Preparing your Images for Print
This is a crucial step for ensuring the highest quality products from your images. Yes, color and contrast are important for the quality of the image, but in order to produce those images Century Color must receive accurate information. Incorrect file names and inadequate DPI levels result in delayed or unprintable orders. Please follow the instructions below to guarantee your files will be printable and produced in a timely fashion.

Digital File Requirements

1. Any color correction done must be in sRGB color space. No output/printer profiles should be attached.
2. Flatten files before saving. PSD's or layered TIF's are not accepted.
3. All images should be submitted in vertical format. There will be a $2.00 charge per order for rotation.
4. Remove all alpha/extra channels before saving.
5. Save files in jpg format only. Jpg files are recommended to decrease processing time.
6. File names should contain numbers and letter ONLY and should not exceed 15 characters. Files can NOT contain: ^ * + = < > ! ? ( ) # $ @ % ; : / &, periods in the filename itself, double quote, single quote, or copyright symbol.
7. We cannot view Adobe Photoshop guides in our DP2 system.
8. Cropping of images should be done at 250 dpi.
9. All files will be color corrected unless otherwise specified on the ordering documentation. If images are not color corrected by Century Color, the customer will be responsible for any reprint costs.

Guidelines to the Highest Quality Prints
These guidelines will assist you in reaching the highest quality print from your digital camera or scanned files. Following these instructions will also reduce your turnaround time by streamlining the way your order travels through the lab. Call Century Color's Customer Service with any questions you may have.

Shooting Digitally

• Be sure to photograph and work in sRGB color space.
• Exposure is critical. The ability to over or under expose and still receive optimum results is far less with digital files than with film. Digital exposures should range from only 1/3 over to 1/2 stop under. A loss in quality will occur when exposures exceed these limits.
• For good digital output, highlight should not exceed 245 and shadow areas should not go below 15.
• Shoot with enough head room to crop to a good 8x10 proportion. Remember, a 35mm proportion is far from the same as an 8x10 proportion.

For scanned files that require cropping in PhotoShop we recommend you crop your image without manipulating the resolution.

Your file's maximum usable resolution is contained in the original camera or scanned file. You do not need to make adjustments to your file's resolution, just crop your image and let the resolution adjust accordingly.

1. Set the CROP tool
2. Set the Width and Height to 8x10 in the options bar- KEEP THE RESOLUTION BLANK

Our printers crop equally from the center of each print size ordered. Therefore you only need to submit one file cropped to an 8x10 proportion for all standard print sizes. The only exceptions to this rule are for square sizes (i.e. 5x5, 10x10) or panorama prints (i.e.12x24). In these cases submit files cropped proportionately to the print size needed.

3. Define the cropping marquee by dragging over the part of the image you want to keep.
4. When ready to accept the crop, hit Enter or click the Commit Button in the Options bar or 
    double-click inside the cropping marquee.
5. The resolution of the image will be adjusted according to the print size chosen and the 
    original resolution of the camera file or scan used.

• Flatten all layers.
• When saving files, do not imbed profiles.
• Send file in jpeg format.
• Do not use PhotoShop (LZW) compression. Our printing program is unable to open your files if you do.
• The image mode selected should be RGB. At no time should images be converted to CMYK.
• Save your jpeg images using the maximum setting (a file can be saved 3-4 times before there will be any noticeable loss of quality). From PhotoShop this will give you a 7:1 compression ratio.