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Need logos in 300 dpi for printing

P

p0intblank

macrumors 68030
Original poster
Sep 20, 2005
2,548
2
New Jersey
I have several logos I designed for a client and he e-mailed me back asking for them to be in 300 dpi so he can print them. I originally created them in Illustrator CS. This may sound like a newbie question, but what do I have to do exactly to upscale the logos to 300 dpi? I've always looked for the option, but could never seem to find it.

Thanks!
 
What size (pixels) are these images now.. and how large does he want them to be once he prints them?

If he wants to print at 72dpi or 300dpi... it doesn't matter. If it's 300pixels wide.. and he prints it in 300dpi it'll come out and inch wide.. at 72dpi, it'll be a little over 4inches wide.

If he says "I want to be able to print it at 300dpi" he can do that no matter what size the image is... but if he wants it be be 8inches tall, at 300dpi.. then you'll have to make it 2400pixels tall.
 
He didn't specify how large he wants to print them... but the current document size is 11.1111 in x 4.333 in

Upscaling them won't be a problem if needed. I still have the original .ai files.
 
Huh.

What size, in pixels, is this image right now? Before you upscale it.

If you were creating the design right now.. we could take dpi into consideration.. but right now, since I'm not an AI user, we need to know pixel size. :)

If you want to attach it, I'm sure we'd all love to see your design.
 
I'm sorry, I meant to say it's 800 px x 311.9976 px, not inches. I attached a JPEG of the design since the PDF file is too large. It was a logo rebuild rather than a fresh design by the way.
 

Attachments

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does he want the .ai or an image file? if he wants the .ai, shouldn't it print at whatever resolution he wants? if he wants a .jpg or whatever, when you export it to a jpeg just indicate the resolution as 300dpi.
 

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For example.. in photoshop, when I create a new image.

I can specify, if I want to, a size (in inches) and a resolution (pixels/inch).. but in the end.... it's just an end around way of saying "hey.. it needs to be this many pixels large!"

--- EDIT: ---

I see your attachment now.

Your image is 800pixels wide.. by 312pixels tall.

If he prints your image at 300 dots (pixels) per inch...

It'll be (800/300) 2.66 inches wide and (312/300) 1.04 inches tall.

If he wants it bigger than that and still be 300dpi, you'll have to enlarge it.

Although... you'll want to make sure that you don't just resize the flattened image... you resize the original vector based image to keep the quality.
 
homerjward said:
does he want the .ai or an image file? if he wants the .ai, shouldn't it print at whatever resolution he wants? if he wants a .jpg or whatever, when you export it to a jpeg just indicate the resolution as 300dpi.
Click to expand...

I usually supply my clients with the formats of PDF, JPEG and occasionally PNG for Web use.

Do you recommend exporting my files from now on, rather than Saving As? That's what I have been doing up until now.

On another note, I e-mailed my client back asking him if there is a specific size he would like the logos to be in. As for now, what size would you recommend to upscale it to?

Sorry for all the questions... I've never run into a problem with dpi before. Thanks again! :)
 
I got $5 says he'll email you back something along the lines of "I told you what size I want it.. 300dpi!"

Again.. it's simple math. If he says "I want it to be 10 inches wide" you say "okay.. in every inch I need 300 pixels... so it has to be 3000pixels wide."

It makes for large files.

:)
 
Illustrator is resolution independent because it's a Vector program (unless you import images into it). The best way to keep the quality is to save it as an eps. If your client can read eps files he can print at any size with no loss of quality and it's a very small file compaired to PS file.
 
So it's just basic multiplication. Okay, I'm understanding it now. So for another example, if he wants it to be 15 inches wide, I would make the document 4500 pixels wide. As for my question regarding exporting files, do you suggest doing that rather than Saving As...?

Thanks again for all the help! Now I'm just awaiting his reply...

Edit: I just tried exporting the files and I really like how it works. Saving it as a grayscale JPEG is going to be so much easier from now on... I don't know why it took me so long to discover this.
 
ATD said:
Illustrator is resolution independent because it's a Vector program (unless you import images into it). The best way to keep the quality is to save it as an eps. If your client can read eps files he can print at any size with no loss of quality and it's a very small file compaired to PS file.
Click to expand...

Exactly. Send him an .ai and .eps(CS1 to be safe)
 
jtt said:
Exactly. Send him an .ai and .eps(CS1 to be safe)
Click to expand...

While I understand why you're saying this... it might be a bit beyond the clients abilities (or wants) to have an adobe illustrator file.

