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Graphic Communications
Copyright Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc.
be available at the designated time for printing.
A custom stock may need to be ordered, which
may require additional time. Other considerations
in ordering stock are the size of the order, paper
weight or thickness, and opacity.
The printer should also provide the information
necessary for achieving the best color and most
accurate representation of the images. Color
profiles, file format specifications, and resolution
requirements are all details that the designer must
have for proper file setup.
File Setup
Choosing the correct software to create your
document is an important decision. Just because
you can create a document in a particular program
does not mean you necessarily should. Software
applications have particular functions to perform
specific jobs. Examples of page geometry software
that meet industry standards are InDesign® and
QuarkXPress. Using a word processing application
or business software for page layout will limit your
capabilities and very likely create problems at
printing time.
If you have multiple pages or panels in your
document, make yourself a dummy before you start.
A dummy is a small representation of your final y
piece. The pages may be blank but it should show
pagination as well as how the final piece folds. See
Figure 7-49.
Grid
Using a grid for your layout will give you
consistency among pages and make your decision-
making process as to where to place text and graphics
much easier and more efficient. A grid is an underlying d
template that shows where the columns, gutters, and
margins are. To determine what grid you want to use,
evaluate the content being used. The content drives
the grid; the grid should not drive the content. For
instance, if you have a lot of long stories or text, you
might want to allow for callouts or sidebars to help you
break up the look. Images and captions, subheads and
charts, and graphics of all kinds are considerations that
will help you determine what kind of grid to use.
The grid itself should be invisible, but the effect
it has on your design will be apparent. A grid is not
designed to be limiting. It provides a foundation for your
document that will give it a certain look and streamline
your process.
Using a grid does not mean you will have a boring
layout. Using spatial zones, or groups of boxes on a
grid, allows a mixture of visual spaces that keeps the
layout interesting but consistent. See Figure 7-50.
Goodheart-Willcox Publisher
Figure 7-49. A dummy is a small, folded paper example of
the final piece showing folding and pagination.
Goodheart-Willcox Publisher
Figure 7-50. A grid showing different spatial zones for
optional layouts.
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