What is wide format printing?

Wide format printing is a term used in reference to printing banners, posters, wall stickers, and other large print projects. Wide format signs and banners are perfect for advertising. Capture your audience’s attention with large print and stunning colors and designs. The room for creative design is almost limitless when working with large format. You pick the size. Then create your artwork.

What program should I use for my project?

This really depends on the project.

• Photoshop: Is fine especially if you’re using a lot of photographs and little text.
• Illustrator, InDesign and Other vector programs: Vector based artwork is going to be the most versatile to work with because it will scale seamlessly. If your design includes big fonts or is text heavy, vector might be the best option for you.

How should I set up my document?

Start with finding out what the finished size of your project will be and create your document at that size plus bleed (if needed).

Example:
If you’re purchasing a 27×40 poster and your design has bleeds, then your file size should be 27.25 x 40.25.
We add the extra .25 so that when the poster is cut, your image bleeds to the edge of the poster and you won’t be left with any white border. This is why your background needs to fill the entire document. Make sure that all important text and images are at least .25inches from the edges.

What is the ideal resolution?

Each printer is different but we prefer to work with files that are 300dpi, especially for flyers, posters or stickers that will be viewed up close. If you’re printing a banner and the file is too big at 300dpi, you can probably get away with creating the file between 150-200dpi.
Images taken from the web or saved in a lower resolution than 300dpi (and even if upscaled to 300dpi) may not print well when viewed up close.

Should images be CMYK or RGB?

Everything should be made in CMYK.

How should I save my design?

Exporting as a high quality PDF should be just fine. Most printers will accept InDesign, Illustrator and Photoshop files as well as most image files. As long as everything is saved in CMYK, and all of your images are high resolution, you should be fine.

How do I get my project printed?

At Printit4less.com we can print any size poster you need! Simply upload that saved high resolution file when placing your order. If you need help with banners or other large format printing, send us a message and we’ll get you an estimate!

Categorised in: Printer's Advice

This post was written by Progressive Printing Team

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