If he's saying "I want to be able to print in 300dpi" then maybe it'd be best to find simply send him the jpg he wants in the proper size he wants. Instead of asking him to figure it out for himself.

I don't know what the scope of services or deliverables called for... but my guess is, he just wants a graphic he can print and use. If he was handy enough to be using Illustrator to begin with.. I doubt he would have hired someone to come in to just redo an existing design.

Just speculation on my part though. :D
 
Okay, I have an update! My client just e-mailed me back saying exactly this:

"When I insert them into an .ai file they come out as 72dpi. What am i missing?"

It appears he does have Adobe Illustrator to work with, so should I just send him the original .ai file? I've learned not to do this, but could this be an exception?
 
Bah.. got me. :p

Since you still don't know what size he wants.. I'd follow the other guys' hints.. send him a vector based file so it doesn't matter, .eps, see if that gets him off your back! I'd avoid sending him the original .ai unless he asks for it or its been stated that he wanted it.

:)
 
cr2sh said:
Bah.. got me. :p

Since you still don't know what size he wants.. I'd follow the other guys' hints.. send him a vector based file so it doesn't matter, .eps, see if that gets him off your back! I'd avoid sending him the original .ai unless he asks for it or its been stated that he wanted it.

:)
Click to expand...

Okay, will do. I'll just send him an .eps. Thanks for the help, guys! :)

Edit: I sent the .eps to him. I'll post an update if he replies.
 
hello,

i read through everything and this is what i think is happeneing, correct me if i am wrong, your client is basically dragging the png or the jpg that you provided him, which are at 72dpi and is asking you to fix this.

hmm first let me see if i can clear your confusion. there are basically two kinds of image files.

Vector and Raster

Vector files are resolution independent. think of Vector files as the equation of a complex line when you plot the equation you can use as many points as you want, the more points the more accurate the equation is.
some Vector file formats are .ai, .pdf, .eps etc etc.

Raster files are resolution dependent, they are the actual plot of the equation with a certain number of points. or in image terms certain number of points to describe the picture, hence DPI.


in the end the actual size (or print size) stays the same. you still print 1inch is 1inch, but depending on the input file, you might using 72 points to make that 1 inch (72dpi) or using 300 points to make that 1 inch (300dpi).

OR, you could be printing from a vector file and thats like drawing the line from the original equation, you end up printing with close to infinite DPI.


So solution, send him a Vector file like .ai , .eps or .pdf file (which have no resolution) and tell them to use that instead of a Raster file like jpg or png (which have some limited resolution)


or if they still insist on having the png or jpg files, use the export function in illustrator and export at high resolution (300dpi)

hope this helps
 
Thank you for your input, fradac. I already know the differences between raster and vector graphics and how they work. It's just the dpi thing that has always gotten to me, but this thread really helped me out. I rarely have to print anything. My usual client tasks are handled through e-mai, so there usually isn't a need to print. Eventually I will supply prints, but that's still a little ways off.
 
He e-mailed me this morning saying thanks, so I guess the .eps was fine. I'll keep this in mind for future projects. I've already said it a few times, but I'll say it again... thanks for all the help, not to mention very quicky replies. :D
 
p0intblank, just a few notes about eps. There is actually little difference between a ai file and an eps (or pdf for that matter). They are both Illustrator formats but an eps is much more universal than the ai format, it can be placed in almost any layout, image editing or motion program. The ai format is tied to Illustrator more.

Most company's that send out logos, send them in the eps format. Here's a site that has logos from all the world's major companies and I think most everything is in the eps format. Yes, you can download them.

http://www.brandsoftheworld.com/

If you have not been there, it's worth a bookmark.:D
 
yeah I'd just send him a high-rez tiff at 300 (say 7" wide) as well as the EPS and just tell him "when a printer ask for the vector art, this is what you need"

Thats how I explain EPS files to people who don't know, I ask what they are using them for and if they say something like "oh a brochure" or "a sign" I just politely explain "Ok, I've attached an EPS file, you may not be able to open this yourself because it needs special graphic software like photoshop, but if you pass this along to the final graphics person they'll know what to do with it"
 
dornoforpyros said:
yeah I'd just send him a high-rez tiff at 300 (say 7" wide) as well as the EPS and just tell him "when a printer ask for the vector art, this is what you need"
Click to expand...

Not a bad idea. I try to send as many formats as I can to cover the bases. Like when I send tiffs I always include the PSD. How many times have any of you gotten a 32k jpeg logo from a client and they want a large poster from it? I keep telling them if you had an eps...
 
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