Charge her for the high res work.. Explain that there are various levels of resolution and the differences between web and print..
Charge her for the high res work.. Explain that there are various levels of resolution and the differences between web and print..
Dad always said, if you are good at something, make sure they pay you for it.
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Yes Steve,
thats just what I've done, I also told her to see what the magazine required and whether the existing logo is suitable anyway (it's 760 x 540 px).
But, what kind of resolution a typical ad department in a magazine is going to expect? I dunno.
Seeing as their is no hi-res version as yet, I would have to re-do the logo at a larger size and doing that for free is a pretty big favour I reckon.
print work is typically run at 300dpi and web images tend to run at 72dpi.
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you don't see the difference because you are still looking at it on a 72dpi screen..
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I think in this instance the client is technically design illiterate. If it is just for the yellow pages, and they are good client, and the relationship is good, why not just take the extra time to explain to her that the graphics were made at a size or resolution which will probably look good in the yellow pages ,but might look better if it is adjusted for contrast for the black on yellow paper ink. Even though that stretches it a bit. Give her the low res for free and explain to her that if she plans to use the logo on a car to promote her driving business that it is best for you to get in contact with the printers for their exact specifications and what you have now will probably look really bad and without your involvement having a print shop or a second designer attempt to uprez the logo to vector could be expensive. I don't know... is it? Probably...
If another designer is involved in the uprez it might be prone to look pixelated, or boxy, mosaic, or really poor if not done right.
They should understand the extra costs associated with the time at least and then you can play by ear, right?
Just don't be demanding and don't to turn it into an extortion.
On the other hand, printing with strange inks or uprezing graphics to vector lines can be really stressful if it is your first time, so maybe just handing off the low rez is best for this situation? If you do end up uprezing, make sure to speak with the printers, don't try and figure it out by yourself, otherwise the final product will end up looking horrible. jmo...
Someone who is more savvy might ask if they have chosen a printer, and offer to use their printers as their work is better... who knows right?
Last edited by MrGamm; 04-17-2011 at 08:02 AM.
Yes, that's pretty much the way i'll approach it.
If the client wants me to recreate the logo at a higher res then thats ok too, and I will charge her for the hours it takes me, but beyond sending that hi-res version PSD to her, I would draw the line there as far as getting involved with the printing process goes.
Thanks for that advice MrGamm and to all the others who have contributed their views in this post, it's been a big help, many thanks
It has been a few years since I did any professional printing, but... I am sure not much has changed. Printing is expensive and you basically have only one shot at it. Not all printers have the same gear, and when I was doing stuff, PSD's are not what all printers use to make their final prints. Sometimes they have to translate the document to another format. In some cases they botch the translation and they will try to pin it on you.
I definitely remember trekking it out to the print warehouse a few times to see the document they were working with versus the document I had on record. Sometimes, even though graphic design programs embeds fonts, they can have someone new who will the edit the document and change that dependency. Just something to be aware of. Hope that helps.
Things like RGB to CMYK conversions, special inks, and vector formats are something to be aware of too.
You might want to call the printers to get specific instructions as to what they need. And call a few and see if any will give you a free proof.
Last edited by MrGamm; 04-17-2011 at 06:06 PM.
Sorrry I missed that part about you not wanting to get involved with the printers.
I was just suggesting it, because she is starting a driving school business. They always advertise with signs on their cars.
If she isn't asking you for the right thing, then chances are she doesn't know what she is really doing and your assistance could mean more hours billable.
Well as far as fonts go, in this particular logo their is only one and I rasterized that layer, the rest of the text came from an actual photo of an ad on the clients car which I then adapted for my design so they shouldnt be able to screw up that too much, although if I do end up re-creating the logo for higher res I will then have to find a suitable font to replace it and I suppose that could throw up a few problems regarding those issues you mentioned.
TBH though I doubt I will take this project that far, ive got far too much else on and it will be up to her to agonise over whether the results are up to scratch