Graphic Design Printing Brings Your Art To Life

As an artist, you understand the vital importance of excellent graphic design printing. But do you know the steps between creating your design and receiving your art in its printed form? In this article, we’ll explain the most important decisions you can make about online printing for graphic designers.

1. Choose Your Printed Product And (Re-)Size Your Design Accordingly

This first step sounds silly, but it’s worth mentioning because it’s vital for the graphic design printing process. Once you’ve chosen which products to print, from notecards to business cards and more, make sure to scale or resize your design accordingly.

For example, 11x17 and 30x40 posters have different width-to-height ratios, so if you’re planning to print your art on both sizes, adjust your design to fit both of them. When you’re scaling your work for graphic design printing, remember that there are three possible outcomes: the design is too small, leaving uneven negative space or margins; the design is too large, causing pixelation or a stretched image; or the design is just right, with uniform margins and faithful image reproduction.

If you’re planning to fill your paper with your design, without leaving a white margin around the paper’s edges, remember to include bleed in your digital files. Extending your design this extra eighth of an inch beyond the edges of your paper will ensure that your design fills the entire page once it’s been cut down to size.

Save your design in as high a resolution file as possible to avoid any pixelation in your final printed product. Be sure to save it as a PDF so that your printing company can access it easily.

2. Choose Your Paper

Your paper is the bedrock that supports the rest of your art. Viewers’ impressions of your designs will depend on the mood that your paper establishes. Choosing a paper means considering three factors: color, weight, and coating.

Color

Paper color sets the mood for your design. A bright white paper lends an air of modernity to your piece, whereas an ivory color invokes a classic, sophisticated mood. A paper made of recycled post-consumer waste demonstrates your commitment to the environment. There’s no wrong paper choice; simply consider your options and choose the paper color and material that best fits your design’s intended effect.

Weight

Paper weight refers to the paper’s thickness. Text weight is lighter and is a perfect match for posters and booklets. Cover weight is thicker and is therefore a great choice for sturdier items such as cards. Ask your printing company if you have any questions about the intricacies of paper weight, including which papers are best for which products and how paper weight can influence how your designs are perceived.

Coating

Paper stocks are either coated or uncoated, which affects how the paper catches and reflects light. Coated papers such as gloss, high gloss, dull, and silk will all result in a brighter-looking ink, so these papers are often better choices for the vibrant artwork involved in graphic design printing. However, there’s no correct or incorrect gloss choice. It’s simply a matter of preference and what you think will look best with your design.

Don’t fret over your paper options. If you have questions, your printing company will be more than happy to help you make these decisions.

Decide How Many Copies You’d Like

Now it’s time for another decision: how many copies of your graphic design would you like to receive? Here are a few questions to consider:

• If you’re selling your designs, how quickly do they typically sell?
• How much storage space do you have?
• How long do you want to be able to wait before ordering more copies?

Your answers to all of these questions will influence how many copies you decide to order. If you have enough storage space and don’t want to bother ordering more anytime soon, then go ahead and stock up on a large supply. If you’d rather order a few at a time, that works too!

ZoePrint Provides Easy Online Printing For Graphic Designers

At ZoePrint, we’re been leaders in graphic design printing. We understand that graphic design is an artistic means to send a message, and we want to help you broadcast your message to the world. We offer full-service printing for graphic designers at affordable prices, and we’re ready to help you share your creativity. To get started, order online or request a custom quote!