Party Invite/Flyer

[tamlin]

Hi guys,
I've just made this invitation/flyer for a friend (contact details obfuscated to protect the innocent). They're happy with it (and so am I), but I was just wondering if any of BioRUST's resident design/print media gurus might be able to offer any suggestions to make it even better before it's submitted to the printer. I think I know all the technical stuff (300dpi, CMYK, preferred file formats etc.) from other posts here, but just wanted some feedback on the design. I like to think I've got a fairly good grasp of graphic design principles, but it's not my main area of expertise and I'm always willing to learn.

[Gjbphp]

Hmm I'm definitely no guru, but this looks nice. The text is easy to read, the colors go nicely for me (and I'm colorblind) and the graphics look good. One question though, can I come as Clint Eastwood? :P

[wolly]

All looks good to me nicely laid out, the only thing you may look at doing is allowing bleed space round the outside as most printers will ask for and as the filmstrip is cose to the edge it may get cropped.

[tamlin]

Thanks guys.

Greg: I'm sure you could come as Clint Eastwood - do you have your own hat and poncho?

wolly: how much bleed space should I allow? Is there a standard amount for this kind of thing (it's due to be printed A5 size)?

[wolly]

Some printers i have used want about 1/2 inch to an inch round the outside so now i put everything to an inch, then it just gets cropped off, you could ask the printer before sending the pdf file what they would prefer, because the more you can do the cheaper it will be, hope this helps

[wolly]

found this thought it may help shows you the bleed space and text area.
Helps to put guidelines on the image, one for text area and the second for bleed area.The way i explained before was what i do by leaving just an extra inch round the whole image, hope i havent confused you.

[tamlin]

Originally Posted by wolly

hope i havent confused you.

Nope - that seems clear enough. Many thanks!

[turvas]

It's real nice. One thing to try though: (The text) Lower the opacity of the colors of the bevel and increase the size of it.

[stiney51]

Tamlin, all of the printers and publications I deal with request 1/8th inch bleed on each side of the image and 1/4 to 1/2 inch "live area" (basically where you don't put text or anything you don't want accidentally cropped out). This is all to cover their skin though and while I think the bleed area is important, I often push the limits of the live area.

As for the design, it looks very good (especially for someone who seems to specialize more in photos than in design). A few comments that might improve it: extend the film strip so it continues off the page and cuts part of the faces off the outside images, it'll add a bit of a sense of limitless ideas and large numbers of people. Also perhaps move the strip in from the left and continue the curtain past in to the edge of the invitation. I'd suggest also breaking the "additonal entertainment" so the examples are below it, but that's even more minor.

Then again, you could leave it as it is and it would still look good :-)

[tamlin]

Originally Posted by stiney51

A few comments that might improve it: extend the film strip so it continues off the page and cuts part of the faces off the outside images, it'll add a bit of a sense of limitless ideas and large numbers of people. Also perhaps move the strip in from the left and continue the curtain past in to the edge of the invitation. I'd suggest also breaking the "additonal entertainment" so the examples are below it, but that's even more minor.

Hey, thanks stiney: those all sound like good suggestions!

[pgsmedia]

You know, that doesn't necessarily have to be CMYK.

If it's a big run, you can knock off a quarter of the price by using mixed inks and running it
process Y|process K|PMS(some red)
Your printers only need three plates\inks for that.

Also, a mixed-ink red (PMS+K) will most likely give your curtains a richer, velvet color than CMYK red.

BTW: Do AI\INDD auto-mix inks, yet?

an afterthought, post-posting:
If you don't want the 25% price cut, you could replace that 4th plate with spot varnish for some real POP!
It'll be the same price, but you get 25% more oohs and aahs.

[stiney51]

25% price cut might be a bit misleading depending on the print method. While it might be a price cut for the ink, the paper costs and most of the press setup fees would be the same.

My guess is this would be a pretty small run so the cost difference in going with CMYK might be negligible, but as pgmedia mentions you can really get colors to jump out by using PMS colors instead of CMYK *then again it potentially adds another level of headaches to the process and might take more time to re-work than the money you'll save).

Either way it might be worth exploring tamlin.

[pgsmedia]

The most tantalizing prospect in dropping the 4th color, to me, is the new opportunity for a spot varnish plate. Maybe texture varnish the hi-lites on the curtain, or even over the black in the film frames.

Back to the profit margin:
Spot varnish is gorgeous, but it's pointless on hi-gloss papers (eg Kromkote).
The client will very likely elect spot varnish on a cheaper matte paper, as opposed to flat print on expensive gloss papers.

Bottom Line:

You get the benifits of a fifth color, without the setbacks of a 5-color press or an overprint run.
Pricey gloss is ruled out, leaving you a choice of either a better-quality matte paper or more dollars in your pocket.

[tamlin]

pgsmedia and stiney: reading those last few posts of yours really brings home to me how little I know or understand about professional printing methods!

Anyhow, my friend's friend works at the printers and, since it's a very small run, he's doing it as a...um, don't know what the term is in the US, but in the UK we call it a "guvvy job" - so cost isn't a factor.

Thanks for all the advice, anyhow! You guys are the best.