Glossary & Printing Terms

The more copies of something you print, the cheaper the unit rate. Artwork Variations let you print a total quantity across multiple different designs in the same print run. For example, you may choose to print 500 A5 flyers with 2 artwork variations — 250 of one design and 250 of another — at the same bulk price. You will be prompted to upload or create artwork for each variation and assign the sub-quantity (share of the total) to each. There is a small additional charge per artwork variation to cover the file setup cost. Not all products support artwork variations.

In order for your finished print to have colour right to the edge, you must supply your artwork with an extra 2mm of bleed all around. This additional 2mm margin gets trimmed away during finishing, resulting in properly sized prints with clean edges. It is also important to keep elements of your artwork that don't bleed at least 2mm away from the trim line, as trimming can vary by up to 2mm. Stickers require only 1mm of bleed; some specialty products require more.

Booklets are multi-page printed products, typically saddle-stitched (stapled) or perfect-bound. Inserts are loose pages printed separately and inserted into a booklet or package. Page counts for booklets must be in multiples of 4 for saddle-stitch binding.

Case options refer to the binding style for books and notebooks. Common case options include saddle-stitch (stapled), perfect bind (glued spine), spiral/coil bound, and hardcover case-bound. The available case options depend on the product and page count.

With light, colour is made up of Red, Green and Blue (RGB). With ink, colour is made up of Cyan, Magenta, Yellow and Black (CMYK). RGB is designed for screens and internet viewing; CMYK is for printing. Images saved in CMYK may look slightly less vibrant on screen, but will print more accurately. RGB images will print but may shift in colour — especially bright or fluorescent tones. We recommend working in CMYK for all print artwork.

For CD/DVD products, disc types refer to the format of the disc being printed on — for example CD-R, DVD-R, Blu-Ray. The disc type affects the compatible print method. We print directly onto the disc surface (direct-to-disc printing).

Some products refer to their size as a finished folded size, while others refer to the flat unfolded size. Common fold types include: No Fold (flat sheet, can be single-sided); Half Fold (e.g. A4 folded to A5, giving 4 faces: cover, back, inside left, inside right); DL (Letter) Fold (A4 sheet folded into thirds, giving a DL brochure). A Z-fold variant folds the last panel outward. Double-sided printing is standard for folded products.

Lamination is a process of coating your print in a plastic film, leaving it with a nice texture and making it more durable and water resistant than just paper alone. Matt laminate deflects reflections, making the print easy to see in bright environments. Gloss laminate adds a shiny, high-reflection finish. Both laminates make a print more durable and pleasing to the touch.

Digital printing uses millions of dots in four colours (CMYK) at 300 dots per inch (300 DPI). All images must be at a minimum of 300 DPI at the final print size. Your computer screen is 72 DPI — an image that looks fine on screen may print much smaller or appear blurry if it is only 72 DPI. Images from the internet are typically low resolution (72 DPI) and are not suitable for print. Vector files (.ai, .eps) can be scaled to any size without loss of quality. To calculate if an image is high enough resolution: divide its pixel dimensions by 300 (to get maximum print size in inches), then multiply by 25.4 (to convert to mm).

Printer's marks are extra elements printed outside the document area to assist a printer. They include crop marks (trim marks), registration marks, colour bars, and page information. We do not require any printer's marks and in fact they can sometimes create extra issues with your artwork. Simply include the bleed amount in your file name instead — for example: myartwork_2mmBleed.pdf

There are two printable sides to a piece of paper. Single-sided printing reduces costs and works well for items mounted on walls or where the reverse won't be visible. Some products are not suitable for single-sided printing — for example, it would look very odd if the inside or outside of a brochure was blank. For such products, double-sided is the only available option, and "N/A" will appear in the price field if you select an unavailable combination.

Printing comes in practically any size or shape. We offer a range of preset sizes that are common and useful. Do not be concerned with the orientation of your product — both portrait and landscape templates will load if you choose to design your artwork online. If supplying a PDF, as long as the dimensions match, orientation is not a concern. Note: some products state their size before folding (e.g. brochures), while others state the finished size after folding (e.g. greeting cards).

Paper thickness is measured in GSM (Grams per Square Metre). For reference, average copy paper is 80 GSM and a typical business card is 300 GSM. Paper can come coated or uncoated. Coated paper typically weighs more and has a smoother surface which allows for a finer finish. Uncoated paper is lighter and more porous, with a finish that is not as fine.

Describes how the finished product will be delivered to you. For example, labels can be supplied as cut singles, on a roll, or on sheets. Stickers may be supplied kiss-cut (cut through the sticker but not the backing) or die-cut (fully cut through). Check the product page for the available supply options.