GETTING STARTED
Digital Guidelines For A Trouble-Free Yearbook
Thinking of designing your book on computer? Memory Book Company gives you that option. The links below provide answers to questions you may have about using digital cameras and scanning images. You’ll also find exactly what you need to correctly prepare and submit your yearbook in digital form.
Here are some tips to help you avoid problems often associated with digitally-designed yearbooks:
1) Go to our Helpful Templates page and download the book and cover templates that match your software and platform (you’ll find versions for both PC and MAC). Printing margins may differ from standard page size in your software program. To assure we print your pages as you wish, you must use our templates/margins.
2) Open the template. Add or delete as many pages as needed.
3) Collect all class photos, candids and/or digital photo files. If you’re using images from a digital camera, follow the tips on our Digital Cameras page to ensure photo quality. If you’re scanning 35mm prints, perform the steps outlined on our Scanning Procedures page.
4) Set up the file structure. This is absolutely critical. Create separate folders for each activity or theme, and label each folder accordingly. Each folder should contain only the digital files which relate to that activity, and each file should have its own descriptive name. All scans/digital photos should be on ONE computer and in ONE location on that computer. When photos are strung over networks or spread throughout hard drives, chaos and errors result.
5) Place your TIFFs into your page layout program. DO NOT stretch the files anamorphically!!! (This means to enlarge them vertically more than horizontally, or vice-versa). This is a common error, but fixing it is time-consuming. Always bring up the tool palette so you can check the sizing of photos (called scaling). Bring up your tool palette to check that your x and y percentages say the same thing.
NOTE: Images must not be renamed or put into different folders after they have been placed into your page layout program!! This will break the links and result in very poor quality photos and delays in production.
6) Write your file to PostScript. We will give you directions when you call in to ensure that you are using the correct driver and writing the proper format.
7) Save your file. When you are finished with your file, print a hard copy to your printer. Send us your very final printout. Copy your file and ALL of the files in folders, including all the fonts you used, to either CD, Zip or Jaz.
IMPORTANT: Take the media on which you copied your files to another computer – one not connected in any way to the computer you used to create your book – and open the files. If there is an error saying that links or fonts are missing, you DO NOT yet have all the files. DO NOT send us your file until it is complete!!! Doing so will result in the delay of your printed book.
And for questions that aren’t answered here, the answers are here: 1-800-247-1526. Just call and ask to speak with someone on our Digital Team. They’ll be able to provide technical support, walk you through the process, or help you with system or software-related questions.
Call: 1-800-247-1526 or
use our E-Mail form
