Home

Poster Printing

Copy Center

Digital Imaging

Self Service Copy

Price List

School of
Biological Sciences

UCI

Poster Printing

There is a normal "next day" turnaround for poster printing. Please call for details.
949-824-6414

Posters are printed on Epson Stylus Pro 9880 and 11880 wide format printers with Epson 8 color, pigmented UltraChrome K3 Inks. We use Genuine Epson Premium Glossy Photo Paper (250). You can choose from either 36, 44 or 60 inch wide contiguous roll paper to achieve a wide variety of poster sizes.

All posters are printed with 1/2" white border unless otherwise specified by the customer.

General guidelines for preparing files for poster printing

Please call ImageWorks (949-824-6414) for specific information regarding your poster project.
General rule of thumb: If it looks good as a PDF, it will look good printed.

Image Resolution:

Image resolutions of 150ppi at actual size reproduce photographic quality. Resolutions
higher than 150 do not increase image quality, only file size. Scaling images to a larger size decreases
their resolution. Images from websites are generally 72ppi and will look pixilated if scaled to a larger size.

Inserting Images:
Use the "Insert Image" or "Place" function, which is available in most applications. Avoid using "Copy and Paste" and "Drag and Drop". These methods sometimes omit necessary information used in the postscripting process. Please keep in mind that if you have difficulty inserting an image, there may be an incompatibility, which could result in missing information in the final poster.

Charts and Graphs from other Applications:
Because of several formatting issues, we recommend that you convert charts and graphs to image files such as TIFFs or JPEGs before inserting them into your poster. Make sure the resolution is set to 150 ppi at the actual output size, and that anti-alias is on.

Font issues:
Please use common fonts. If you stick to common cross platform system fonts like Arial and Times New Roman, many font problems can be eliminated. Sorry, we cannot install custom fonts on our
computers to print your poster.

Color:
It is important to note that printed colors will be less vivid than those that you see on your computer monitor. As a rule, dark colors will print darker. Solid black or dark backgrounds make the surface of a poster more susceptible to scratching and make fingerprints more noticeable. Posters with lighter
backgrounds look better longer.

Application Specific Information

PowerPoint:
We do not recommend using PowerPoint for posters. However, we understand that it is a common
application and we will work with you to make your PowerPoint poster looks its best. Be aware that PowerPoint will degrade the quality of your placed images, printed colors will be less accurate and
certain PowerPoint styles and effects will not print properly including drop shadows, patterned fills
and transparencies.

1. Create your poster at actual size. Use Page Set-Up create your poster at it's actual printed dimensions - up to 56" x 56". This way you can view your file at actual size (100%) to verify resolution and quality. Unfortunately, PowerPoint has a size limit of 56” X 56”, so if you want one dimension to be larger than 56” you will have to go through a scaling process (call us for instructions 949-824-6414).
2. Overly complex posters created in PowerPoint can have display and printing issues. You will have less problems if you use less layers and keep your design simple. Please try Adobe Illustrator for more complex designs.
3. Try to use only system fonts. Arial and Times New Roman are reliable fonts.
4. Make sure that any bitmap (pixel based) images contained in your file are scanned to a high enough resolution (150 ppi at final size). Resolution higher than 150 ppi will result in excessive file sizes.
5. Solid black or dark backgrounds make the surface of a poster more susceptible to scratching and make fingerprints more noticeable. Again, posters with lighter backgrounds look better longer.
6. Do not use the transparent or semi transparent setting in the fill options window. Please try Adobe Illustrator if you need transparency.
7. Do not fill objects like graph bars with patterns. If you must fill graphs with patterns, please do so outside of PowerPoint and insert the graph as an image.

Canvas:
1. Please save your file as a full size PDF.

Illustrator:
1. Create your poster to actual size. Use Page Set-Up or (36" up to 60" x XX"). This way you can view your file at actual size (100%) to verify resolution and quality. Use RGB or CMYK color mode.
2. When placing images in Illustrator, make sure that the "Link" box in the "Place..." dialog box is UNCHECKED. You may also check the "Include Linked Files" in the Save dialog box.
3. To avoid font issues, try to use only cross platform system fonts. Arial and Times New Roman are reliable fonts.
4. Make sure that any bitmap (pixel based) images contained in your file are scanned to a high enough resolution (150 ppi at actual size). Resolution higher than 150 ppi will result in excessive file sizes.
5. Solid black or dark backgrounds make the surface of a poster more susceptible to scratching and make fingerprints more noticeable.
6. Save your file as normal Illustrator file - "file_name.ai.

Photoshop:
1. Create your poster to actual size at 150 ppi. Use Image Size (36" up to 60" x XX"). This way you can view your file at actual size (Print size) to verify resolution and quality. Use RGB or CMYK color mode.
2. Because this is a pixel-based program, you can use any font you choose, and we will not have font issues.
3. Make sure that any images contained in your file are scanned to a high enough resolution (150 ppi at actual, final size). Resolution higher than 150 ppi will result in excessive file sizes.
4. Solid black or dark backgrounds make the surface of a poster more susceptible to scratching and make fingerprints more noticeable.
5. Save your file as a normal Photoshop file - "file_name.psd".

MS Word and Excel:
Although not recommended as page layout programs, we can print single page MS Word and Excel files as posters. Font, image and resolution issues apply as with other application files.

Poster Prices

Prices effective 04/06/09

There is normal next day turnaround for poster printing.
Rush service may be available for an additional charge.
To calculate poster pricing please use the following equation:
((W" x H") ÷ 144) x (per sq ft $)=poster price