# Colour, Resolution & Type

CMYK, the right dpi at finished size, and floors for small type and fine lines.

Printdash artwork guideline. Illustrated version: https://printdash.io/artwork-guidelines#colour

### Colour

- Work in **CMYK**. RGB and Pantone colours are converted at the press, and vivid RGB blues, greens and oranges shift the most. Convert them yourself so what you see is what prints.
- **Rich Black** for large solid areas: around C60 M40 Y40 K100. **100% K only** for text and fine lines - Rich Black text shows any registration shift as a coloured halo.
- Never use **Registration Black** (the swatch that prints on every plate). It exists for printers' marks only.
- Avoid tints under 5% and very light greys - they can drop out or print patchy.
- Spot (Pantone) swatches should only be in the file when they name a finish or Cut Line. Everything else converts to CMYK.

### Resolution

- Photos and raster effects: **300 dpi at the size they print**. A 300 dpi image scaled to 200% is effectively 150 dpi.
- Screenshots and web images are usually 72 dpi and print soft. Keep logos vector wherever possible.
- Wide format signage and banners are viewed from further away, so 150 dpi at full size is enough. If your software caps the page size, export at 50% with double the resolution and say so in the order notes.

### Type & Lines

- Minimum type size **6pt**, or **8pt** when reversed out of a dark background.
- Minimum line weight **0.25pt**. Hairlines thinner than this can vanish.
- Reversed-out fine serif text and thin lines built from more than one ink are the first things to blur. Keep them 100% K or a single ink where you can.