We realize that you had many choices when shopping for a page layout program that you felt comfortable using. Most will allow you to save your files as a .jpg. This is the file extension that we suggest sending to us. Please DO NOT send layered .psd, .png or any native file from a program that will not allow you to save as a .jpg. We can accept TIFF files, but they become quite large when uploading and do not yield any better results than a properly saved “high quality” .jpg. The screen shots below illustrate the proper way to save a file in PhotoShop (Saving in Photoshop Elements and any other mainstream program is very similar).
Naming the Files (Order of your pages)
Properly naming your files for order submission is very easy and very important. When you originally created your layouts you may have used a file name such as “first_grade.jpg”. This might be helpful to you when looking for this file on your hard drive. However, we do require you to re-name your page files before sending them to us. The formula we use is directly related to where this page will appear in your book.
Example: If you want the “first grade” layout to be the first page of your book, you will need to re-name it 01.jpg. Page 2 should be 02.jpg, and so on.
Remember, the first page of your book will appear on the right side when you open the cover. To the left of Page 1 will be part of a blank “endsheet” that is used to properly construct your high quality hardbound book. Here is a good rule of thumb to memorize when you are deciding where each layout should appear in your book:
** EVEN NUMBERED PAGES ON THE LEFT -- ODD NUMBERED PAGES ON THE RIGHT **
We highly recommend placing all your newly renamed page files in a special master file somewhere on your desktop. This is not a mandatory step, but it will sure coming in handy when you are asked to select files to upload. Placing all your page files in a master file will also help make sure that you are not missing a page, which could delay your order, or even worse if not caught, cause your book to be printed with a missing page.
