ImageWorks

Poster Printing

We have a standard 24 hour turnaround time on unmounted poster orders of 3 or less.
We have a standard 1 week turnaround time on mounted posters orders of 5 or more.
Posters submitted after 3:30PM will not be processed until the next day.

Please call for details. 949-824-6414

Posters are printed on Epson SureColor P10000 and P20000 wide format printers.

We now also offer fabric posters.

If your lab is printing multiple posters and is using the same funding, please let us know. We can use the same invoice and avoid extra paperwork.

Important information about our poster printing service – Please Read:

We need your Full Sized PDF.

Mounted posters and larger quantities are excluded from our 24 hour turnaround.

For single orders of 6 posters or more, please contact ImageWorks.

Please plan ahead and allow extra time for nonstandard jobs.

Before submitting your poster file, please enlarge your view to 100% and review your entire poster at 100% magnification. This will reveal errors not seen at page level magnification.

Please double check your poster file for errors and typos prior to submission.

Once you confirm your file for printing you are responsible for that output.

Please call ImageWorks (949-824-6414) for specific information regarding your poster project.

All posters with color running to the edge are printed with .125″ white border unless otherwise specified by the customer.

How to submit your order.

Email your PDF with the information below to Imageworks@uci.edu or in-person. Imageworks is located at 2112 Natural Sciences 1.

Hours: Monday – Friday, 9AM-12:00PM, 1:00PM to 4PM. We are closed for lunch at noon.

We need a full sized PDF, name the file with your first, last name, dimensions of the poster and material.

(first last 36×48 gloss paper.pdf)

When submitting posters, We require the following information:

1. P.I. First & Last Name:

2. Department:

3. Fiscal Officer’s Name & Email

4. KFS Account:

5. Platform: Mac or PC

6. Type of Material: Glossy Paper, Fabric or Foam Core

7. Poster Size:

8. Due Date:

9. If our standard .125″ border on colored background posters is acceptable.

General guidelines for preparing files for poster printing:

Image Resolution:

Image resolutions of 150 Pixels Per Inch at actual size reproduce photographic quality. Resolutions higher than 150ppi do not increase image quality, only file size. Scaling images to a larger size decreases their resolution. Images from websites are generally 72ppi and will look pixilated if scaled to a larger size.

Inserting Images:

Use the “Insert Image” or “Place” function, which is available in most applications. Avoid using “Copy and Paste” and “Drag and Drop”. These methods sometimes omit necessary information used in the postscripting process. Please keep in mind that if you have difficulty inserting an image, there may be an incompatibility, which could result in missing information in the final poster.

Charts and Graphs from other Applications

Because of several formatting issues, we recommend that you convert charts and graphs to image files such as EPS, TIFFs or JPEGs before inserting them into your poster. Make sure the resolution is set to 150 ppi at the actual output size, and that anti-alias is on.

Font issues:

Please use common fonts. If you stick to common cross platform system fonts like Arial and Times New Roman, many font problems can be eliminated. Sorry, we cannot install custom fonts on our computers to print your poster.

Color:

It is important to note that printed colors will be less vivid than those that you see on your computer monitor. As a rule, dark colors will print darker. Solid black or dark backgrounds make the surface of a poster more susceptible to scratching and make fingerprints more noticeable. Posters with lighter backgrounds look better longer.

Application Specific Information

PowerPoint:

We understand that PowerPoint is the most common application for research posters and we will work with you to make your PowerPoint poster looks its best. Be aware that PowerPoint will degrade the quality of your placed images, printed colors will be less accurate, and certain PowerPoint styles and effects will not print properly including drop shadows, patterned fills and transparencies.

