For over 10 years, Connection Group has been providing quality print marketing materials to clients in Michigan, and throughout the United States. I started the graphic design studio in Lansing, Michigan offering primarily corporate branding systems, original logos designs, print marketing materials, etc. I have always approached design so it can quickly and easily be adapted into all media and still maintain the integrity of the brand. I continue to educate clients on the importance of quality, consistency and creative with everything released externally and internally. Unfortunately, over the years more and more art comes to us that is not suitable quality for reproduction.

Since the invention of the internet many people feel they can go to a web site, grab a logo or a photo or graphic and “wahla”, they have provided their graphic artist (me) with great help and content for their publication, brochure, newsletter, etc. Not so much. Although I appreciate the effort and the need for companies to save dollars and have staff do as much as possible in house – internet graphics do not reproduce in print! If I did a search in my email sent folder for that exact term I could probably walk away and get two mochas made before all of the emails I have sent would come up.

If you don’t have Adobe Photoshop or other imaging software (is there anything else? 🙂 ) which allows you to view the dpi (dots per inch) and actual dimensions of the image, try printing the image on your desktop printer. Most of the time you will see an image that looks huge on your screen is actually only a half the size or smaller when printed full scale. Or, it is still huge but it is blurry and has an alien glow around the edges. If your desktop printer allows you to select the dpi, select 300, or print quality. With an internet graphic it will show a blurry or pixelated image. This will be enhanced on an offset press. It will look worse – not better.

Monitor resolution, graphics for web and email, etc. are 72 dpi. Print resolution graphics need to be 300 dpi at actual size. Any less and you begin losing quality and clarity. If you are going to the expense of professional offset printing, make sure your publications and promotions are designed in the highest quality. Let your image speak highly of you, even when you are not there. Please, spare your graphic designers the emails “Will this photo of Norman Rockwell I snagged off of Wikipedia work for my full color annual report cover?” No. Not so much…and don’t get me started on the copyright use laws….