SIX BIG TIPS
1. Think in Multiples of Four. If you choose to add more pages, you need to add pages in multiplies of four! Your total number of pages should be divisible by four. (Divide your total number of pages by 4. The quotient should be an even number… no decimal points!) Pages are printed on larger paper in two-page spreads, front and back. So when you add just one page to your book, you actually need to add four, as they print four booklet pages at once. Before you go to the printer, you will export your book as pages, and fancy software at Alphagraphics will place them in the right order so it prints in the correct order.
2. Expect to print more than once. This way you can test colors, brightness, and font size. You must print your test pages of the half book at Alphagraphics that way you can see what the colors will print like. In order to get all the shades and colors right, you might need to print a second book. Make sure to follow the instructions about color profile below to help minimize the number of times you might need to print.
3. Expect to be there at least 1-2 hours during peak hours. If there is no wait, it should only be about 30 minutes! The best time to go and print your photobook are in the mornings around (10:30am-11:30am), right during dinner (5pm-6:30pm). Bring something fun to do, or your laptop to do homework… they don’t have wifi though! The guys that usually work on Saturdays are the chillest… try to print then if you can! Also, be professional and courteous; If you go in 30 minutes before closing time, your booklet might be rushed and the quality could be decreased!
4. Lighten your shadows, darken your highlights. Images always print darker, so make sure that you lighten your shadows so that they aren’t pitch black, and darken your highlights so they aren’t blown out.
5. Sharpen your images. Make sure that you sharpen your images. Images tend to loose sharpness when you print.
6. Use small type. Text looks bigger when it is printed in the book than it does on the screen.
DESIGNING THE BOOK
1. InDesign Setup: Create a new 24-page document in InDesign. If you add more pages, make sure you add 4 at a time and your final page count is divisible by 4. If your screen displays measurements in another unit (the lab computers typically default with Picas (p0) you can type in “in” after your number and it will automatically convert to the proper number.
DOCUMENT SETUP:
• 24 pages
• Facing pages
• Size: 8in. x 8in. or 9in. x 6in.
• Gutter: 0.25in
• Margins: 0.25in on all sides
2. THE COVERS
Your first and last page should be set up as non-facing pages. This will be your front and back cover. You can design them in InDesign, or design them in Illustrator or Photoshop then place your exported cover art into the InDesign file.
3. LINKED IMAGES AND FILES: Make all your edits and changes to your InDesign document (.indd), which we call the native file format. InDesign is awesome because it uses linked files, so it keeps the file size down. It’s a good idea to create a separate folder where you will save the Indesign File, the Exported PDFs and copies your high-res photos/PSDs that you will be linking.
4. COLOR PROFILES: Make sure that your image color profile is set to AdobeRGB 1998. If you don’t set your profile to AdobeRGB 1998, your images can print over or under saturated. When you finish this process, it might not look anything happened to the photo, but it did microscopically, so don’t worry!
CHECKING AND CONVERTING COLOR PROFILES:
• Right click the image in InDesign
• Go to Edit With -> Adobe Photoshop
• In Photoshop, Go to Edit -> Assign Profile -> Select AdobeRGB 1998
• Save and it should update automatically in InDesign.
5. MASTER PAGES: Go to the Pages palette in InDesign and double-click the Master A pages. Create your background design. All 24 pages will immediately be populated with this background. Anytime in the design process, you can make a change to all your pages, by changing the master pages.
If you want more than one background design, add additional master pages to use, then assign the Master B to the individual pages you want to look different. Select the page to change, and click on the dropdown menu in the Pages palette. Then choose Assign Master Pages to choose a different master. If you want to change remove certain elements from select pages (say you have a page number that is too close in proximity to the text), right click the page on your pages panel and select “Override Master Pages”. By doing this, it essentially copies the elements from the master page onto your page at the bottom. Any new changes made to the master pages after you override a master page will not update.
EXPORTING YOUR BOOK — FOR PRINT ONLY
1. EXPORT FOR PRINTING: Exporting your photobook is a different process than if you were to print online or with Walmart or Walgreens. Instead of exporting as JPEGs, you will need to export your photobook as a PDF. Follow the instructions below and make sure that you export as pages, not spreads!
To export your photobook for Alphagraphics printing, follow the instructions below. Make sure that you adjust your settings so they match those below.
1. FILE -> ADOBE PDF PRESETS -> HIGH QUALITY PRINT
2. NAME AND SELECT WHERE TO SAVE FILE
3. SELECT “PAGES” — NOT SPREADS
2. SAVE A COPY ONTO THUMBDRIVE: Save a copy of your exported PDF (as pages) to a thumbdrive and take to Alphagraphics. It’s a good practice to bring your laptopwith you so you can make any changes at Alphagraphics in case you need to re-export your photobook.
PRINTING YOUR BOOK
“I need to get a saddle-stich booklet printed on 80 Titan Cover. I’ve got the PDF exported as pages from InDesign, ready to print.”
If you go to Alphagraphics at peak times, you will most likely be waiting line for a LONG time. So be prepared…. cellphone fully charged, a laptop and patience.
BREAKING DOWN THE BOOKLET
• 8x8 or 9x6 Booklet
• Full-bleed pages (You will need to have them trim the pages)
• Saddle Stiched (saddle stiched means that they staple the pages together along the spine)
• Open edge needs to be chopped (this way the edges of the sheets are nice and straight when closed… no “pyramid”)
PAPER OPTIONS: 80 Titan Cover is what we printed Sister Esplin’s book on. If you ask for 80 Titan Cover, the associate WILL say something like this: “I wouldn’t reccomend that because it tends to wear down and crack on the seams.” Don’t let them talk you out of it… you know what it does and how awesome it looks! They will be hesitant, but be persistant! If you want to go with a lighter weight of paper, pages and images with dark backgrounds and images tend to show through to the other side.
FULL BLEED: When designing for print, you typically design with a bleed. Laser and other high end printers can’t print images all the way to the edge of the paper (inkjets can usually print borderless), so they print on a larger sheet of paper and trim it down to the size you designed it to be. When we set up our document in InDesign we didn’t design with margins because Alphagraphics’ software will automatically create a bleed when it prepares the placement of the pages to print correctly.
CHOP OFF THE EDGE: Since 80 Titan Cover is a heavier weight of paper the open edge tends to create a “pyramid” effect when it’s folded and stapled. Depending on which associate is helping you, you might have to ask for them to chop off the edge. This gives your booklet better presentation value and looks more professional.