How to create a press-ready PDF from an Adobe Illustrator file

Digital printing services,postcard,business cards,poster,flyers,letterhead,fridge magnet,docket book > Preparing files, help & links > How to prepare Illustrator CS4 files for printing > How to create a press-ready PDF from an Adobe Illustrator file

There are one hundred and one ways to skin a cat. There are almost as many ways to convert an Adobe illutstrator file to a press-ready PDF.

 

Here is a suggested way to convert Illustrator files to PDFs for the non-technical people out there.

Below is the file that I want converted to a PDF so I can send it to my commercial printer.

 

I choose: "File" > "Save As...".

  

 

I name the file, select the place on my computer to where it shall be saved, and I choose to save it as a PDF (see the red arrow on the below image).

I click "Save" and the process continues.

 

I select "Press Quality" in the "General area" (see red arrows below).

  

I then click on "Compression" (see below). Make sure that the compressions are those selected below. The colours must be saved at 300dpi (or ppi). This will ensure your commercial printer receives a press-quality file to print.

  

If your job has background colours and images that must be printed to the very edge of the page, then click on the "Marks and Bleeds" button (see top left arrow on the below image). You the MUST add 3mm bleeds to each edge (see red arrows at the bottom-middle of the below image).

If you are sending your job the TheOnlinePrinter, then add crop marks (see red arrow in above image that points to a "ticked" box).

  

  

The below image is a screen shot of the PDF file that you should have created. You can see the crop marks (the red arrows).
This is where the card will be trimmed once it has been printed. You can also see that the background colours proceed past the place where the job will be trimmed; this is normal, and those inked areas are the "bleeds".