot use the to output your artwork!

E-FILE REQUIREMENTS:

ALL FONTS MUST BE CONVERTED TO OUTLINE OR CURVE. Do not send fonts with file.

Include in subject line the name of your company, design name, and PO number. When e-mailing art please send a hard copy via mail or fax to confirm that all elements in your e-file are available. Send one file per e-mail. Our e-mail is checked twice a day at 9:00 am and 1:00 pm.

Include color separation information with your file. Indicate colors by typing color name and number on artwork. Please use the Pantone Matching System Uncoated Color Palette. RGB or CMYK files will incur changes for spot color coversion. Halftones and fades require special handling-please call for information.

Files may be zipped. Mac files must be self extracting.

SPECIAL INFORMATION FOR ADOBE AND MAC FILES:

The file extension must be typed. (Filename.ext). Mac does not automatically do this, so please verify that your file extensions are correct. Some extensions Mac automatically assigns must be manually changed. The default (.txt) must be changed to (.ai).

When sending a disk or zip please gather all files into a volume (folder), then place the entire volume (folder) on the disk. This enables our translator to read your files. Stuffed files must be self-extracting.

Verify color separation in your file. We output fountain fills as CMYK only. CMYK and RGB art cannot be output as spot color and will incur conversion charges.

We do not accept Quark, Freehand, Pagemaker, or Acrobat files.

**Adobe users please export the file rather than saving it.
To export:From FILE menue choose EXPORT.
           In export dialog box, "Save as Type" chose .wmf (windows metafile).
           Name the file and extension and save.

ALL FONTS MUST BE CONVERTED TO OUTLINE!!! Do not sent fonts, we can't load them.
To convert to outline: Select all font and text objects - point and click on
           each one while holding down the SHIFT key.
           From the TYPE menu, choose "CREATE OUTLINES"

A final note:

Artwork designed for screenprinting is highly specialized. Please understand that artwork created electronically must meet the standards listed here in order for us to produce quality prints for you. Beautiful art on your monitor does not automatically translate into a beautiful imprint.

We have made the commitment to our clients to keep costs as low as possible. By following our standards here as closely as possible you can lower your art costs and speed production of your order.