We recommend saving as a .PDF. You may also send the file in the following types: jpg, tif, and eps. Native Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop, or InDesign files can also be supplied so long as all fonts and links accompany the document.

We prefer that you send .PDF with embedded or outlined fonts. .PDF's are easier to handle and will likely speed up your turn-around. Remember to create your document page to size and to include crop marks, bleed, and flatten your files before uploading (PDFX1/A).

Bleed must extend past the cut-line and will be trimmed from the product during the final cutting phase. When the image is required to extend all the way to the edge, bleed is needed to preserve the finished look and the quality of the final product.

Please keep all text at least 0.125" inside the cut-line.

- The bleed for Standard Products is 0.125".

Simply, 300 dpi or higher at finished size on all "offset press" and small detail projects. If you're doing some large format banners, bus signage, semi truck graphics, or other large "from a distance" work, it is recommended that you don't go below 200 dpi at finished size

With the advent of direct to plate & digital printing, proofing has changed from the days of Matchprint & FUJI Proofing. Typically a proof will either be a laser or inkjet print, and for the sake of time and convenience, we offer 3D mockups of your final printed pieces as an alternative. It is important to note that we do what we do, we do well... design & print; as a professional in your industry, you know your business far better than we do. As you are the proofreader, it is up to the client to make sure that elements (including industry terms, marks, logos, and images) are correct. Once we are provided a "go" and receive payment, it is assumed that you have double checked the design carefully and as such, Grayphics is no longer responsible for errors or omissions.

Our goal is to turnaround each project in as quick a turnaround as possible without sacraficing quality or safety. A 3-5 day turnaround is typical once all required files and payments have been receieved. 7-9 day turnaround is required on more complicated pieces; like those with a lot of finishing attributes: folding, scoring or gluing.

Turnarounds on design projects are done on an individual time estimate basis.

Vehicle wrap projects typically see:

• Day 1: Design Files / Deposit
• Day 2: File review & procurement of materials required
• Day 3: RIP / Printing
• Day 4: Lamination
• Day 5: Cutting / Taping / Materials prep
• Day 6: Scheduling Vehicle install date

actual installation time will vary based on size and shape; expect to be without a vehicle from 1-4 days

We are a production facility with the best in the industry on the job. When we say on the job, we mean it. They are hands on at every aspect of design, production and installation - they are busy! So the best way to get the best answers is via email: support@grayphics.com

Think your question through, write it down, include your phone contact and we'll know if there's a quick email back to answer, or, if during a break, we can get back to you by phone with a more complicated solution to your query.

You printed a project for me a couple of years back and I can't find the files... might you have kept a copy?

The simple answer is, "Its very likely, but buried under terabytes of others' data" and to find it, there'd be an hourly fee.

You should back up all your data frequently. "Lost Data" can cause tremendous amount of stress, extra work, and potentially huge losses in revenue. Its always a good plan to save both a compressed native folder and a final .pdf to CD, DVD, Flash Drive, or cloud service when you meet a completion target. REMEMBER: Use a Sharpie and write the date on the surface of the CD/DVD.

If you're really concerned with protecting your data, store these offsite, a CD/DVD away from your computer in a protected binder and on a cloud service.

You can also pay small monthly hosting fees to store your data on an offsite server, allowing retrieval from any internet enabled computer that you have access to. Or, like most, you won't need the volumes of space that these paid services provide. For FREE storage: CLICK HERE!

Unfortunately no. Because we "build" your project from raw materials and it's unique to you, we require payment in advance of each project. On larger vehicle wrap projects a deposit of 70% will typically suffice.

The term graphic design can refer to a number of artistic and professional disciplines which focus on visual communication and presentation. Various methods are used to create and combine symbols, images and/or words to create a visual representation of ideas and messages. A graphic designer may use typography, visual arts and page layout techniques to produce the final result. Graphic design often refers to both the process (designing) by which the communication is created and the products (designs) which are generated.

Common uses of graphic design include magazines, advertisements, product packaging and web design. For example, a product package might include a logo or other artwork, organized text and pure design elements such as shapes and color which unify the piece. Composition is one of the most important features of graphic design especially when using pre-existing materials or diverse elements.

Typography (from the Greek words τύπος(typos) = form and γραφή(graphy) = writing) is the art and technique of arranging type, and sometimes modifying typeglyphs. Type glyphs are modified using a variety of illustration techniques. The arrangement of type involves the selection of typefaces, point size, line length, leading (line spacing), adjusting the spaces between groups of letters (tracking) and adjusting the space between pairs of letters (kerning). Type design is a closely related craft, which some consider distinct and others a part of typography; most typographers do not design typefaces, and some type designers do not consider themselves typographers.

Typography is performed by typesetters, compositors, typographers, graphic designers, art directors, comic book artists, graffiti artists, and clerical workers. Until the Digital Age, typography was a specialized occupation. Digitization opened up typography to new generations of visual designers and lay users.

In traditional typography, text is composed to create a readable, coherent, and visually satisfying whole that works invisibly, without the awareness of the reader. Even distribution of typeset material, with a minimum of distractions and anomalies, is aimed at producing clarity and transparency.

In typography color is the overall density of the ink on the page, determined mainly by the type face and size, the leading, but also by the word spacing and depth of the margins. Text layout, tone or color of set matter, and the interplay of text with white space of the page and other graphic elements combine to impart a "feel" or "resonance" to the subject matter. With printed media typographers are also concerned with binding margins, paper selection and printing methods.

Legibility is primarily the concern of the typeface designer, to ensure that each individual character or glyph is unambiguous and distinguishable from all other characters in the font. Legibility is also in part the concern of the typographer to select a typeface with appropriate clarity of design for the intended use at the intended size. An example of a well-known design, Brush Script, contains a number of illegible letters since many of the characters can be easily misread especially if seen out of textual context.

Readability is primarily the concern of the typographer or information designer. It is the intended result of the complete process of presentation of textual material in order to communicate meaning as unambiguously as possible. A reader should be assisted in navigating around the information with ease, by optimal inter-letter, inter-word and particularly inter-line spacing, coupled with appropriate line length and position on the page, careful editorial “chunking” and choice of the text architecture of titles, folios, and reference links.

Click Here for a list of terms used when speaking about type.