How to resize your artwork- a step by step guide

If you’re confused about how to resize your artwork, our simple Adobe tutorials are here to help.

One size definitely does not fit all when it comes to print- even before it hits the presses. If you’ve created a design, there are all sorts of reasons why you could need to resize it. You might want to use it on a range of different stationery products, or have suddenly realised that your artwork is the wrong size.

Fret not. Resizing your art is a simple process in Adobe and our video tutorials are here to guide you through so your designs will be print ready in no time.

Let’s get started.

Adobe Photoshop

1. Start by going to Image, Canvas Size and changing the units to millimetres.
2. Now you can type in the correct size and click OK to see your artwork at its new size.
3. Now is a good time to add bleed to the document. If you aren’t sure how to do that, check out our other tutorial so you’re all set.
4. Once resized, some elements of the design may be out of place. If you have images in the document, making them larger or up-resing them will degrade the quality, so you’ll need to drop the original image back in.
5. We recommend turning images into smart objects by right-clicking them and clicking ‘convert to smart object.’ This means you can distort them again and again without degrading the quality.
6. Resize image by clicking Edit, Free Transform, or pressing Ctrl of Command + T. Make sure you resize your artwork proportionately. Do the same with text and shapes and resize to fit.
7. Once all the elements of your document are in place, you can export your artwork as a PDF. Make sure you view your PDF at 100% and cast your eyes over the whole document to check.
8. Finally, make sure to thoroughly check your file before sending it to print.

Adobe InDesign

1. You can resize your document in InDesign by going to File, Document Setup and typing in the correct dimensions of the document. Then click OK to see the document at its new size.
2. Now is a good time to add bleed to the document. If you aren’t sure how to do that, check out our other tutorial so you’re all set.
3. Once resized, some elements of the design may be out of place. Go to preview mode, and press ‘W’ to show the document guides and resize your elements to fit the new document size, right up to the edge of the bleed.
4. If you have images in the document, making them larger or up-resing them might degrade the quality. Try to keep your images at 300 DPI.
5. Dragging and dropping documents into InDesign will link the files. Edit images in photoshop, or another image manipulation package, and they should update in InDesign. Vector images should resize without any effect on the quality.
6. Once all the elements of your document are in place, you can export your artwork as a PDF. Make sure you view your PDF at 100% and cast your eyes over the whole document to check.
7. Finally, make sure to thoroughly check your file before sending it to print.

Adobe Illustrator

1. You can resize your artwork in Illustrator by going to File, Document Setup. In this window, change the units to millimetres and click Edit Artboards and change the dimensions at the top.
2. Now is a good time to add bleed to the document. If you aren’t sure how to do that, check out our other tutorial so you’re all set.
3. Once resized, some elements of the design may be out of place. If you have images in the document, making them larger or up-resing them might degrade the quality, so you’ll need to drop the original image back in.
4. We recommend editing images in Photoshop and importing them to illustrator as Illustrator doesn’t handle non-vector images very well. If you drag and drop the edited image into your artwork, any future edits made should automatically appear in Illustrator.
5. Once all the elements of your document are in place, you can export your artwork as a PDF. Make sure you view your PDF at 100% and cast your eyes over the whole document to check.
   Finally, make sure to thoroughly check your file before sending it to print.

Don’t forget to check out the rest of our tutorials so you can make sure your designs hit the presses without a hitch!

If you need a hand with your artwork, just give us a call on 0800 840 1430, chat with us live on-site or drop an email to theteam@printed.com.

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