Please review our General Guidelines before proceeding.

Using Our Template

Download Templates from our templates download page. Please note where templates are saved on your hard drive.

Open Sharpdots’ Template file in Photoshop. Read specific instructions on template while creating your artwork. Do not use “Template Layer,” this layer is for template information only, and will be deleted before printing. Do not alter page size or margins, as they are critical in the correct placement of your work.

PhotoShop Inspection Checklist

Verify All 4 Points Below Prior To Submitting

1. Resolution & Image Size
   In order to print correctly, PhotoShop images must be a minimum of 300-350 pixels per inch (PPI). To check the resolution of your image, go to Image > Image Size.
   
   
   
   The Width and Height of the image supplied by our templates will equal to the finished size plus bleed (ie for a 4x6 postcard, the image size is 4.125x6.125). Note- Do not change an image from low resolution to a high resolution by simply increasing the file DPI. Please refer to the resolution section on our website.
   
   
2. Correct Color Mode
   All Photoshop files must in either CMYK (for all full color sides of your printed piece) or Grayscale (for all Black Ink sides of your printed piece). Any images left in RGB mode will be converted automatically to CMYK by our servers, using our profiles, and may not match the conversion tables on your computer (please see our color section for details).
   
   
3. Delete Template Layer
   After confirming all specifications along with text and content, be sure to delete the template layer. Go to the Layers window, select the Template Layer and click the trash can icon.
   
   
   
   
   
4. Flatten All Layers
   After deleting the template layer, flattened all used layers into a one layer. It is advisable to save before completing this step, for future editing purposes.
   

File Formats

SharpDots accepts the following file formats from Photoshop:

Please note: SharpDots accepts only Photoshop 7.0 and CS files.

1. TIFF File (.tif)
   Go to File > Save As. Select a destination, set Format to "TIFF" and click Save.
   
   
   
   In the TIFF options window, select "None" for Image Compression, "Interleaved (RGBRGB)" for Pixel Order, "Macintosh" for Byte Order, and "RLE" for Layer Compression. Leave all other options unchecked. Click OK. File is now ready to submit.