Adobe introduced the package feature for Illustrator with CS6. Prior to this welcomed update, we had to manually duplicate our Illustrator files and collect all of the associated images and fonts into a folder. Talk about opportunities for error! Unless you were extra careful, it was inevitable that a font or image (or two) would be missing from the folder that you sent off to the print vendor. You can't simply email the Illustrator file to whoever needs it. You must provide the Illustrator … [Read more...] about Packaging Illustrator Files
print files
Preflighting and Packaging InDesign Files
Sooner or later, you will discover that sending an InDesign file to another person or vendor is a bit more complicated than simply emailing the file. You must provide the InDesign document along with all of its associated images and fonts. Otherwise, the recipient won't be able to do much beyond opening the InDesign file. InDesign has two great tools that work in tandem with each other: Preflight Panel and Package. The Preflight Panel alerts you about any prepress issues in the file. If you … [Read more...] about Preflighting and Packaging InDesign Files
Image File Formats: print vs. web
There are 2 basic categories of file formats for images, and they relate to end-use: print and web. The key differences between print and web images are resolution measurement and color mode. Within the 2 categories are 2 core types of images: raster and vector. Raster images, otherwise known as continuous tone or photographs, are composed of tiny squares (pixels) which lose resolution when scaled up in size. Vector images are composed of connected lines and curves, which are … [Read more...] about Image File Formats: print vs. web