CPC Digital Art - Macromedia FreeHand Version 8.0 for Windows 9x/NT

Thursday, November 20, 2008

Preparing Digital Artwork
for Cadmus Professional Communications with

Macromedia FreeHand 8.0 for Windows 9x/NT

PLEASE NOTE: When creating graphics in illustration programs such as Macromedia FreeHand with the intention of outputting to an imagesetter or platesetter, it is extremely important that the person creating the illustration have a thorough understanding of the details of imaging in a prepress environment. There are an abundance of complex problems that can occur at output if paths are set up improperly, colors are indicated incorrectly, or other elements are constructed improperly. Trapping issues can also present problems if not addressed. The more complicated your illustration becomes, the greater the probability of problems at output, and therefore the need for more expertise and experience in creating the files.

This instruction set covers the following topics:

Setting Preferences

Saving and Exporting Graphics

Setting Preferences

1. Setup Output Options. From the FreeHand menu bar, go to File->Output Options. Match the settings shown below.

Output Options

2. Setup Preferences. From the FreeHand menu bar, go to (File-> Preferences). Choose Import/Export and match the settings shown below.

Saving and Exporting Graphics

1. Import any external graphics needed. All imported files should be in TIFF or EPS format. Make absolutely sure that you do not import any RGB graphics, as they will not print correctly. They are very difficult to recognize before output. Go to the Import... menu (File->Import...) and navigate to the TIFF or EPS file that you wish to import.

2. Do all cropping, editing, and assembly.

Assemble any panels so that each figure consists of only one file. Create the figure at 100% of print size so that no scaling is necessary.
Resize the page so that any unnecessary white space bordering the figure is removed (shown below.)
Make sure that any and all imported four-color graphics are in CMYK format. RGB files, which will not output correctly, may not be detected until output.
Please note: Some journals now require that color be submitted in RGB color mode. To learn more about the RGB workflow click here.
Only import graphics that are saved in either TIFF or EPS formats.

Important: Do not use Pattern stokes or fills when submitting digital art to CPC.

3. Convert all text to paths (Text -> Convert To Paths). This eliminates the requirement of sending CPC fonts. There isn't a quality loss when converting text to paths.

4. Embed all imported graphics. Select an imported graphic then go to the (Info Palette -> Links) and make sure all links are embedded. (This step is for FreeHand files with imported images only).

Important: Be careful NOT to import RGB scans files into your FreeHand documents. It is important to check all images in Photoshop (or similar program) before importing them into FreeHand. Imported images should only be in the CMYK, Grayscale or Bitmap color modes.

5. Save the file as Editable EPS. From the FreeHand menu bar, go to (File -> Save As...). Select Editable EPS file as shown below. Be sure to recheck your preferences before saving.

If you imported an EPS file (contains binary data) into your document you may get a message from FreeHand as shown below. Click Yes to the dialog box.

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