1. Create your poster at actual size. Use Page Set-Up create your poster at it’s actual printed dimensions – up to 56″ x 56″. This way you can view your file at actual size (100%) to verify resolution and quality. Unfortunately, PowerPoint has a size limit of 56” X 56”, so if you want one dimension to be larger than 56” you will have to go through a scaling process (call us for instructions 949-824-6414).
2. Overly complex posters created in PowerPoint can have display and printing issues. You will have less problems if you use less layers and keep your design simple. Please try Adobe Illustrator for more complex designs.
3. Try to use only system fonts. Arial and Times New Roman are reliable fonts.
4. Make sure that any bitmap (pixel based) images contained in your file are scanned to a high enough resolution (150 ppi at final size). Resolution higher than 150 ppi will result in excessive file sizes.
5. Solid black or dark backgrounds make the surface of a poster more susceptible to scratching and make fingerprints more noticeable. Again, posters with lighter backgrounds will look better longer.
6. Do not use the transparent or semi transparent setting in the fill options window. Please try Adobe Illustrator if you need transparency.
7. Do not fill objects like graph bars with patterns. If you must fill graphs with patterns, please do so outside of PowerPoint and insert the graph as an image.

Apple’s Keynote:

Please do not construct your poster in Apple Keynote. Please use PowerPoint or Apple Pages

Apple’s Pages

Please use Apple Pages rather than Keynote. Go to File(menu) > Page Setup > Scroll to the bottom of the pop-up menu and choose Manage Custom Sizes. Click the + button and create a new size with the exact dimensions of your poster entered in the Paper Size Area. Please enter 0’s (zeros) in all the the Non-Printable Area fields.

Canvas:

Please save your file as a full size PDF.

Illustrator:

1. Create your poster to actual size. Use Page Set-Up or (36″ up to 60″ x XX”). This way you can view your file at actual size (100%) to verify resolution and quality. Use RGB color mode.
2. When placing images in Illustrator, make sure that the “Link” box in the “Place…” dialog box is UNCHECKED. You may also check the “Include Linked Files” in the Save dialog box.
3. To avoid font issues, try to use only cross platform system fonts. Arial and Times New Roman are reliable fonts.
4. Make sure that any bitmap (pixel based) images contained in your file are scanned to a high enough resolution (150 ppi at actual size). Resolution higher than 150 ppi will result in excessive file sizes.
5. Solid black or dark backgrounds make the surface of a poster more susceptible to scratching and make fingerprints more noticeable.
6. Save your file as normal Illustrator file – “file_name.ai.

Photoshop:

1. Create your poster to actual size at 150 ppi. Use Image Size (36″ up to 60″ x XX”). This way you can view your file at actual size (Print size) to verify resolution and quality. Please use RGB  color mode.
2. Make sure that any images contained in your file are scanned to a high enough resolution (150 ppi at actual, final size). Resolution higher than 150 ppi will result in excessive file sizes.
3. Solid black or dark backgrounds make the surface of a poster more susceptible to scratching and make fingerprints more noticeable.
4. Save your file as a normal Photoshop file – “file_name.psd”.

MS Word and Excel:

Although not recommended as page layout programs, we can print single page MS Word and Excel files as posters. Font, image and resolution issues apply as with other application files.

Poster Prices

There’s no need for a quote from us. You can calculate how much your poster will be.

To calculate poster pricing please use the following equation:
((W” x H”) ÷ 144) x (per sq ft $)=poster price

Item	Price
Poster – up to 60″ x 100″	$8.50 Per Square Foot
Mounting on 1/4″ Foam Core	$4.00 Per Square Foot
Mounting on 1/2″ Foam Core	$8.00 Per Square Foot
1/2″ Mounting requires additional time	Please plan ahead
Mounted Excellence in Research Poster	$102.00
Mounted 36″ X 48″ UROP Poster	$102.00
36″ x 48″ Foam Core Board	$16.00
36″ Poster Tube	$5.00
42″ Poster Tube	$6.00
48″ Poster Tube	$6.00
Technician Time	15 minutes: $6.25
Graphic Design	60 minutes: $75.00
Same Day Rush Fee	$30.00