A design that looks beautiful on screen can come out a disaster in print if the file is not prepared correctly. Shifted colors, trimmed edges or blurry text — all come from skipped steps, not a lack of talent. The good news is that print preparation follows clear rules that are easy to check. Here is the print-ready checklist we run through before sending any layout to the printer.
Bleed and safety margins
The printer cuts sheets with a small mechanical tolerance, so any background or image that reaches the edge must extend beyond the final trim line — this is the bleed, usually 3 mm on each side. At the same time, keep text and important elements at least 3-5 mm inside, in the safety zone, so the blade does not touch them. Without these margins, you risk thin white strips along the edge or cut-off text — defects that only show after printing, when it is too late.
Color: CMYK, not RGB
The screen works in RGB, but print uses CMYK. If you send an RGB file, colors can shift visibly in print — especially electric blues and bright green, which simply do not exist in print. Convert to CMYK in advance and check the critical elements:
- The text black — a clean black, not a muddy mix.
- Brand colors — close to the printer profile.
- Large, even backgrounds — no surprises on conversion.
Resolution and fonts
Images must be at 300 dpi at the final print size — a small photo taken from the web and stretched across a page will look pixelated and unprofessional. Fonts are converted to curves or embedded in the file, so the printer does not accidentally swap them for others and ruin the look of the text.
The final export: PDF/X
The standard format for print is PDF/X, which packs colors, fonts, images and bleed into one reliable, predictable file. A correct PDF/X removes almost every misunderstanding with the printer and speeds up the order. At shadowforge we deliver the final print-ready layout — with bleed, CMYK and fonts resolved — so your printer in Moldova can run it the first time, with no corrections.