A Few Tips to Help 
Avoid The Most Common Mistakes.

1.  Use RGB, not CMYK.  If you don't know whether your files are CMYK or RGB, they're probably RGB, and you're OK.  CMYK is interpreted differently by various file format converters.

2.  Don't expand your files (e.g., to 300 pixels per inch) if you don't have to.  Our equipment will determine if your files need to be expanded, and do so by pixel interpolation.  If you're making a montage or creating a poster with line art, then you probably do need to create your file at 150 to 300 pixels per inch, at the size you will be having it printed.  But if neither of these is true, and your file is smaller, you don't need to make it larger.

3.  Check your aspect ratio (the ratio of pixels wide to pixels tall).  If, for example, you have a file with a 4:5 aspect ratio and you want to make a 20 x 30, something will have to be stretched or cropped to make it fit.  There for the poster will be printed to the closest size. You can crop the file yourself before uploading it to us or leave the cropping to our system. To fit the image for a 20 x 30 poster, if the image is not wide or tall to fit, the poster maybe a 17 x 33 poster. We custom size to the shape of the image as closest to the poster size ordered.

4.  Don't be misled by an out-of-calibration monitor.  If you take a relatively new monitor and use the default settings, you're probably in good shape.  If you use a monitor calibration program, make sure you test the calibration.  Some monitor calibration programs do more harm than good.

5.  Use the best file format.  In most cases, JPEG compression (.JPG files) works best.  We're happy to receive large TIF files, but if you have problems in uploading, consider sending us compressed files.  If even one packet gets lost, the entire upload is ruined.  Most upload problems happen when customers are sending many and/or large files.

Avoid GIF files for photographic images, if possible.  GIF files create the image out of just 256 colors, and usually (but not always) minimize the color problems by dithering (oscillating) between colors to simulate in-between colors.  However, when GIF images are expanded, for large prints, they can look very noisy.  Worse yet, if you do editing, in Photoshop or Paintshop, on GIF files, any modifications will have to be created out of the 256 colors already there.  Change your files, in Photoshop, to TIF or JPEG before you start editing.

If you convert (e.g.,) Word files to PDF, be sure to check the conversion closely.  If the images are large and/or complex, mistakes may occur.  Even for simple files, symbols may convert to "?".  For larger files, characters or even portions of lines may get truncated.  Often the problems are not obvious until you look closely.

6.  If you think your upload time might exceed 15 minutes, upload your files one at a time.  This is particularly important at times when the internet is quite busy.  If just one packet gets lost, the entire upload is ruined and must be repeated.  If you have been having upload problems, usually just waiting until the internet is less busy will produce better results.

7.  Check the file edges.  We sometimes see files with discontinuities at the edges.  This often results from Photoshop operations which start with the identification of a box which is intended to cover the entire file, but doesn't.  The result is a 1-3 pixel band at the file edges.  Our policy is that if the edge discontinuity is less than 1/32" (and the print is ordered 'cut to size'), we cut off the discontinuity, even though that results in a slightly undersize print.  However, if the discontinuity is more than 1/32", or if the print is ordered with a border, then we have no choice but to leave it there.