Member Avatar for GriffinMex

Hi,

I have a simple question that perhaps one of you can answer.

I have some ad designs which are in ophotoshop psd multiple layers. I want to send them to a professional magazine printer. I am working in CMYK mode and saving flattened images in tif.

However, flattening the image seems to alter my colors for some reason and makes my transparent background white as well.

I also want to know if this is a good format to send to printer in order to get Best results re: CMYK flattened tif.

Thanks

Griffin

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Quick, practical checklist to prepare an ad for a full‑color magazine (as suggested, confirm the printer's specs first). Keep your layered PSD as the archive, and produce a separate “press‑ready” file that matches whatever the printer asks for.

  • Soft‑proof and convert using the target ICC profile (printer will supply it; common defaults are U.S. Web Coated SWOP v2 for the US or ISO Coated v2 in Europe). In Photoshop use Proof Colors and Edit > Convert to Profile to preview and then convert.
  • Create a press PDF using a PDF/X preset (PDF/X‑1a is the most common requirement) with fonts embedded, 300 dpi images, required bleed (typically 3 mm / 1/8"), and crop marks.
  • If TIFF is requested, supply a flattened, high‑resolution CMYK TIFF with the ICC profile embedded; be aware many workflows ignore Photoshop transparency and will composite it onto a background color, so flatten against the intended background before export unless the printer can handle alpha channels.
  • Deliver a simple one‑page PDF proof (screen or low‑res print) so the printer can see intent, and include a readme listing color profile, resolution and any spot colors.

Adobe has clear guides on PDF/X and preparing images for print; see Adobe’s documentation for PDF/X standards and Photoshop print preparation for exact export options (, ).

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Member Avatar for Dani

I believe it depends upon the printing method that will be used. IE a large printing press for full color magazines might be different than what's required for two-tone business cards. I would ask your printer what works best for them.

Member Avatar for GriffinMex

Thank you, only I don't know who will print it...it's a full color magazine....I will try to find out..thanks for your input
Griffin

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