Once you've finished your project and you've double checked
everything, it's time to submit your files to the printer.
Now, if you're using Adobe InDesign and
you're submitting Native files, then use Preflight.
Now, InDesgin has built-in default Preflight profiles, but a
lot of printers send out custom profiles to their clients.
And those profiles are tailored to their particular workflow.
So, if you have a preflight profile sent by your printer, be sure
that you use that as you're preflighting your document.
You want to gather up all the pieces, and InDesign makes that easy, just choose
file package, and it gathers up your In Design file, any placed graphics, and any
fonts that are needed by the document
with one important exception If you're using InDesign
CC, you have access through your creative
cloud membership to something called Typekit desktop fonts.
Now you can use them through your InDesign files,
you can actually use them in any application on your computer.
They allow themselves to be outlined, they allow themselves to be
inbeded in PDF's, but they don't allow themselves to be packaged.
So ,any conventionally licensed fonts that you've used in your project
will be part of the package, but those Typekit desktop fonts won't.
Is this bad news? No, not really.
Because, when you job gets to the printer, they're
also CC members and they'll have access to exactly the
same Typekit fonts.
When they open up your file, it's going to
flag itself and say hey I need these fonts.
They get them. Life is good.
So, don't worry.
And, I know we're trying to not kill trees, We're trying to not print out
paper unnecessarily but it's a good idea to send hard copy along with your job.
Especially if there is something a bit out of the ordinary with your job.
Nothing wrong with printing it out, getting a red
marker and circling anything you want to call attention to.
If the printer has asked that you submit print ready PDFs.
Again they may supply you with what the call a job options file.
And that's something that you import and then you
just use that as your recipe for creating PDFs.
If they have a particular work flow and they'v e worked out the
perfect PDF setting, you ought to use that when you create your PDFs.
Now if you're sending to a small shop or overseas or
to a publication that says, well, I don't know, just send
us a PDF, then you're sort of flying blind.
In that instance, use PDF/X-1a as your type of PDF.
If there's bleed in your document, be sure to check that.
Exporting to PDF doesn't automatically include bleed.
So, for example, if you've chosen PDF/X-1a as the type of PDF
you're making, you'll have to tell it you need to include bleed.
Ask the printer if they want trim marks.
Most printers don't care, and don't need them,
but ask if they want them, just in case.
If you're creating your artwork in Adobe Illustrator
and you're submitting native files, delete any extraneous content.
If you have any empty art boards, get rid of them.
If you have any objects outside the artboard
where you're experimenting, get rid of them too.
They add a little bit to file size.
And ,if you clicked around accidentally with your pen tool or the type tool, and
you know those little spots that you see around, get rid of those too.
Of course I hope you've built to the correct trim size and if there's
anything that need to bleed, make sure
that you've set up bleed for your document.
Ensure that your swatches are correct.
In other words ,make sure if they're spot,
that you really are suppose to print a spot.
If they're not ,convert them to process.
It's true that the printer could convert them, but the more
work you do to reduce confusion, that's a pretty good idea.
And then you want to make sure again that you
gather up all the pieces, starting with the Creative Cloud
version of CS6 and continuing onto the higher versions, you
have the ability within Illustrator to choose File > Package.
So ,if you've placed any images, it's going to gather those up.
If you've used any fonts, of course it's going to gather those up.
But, like InDesign, if you're a Creative Cloud member, and
you're using CC or newer, you have access to those Typekit
desktop fonts.
And they are not going to be packaged
in Illustrator, just like they aren't packaged in InDesign.
Because I mentioned earlier, when your job gets to the printer, they are also
Creative Cloud members, they have access to
the same fonts, and everything will be okay.
If the printer asks you to send them print ready PDFs, out of
your Illustrator file, that's not an export function, that's just File Save As.
And then again, you can ask that printer if they have
a custom preset That they would prefer that you use, when you're making pdfs.
And again, when in doubt, you use PDF/X-1a.
The default is naturally called Illustrator Default.
Usually you don't want to use that when you're
making PDFs because it's essentially a two for one file.
It's really ,your original Illustrator file inside a PDF wrapper.
That can result in a really big file.
You know, it does facilitate editing. But it's unnecessary
when you're sending a final file that's really not supposed
to be edited, it's really just supposed to be print ready.
And that's why you want to uncheck that Preserve Illustrator Editing Capabilities.
You just want to make sure you don't have that double version of the file.
So ,when you actually go to send the file, how are you going to send it?
A lot of printers have a dedicated FTP site.
So, they'll often have a web interface.
You just, launch a browser and they make it easy
for you to send the files to them.
Or, of course you could use your own service.
If you're using something like Dropbox or YouSendIt,
or any of the other transfer services, use that.
There's nothing wrong with sending a good old fashioned CD or DVD.
If you have a particularly large project ,that maybe is too big to
send or maybe it's something you want to keep safe from anybody intercepting.
I still see people sending an External drive.
So ,it could be one of the removable drives, they're
getting cheaper all the time and larger in storage size.
So ,how you send it is going to depend on
the size of your file and what your access is.