[minti_alert type=”info” close=”true”]This post will help answer some of your questions about designing artwork for screen printing.[/minti_alert]
It’s pretty common for someone to say “I want that picture on my shirt” while looking at a tiny thumbnail on a cellphone. It’s easier said than done in many times. You can always make an image smaller, but it’s not so easy to make an image bigger, and sometimes downright impossible. Sometimes when all the client has is web art that was copied and pasted, then that’s going to have to do.
[minti_alert type=”info” close=”true”]If you have to use another program to design your artwork, make sure it can save files in .JPG or .PNG format with a resolution of 300-600dpi[/minti_alert]
An easy way to never have that problem to begin with would be to design it properly from the start, or have someone do it for you. The main programs the industry uses is Photoshop and Illustrator which can be the filetypes .psd or .ai – The preferred filetype is Photoshop .psd files designed to scale and in a 300dpi to 600dpi resolution and designed to size or slightly larger than your printed artwork is to be. It’s always better to be on the safe side and make it larger than needed, than the mistake of making it too small. Weird things can happen when you scale an image larger like rasterisation stepping which can distort fine details. That means if your print is going to be 12″ wide, then start with at least a 300dpi 12″ by 12″ artboard.
Most general artwork or spot color art is suitable in 300dpi. Any photo realistic or high detail artwork should be done in 600dpi. To change the image resolution in Photoshop go to:
Some people prefer only Vector art design such as in Adobe Illustrator. You can learn about the difference between Raster and Vector art, in our other post.
Some people like RGB better than CMYK artboards but for most applications it doesn’t matter too much. It is arguably better to use RGB since that is how computer monitors are represented so it’s truer when converted to print. If you are planning on using CMYK screen printing as the final print type, then it would make more sense to design it in a CMYK artboard.
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