21
PSA: I was overcomplicating print bleeds for years until a printer yelled at me
Honestly, I thought I was being super professional by adding 3/16 inch bleeds to everything. Like, that seemed safe and thorough, right? Last month I sent a batch of business cards to a local shop here in Denver and the guy called me up laughing. He said I was making his cutter operator's job way harder by leaving too much extra. He explained that standard bleeds are 1/8 inch for a reason, and anything more just wastes paper and messes with alignment. I felt like an idiot because I've been doing this for 5 years and never questioned it. Now I stick to exactly 1/8 and ask the printer before I add anything custom. Has anyone else gotten humbled by a production guy pointing out something basic?
2 comments
Log in to join the discussion
Log In2 Comments
nora73523d ago
I don't know, my big bleeds have saved me from some ugly white edges before.
2
the_taylor22d ago
Definitely see where you're coming from @nora735, but I've had the opposite experience. Big bleeds just end up wasting paper for me, especially when I'm doing detailed work and the color spreads way past where I need it. I'd rather trim white edges or do a second pass than deal with that mess. Not every project needs that much room to roam around.
5