Preparing Book Files for Printing on Press

The following is information to ensure files are prepared properly. SPB will provide a template for the cover, cover wrap, and dust jacket. Spine width is determined by the weight and thickness of the text, cover, and board.

Images in CMYK

All process color images need to be saved in CMYK, not RGB. When printing on press, four inks are used; Cyan, Magenta, Yellow and Black. They are the only 4 inks used in process color (full color) printing.
RGB stands for Red, Green, Blue and RGB is used for viewing color on monitors and televisions.

Scanning images

Photos (JPG or TIFF, but preferably TIFF formatted images) need to be scanned at 300 dpi (dots per inch) or ppi (pixels per inch). If you are unsure of the final size when printed, scan at a higher resolution.
Tip: If you are unsure of the final size, scan the images at 350 dpi so you have some room to enlarge the image on the page.
Tip: Save photos as TIFFs instead of JPGs, as TIFFs are stable whereas JPGs can lose resolution when saved. This is particularly important for those of you who don’t have the full version of Photoshop.
Tip: Although Photoshop allows you to increase resolution, it is unwise to do so. The reason is because to increase resolution, Photoshop borrows little bits of adjacent pixels to fill in. There is no substitute for an original scan at the proper resolution, and  size.  Having said that, if you have a fine photography or art book, you always want to keep this in mind. If you have a book where full resolution is not as important, you can increase resolution knowing your results will not be optimal. But this means you can maybe get away with using a 250 dpi image, but not 72 dpi.
Remember that what you see on a monitor when preparing a book to print on press, can give you a false sense of security. The images may look great on screen, but whenproofing on a high-quality digital output device, you may find pixilated images. Not to worry though, Star Print Brokers always checks this before going to press. But it will cost you time and perhaps additional design costs to correct.

Resolution and Sizing images

The minimum resolution for fine quality book printing is 300 dpi (dots per inch) or greater. Images to be viewed on the web are typically lower resolution, 72 dpi. Image dimensions should be the same size (or larger) than they will appear in the printed book. You don’t want to print images that look pixilated, as seen below at 72 dpi.  Resolution example:
 
 Example of 300 dpi versus 72 dpi resolution

 

Bleeds

If an image prints off the trimmed page, it is called a “bleed”. Be sure to allow 1/8 inch (0.125″) extra for any bleeds.  If working in millimetres, set a 3 mm bleed. The bleed settings are set-up in InDesign under File > Document Set-up, and then click onn “More Options”. See example showing the bleed area, page trim lines, and the printed page area:

Bleed example to show page printing area, trim area, and bleed 

Bar Code

Leave the bar code background white or clear for best results. Do not modify or crop except to reduce to 92 percent. The correct placement is the lower right corner of the back cover. If you would like Star Print Brokers to place the bar code for you, just forward the zipped attachment to us. Also see FAQ at R. R. Bowker Bar Code Service. Link to their site at our Resources weblinks.

Package files for prepress

Files need to be “packaged” in InDesign for a service provider, or “collected” in Quark. This is different than saving the file. The commands will gather images and fonts used in the file.

Inks in the swatch palette are CMYK (process color), and not spot, unless you are adding a specific PMS ink that cannot be built in a CMYK screen build.

There are four inks in process color, Cyan, Magenta, Yellow and Black. If you add a spot color, it adds a fifth color to press set-up which changes the quote. Using a metallic ink will also add another ink to the press. Metallic colors can be printed or foil stamped for optimal results. Please discuss the vision of your book with Star Print Brokers. We can make suggestions to trim your budget, or provide almost any embellishment you can envision!

The following is information (and suggestions) to ensure files are prepared properly when layout out the book.
  • Collect images in an folder to use before creating the document.
  • Use the “Place” command to insert images into the document, as images should not be embedded.
  • If any image bleeds off the page, allow 1/8 inch (0.125 inch), or 3mm.
  • The bleed is added in the file set-up.
  • If you have many large dimension and high-resolution images, you may need to break the book into chapters or smaller groups of pages.
  • Double check page numbering, especially if you move chapters.
  • Books always start with page 1 (or Roman numeral i in the front matter), and this is always a right-hand page. All the right-hand pages in the book will be odd numbered, and the left-hand pages will be even numbered.

Making PDFs

InDesign: File>Export>Save (to desktop).

Screen Capture 1

  • Left column: General tab
  • Adobe PDF Preset: You want to choose “Press Quality” because “Print Quality” is meant for output to desktop printers, not for printing on press.
  • Compatibility:  Acrobat 4 (PDF 1.3). Once you select this option, “Press Quality” will become “Press Quality (modified)”. Acrobat 5 and higher contain functions we do not need to print on press, like preserving linkable text. These later versions can also interfere with imposition software printer’s use to prepare files for printing.

Screen Capture 2

  • Left column: Marks and Bleeds tab
  • “Spreads” box unchecked. (We need the PDF in single pages, NOT spreads.)
  • Under “Marks”, check box: “All Printer’s Marks”
  • Below that, check box: “Use Document Bleed Settings”. If you have set the bleed correctly in the Document setting, you will see 0.125 in each box. It is also okay to have the inside box set to zero.

 

 What to Send 

Please send the following:

  • The files should be on CD or DVD in InDesign or Quark. Note: If the book has a low page count, or is a novel, you can also place the PDFs on our FTP site.
  • Print-outs. Include one set with color as you wish to appear in your book. This is not needed for a novel without color, but is necessary when color is critical.
  • Let us know what software was used to create the files; InDesign, Quark, etc., the version; Cs3, CS5.5, etc., and whether you are using Mac or PC.

 

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