Helpful Hints and Suggestions

We support the following graphic file formats: bmp, eps, pdf, tiff, jpeg, plt. Please contact us directly if you have a file format different from the above and you require a color graphic to be printed based on that file format.

The applications we utilize in-house are: Quark, Photoshop, In-Design, Illustrator, Adobe Acrobat Professional 6.0 and 7.0, Excel, Word, PowerPoint, and Outlook.

Set up your color graphic files for output in Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Illustrator, Macromedia Freehand, QuarkXPress, or Adobe InDesign.

For us to produce the best output results, (large format printers are not Pantone devices and as such colors will be close but not exact), please include a color proof or a Pantone color. If you are submitting a CD please include all of the fonts used in your layout and support files, and use raster images and vector files.

Please avoid using font attributes. Use instead the bold or italic font from the actual font list. Text in Illustrator should be converted to outlines and paths. Include both printer and screen fonts True Type and Type 1.

To reduce file size and imaging time, rotate, crop and scale high-resolution images in a photo editing program before inserting them into a layout. Your captured image resolution should be appropriate for the size of the graphic you want produced.

Use vector-based images for logos, artwork, and other illustrated images. Vector images are easily enlarged and they retain their clean lines, edges and color.

Banners, because of stitching or other requirements, may require increased bleeds to be added to the artwork or background.

Please use rich blacks throughout your layout. When creating a custom color for black we prefer you use Cyan at 50%, Magenta at 50%, Yellow at 50%, and Black (K) at 100%.

Your files should be setup at 100% (or proportionately at 50% or 25%) of the final output size. Please do not set up your files at less than 25% of the original size.

Our Printers

Black & white large- and narrow-format jobs are output on our high-speed Océ 3165, TDS 800, and 9800 printers. We can accommodate narrow format output as single- or double-sided, up to 11" x 17", and wide format output up to 36" wide by any reasonable length. Black & white output is typically a "while you wait" job. Large jobs will require more time. The narrow and wide format black and white printers can also serve as scanners. We can scan your documents and copy them to a CD, create PDF files, or index, archive and store the digital files locally.

We have the following color printers in-house: Canon ImageRunner C3220, Océ TCS 400, HP 2000CP, HP 3000CP, HP Designjet 5500, Epson Stylus PRO9600.

The Canon is a narrow format (up 11" x 17" paper) color printer that has the following capabilities: 600 x 600 dpi resolution, Oil-free, 32 pages per minute, automatic combined black and white and color duplexing.

The HP Designjet 5500 is a wide format (up to 58" wide by any reasonable length) color printer that utilizes a six-ink system. This printer can output up to 1200 x 600 dpi resolution and it is suitable for photo quality and presentation quality graphics for marketing, sales, and meetings graphics, artwork, and indoor banners.

The HP 3000CP is a wide format (up to 52" wide by any reasonable length) color printer that utilizes a four-ink system. This printer can output up to 600 x 300 dpi resolution and it is suitable for photo quality and presentation quality graphics for marketing and display products and indoor banners.

The HP 2000CP is a wide format (up to 34" wide by any reasonable length) color printer that utilizes a four-ink system. This printer can output up to 600 x 300 dpi and is suitable for photo quality and presentation quality graphics for marketing and display products and indoor banners.

The Océ TCS 400 is a high speed wide format (up to 36" wide by any reasonable length) color printer that utilizes a four-ink system. This printer can output up to 600 x 600 dpi resolution and is suitable for architectural and engineering drawings with color lines and text, area fills, and maps. This printer is very fast and typically output is in check or release mode. We call this our "Quick Big Color" printer. It is a cost effective color printer that is targeted to architectural and engineering firms and we can have you in and out of our shop in less than an hour.

The Epson 9600PRO is a wide format (up to 44" wide by any reasonable length) color printer that utilizes a seven-ink Ultrachrome ink system. This printer can output up to 2880 x 1440 dpi resolution. This printer is utilized primarily for high end archival Giclee quality black & white photographic and color prints.

Our Print Capabilities

• Narrow format color graphic images, single side or duplex, up to 11" x 17"
• Wide format color graphic images and indoor banners up to 58" wide by any reasonable length Outdoor color graphic banners up to 80" wide by any reasonable length

Media Types

• Regular Color Media: 24-46lb bond and Photobase paper
• Banner Media: Vinyl, Cotton, Flag, Nylon, Polyester, Cling
• Giclee Media: Art Paper, Canvas, Heavy Bond, Photobase

Finishing Services

Mounting on Chip Board, Artmount, Foam Board, Gator Board, and Sintra Board. Laminating, edging, and Velcro backing.

Service and Support

Typical turnaround time for wide format graphic jobs output on all but the Océ TCS 400 printer is 2-4 business days. With adequate notice we can output special jobs the same business day. RUSH jobs—with adequate notice and at a premium, can be output in 2-4 hours.

We are open from 8:00-5:00 Monday through Friday. With adequate notice and at a premium we can accommodate weekend and after-hours special requirements.

Files up to 10MB can easily be emailed to us. Please include your job requirements (be specific) in the body of the email and attach your file to the email. Email your large format color graphic files to jclem@johnsonimagingsystems.com, and your large format black & white files to jgc@johnsonimagingsystems.com. To reduce the file size you can compress the file. We support files that have been compressed in the ZIP or Stuffed formats.

Files larger than 10MB should be transferred to us via our FTP service. (For directions on FTP usage, please click the FTP tab at the top of the page).

Files can be hand delivered via CD or we can scan original media. Our scanner supports media up to 43 inches wide (don't forget the bleed requirements) and up to ½" thick. Scanned files can be copied to CD or we can save them locally for future on-demand short run retrieval and output.