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Stacie32074801d75p
Participant
September 7, 2023
Question

Need help in lay terms for how to prepare a PNG logo for print and cut

  • September 7, 2023
  • 1 reply
  • 299 views

Hi helpful community. I am not a graphic designer, and either is my client. I am trying to take small tasks off her plate as we prepare for a major conference. I have png files that I need to make cut lines for to send to the printer in order to create product labels. The logo itself is a design but I want the labels to be rectangular. How do I make the print and cut layers? I've watched videos on clipping masks, image tracing, and other fun stuff (a bit of sarcasm) but I don't want to outline/trace the logo design because the "cut" needs to be a rectangle. Help? <email address removed> if you're so inclined.

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1 reply

Mylenium
Mylenium
Legend
September 7, 2023

Draw a rectangle on top of your PNG and make the artboard slightly bigger for the bleed. Label the layer as die line. Save as AI or PDF. No more fancies required. Inform the production facility about your tagging. Alternatively create a vector path in Photoshop and save as TIFF, PSD, PDF. Same talking to the facility. Communication is everything in the print business. Same in reverse: Ask and adhere to their requirements and specs.

 

Mylenium

    S
    Stacie32074801d75pAuthor
    Participant
    September 7, 2023

    Thanks Mylenium, I really appreciate it. Forgive my ignorance and lack of knowledge/experience. I'm waiting on the printer's specifications/preferences but in the interim, I want to understand the steps as I will have to repeat the process ten times (for ten separate product labels).

     

    1. File --> Place, or Import, or does it matter? I've seen both in YouTube tutorials.

    2. Rectangle button - draw on top of PNG (how do I know if it's centered/aligned if I can no longer see the logo design?

    What does it mean to "make the artboard slightly bigger for the bleed" - what is the artboard? (See...greener than the grass...). I know what a bleed is but where am I setting that up? In tutorials I was following we were setting Offset Paths, creating new Swatches and new Strokes. We were using Pathfinder to "unite" two layers...what am I missing? You make it sound so simple - I like your way! Would you be willing to email me directly and let me pay you for an hour of your time (spread out over multiple emails)? I have a few other questions about other files/tasks.

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