[[Shizo]]

The situation is that someone asked me if i could make a logo for a barber shop that their relative is about to open.
I said that i'll try to find out how to do it, so i'm posting this up now

Did anyone had experience printing out large format stuff that would go on a big sign outside of some shop or someplace?
It will probably be printed on a sheet of plastic, i don't really know.

I have two questions.

1. What kind of printing places should i go to in order to do this? Somebody said Kinko's and colleges have such equipment.

2. What kind of graphic should it be? Should it be regular pixels in BMP or TGA format, or should it be a vector graphic made in Illustrator? Is there anything else i need to know, like transparency color, or gradients?

Thanx for any feedback.

[balistic]

You probably want to talk to a sign shop, as opposed to a print shop. They'd be able to tell you what limitations there are.
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brian.prince|light.comp.paint

[cheney]

It needs to be a vector based image with really simple contents. The ideal vector image format is .ps or .eps which is a Postscript format image. If the image is simple then it will be easier and quicker to read since most people are idiots. If its vector based it can be upsized indefinately. You will need a large sheet printer, and unless plan to tape up a large sheet of paper use a material you can easily cut away such as contact paper or buttercut paper. Buttercut is the best choice but large sheets of the stuff is fairly expensive and hard to find.

Good luck.
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[[Shizo]]

Thanx. Actually i heard that it's possible to do that with pixel graphic as well, but logically it would be better if it was done in simple vectors.

But i'm not going to print it out myself, i'm just asking where i should look in order to do that. I guess we'll be looking for the sign makers next

[Brain]

You might also like to ask if you can watch them do it. I worked in a sign shop for a few days, and it's an interesting experience. (I'm actually yet to see the stuff I did in it's setting. Just emergency exit type maps for Parliament House in Canberra. Must plan an outing @
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Brain
http://www.artofbrain.com/

[[Shizo]]

BRAIN!!!!!!!!!!

HAHAH
My favorite black person!!!!!!

I actually talked to that girl again about it, and she says she'll go to a print shop (she knows the owner very well) and she does all kinds of stuff.. So i just asked her to see if there are any requirements that he'll have for me or whatever.

Unfortunately i wount be present when it'll be printed cause it's located in a different state.

[Brain]

*laughs* He still loves me. @:-D

Have some Brain Gaiden action
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Brain
http://www.artofbrain.com/

[shawnhud]

I worked in a print shop for 4 years and one of our locations did that sort of thing using vinyl. CorelDraw files worked well, but the above mentioned file formats are fine. Vector is the way to go. There are not many options in terms of "fanciness". While there are different colors, you can't get get too intricate i.e.- gradients, I don't think. They'll even hook you up and put grommets in that joker. Another alternative, which we used to do alot is to print it large format, laminate with matte (kills glare so people can actually read the sign from distance). The problems are, the larger the piece, the more cahnce of ripples in your lam (however I did a piece 5' x10' that turned out fine) and unless they use UV proof ink, it will fade over time. Good for a short term solution, "Grand Opening" etc....
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Put a muzzle on her Turkish, before she gets bit. You don't wanna get bit, do you boy?

[[Shizo]]

Thanx shawnhud, i'll keep that in mind when creating image.

[spidermonkey]

Hey Shizo and all, You guys don't know me because I don't post much, but you are all celebrities to me as I have been lurking and learning for the past two years. (Yes, I was around for the original cube sessions, and didn't have the *#$% brains to join in! - when it was in Draw Club. Thanks to all of you, I am learning from Loomis Books and trying to draw cubs. Really bad stuff so far. I think I may not be cut out to be an artist. But I love looking and learning nonetheless.

Anyway, my point is that I finally have something useful to offer. I know, that with so many extremely talented uberartists here, you will want this info:

I know a way to print out full size (like 4x8 feet and up!) weather durable, sun rated banners of full pixelation on the cheap.

I have used them and they use vectors and raster formats. They use some sort of rasterization format, so that you don't have big old square pixels. They do really beautiful work and the customers service people on the phone are really good. If there is a problem with the print, they fix it fast.

And you can order on the web,

www.econobanners.com

The reason they are so cheap is that they do all the printing from one source so that the printers are working all the time.

I hate to sound like a **%$ commercial but since you are the artists of the world, you will want to be able to print large formats in a way that looks great and is affordable. I used them for a freelance job where I put togather a collage of found images.

I also worked in a sign shop for a couple of years, this is nothing like laying down vinyl. Its the same sort of press that prints billboard signs.

Good luck all and thanks for all the tips, inspirations and examples.

Feel free to email me with any questions about this print method: [email protected]

[[Shizo]]

Thanx dude! To tell you the truth, i myself is useless in art
I only do some half-good stuff when i really have to. I'm not artist like those other guys on here *frown*.

But thanx alot for this info. I'll definately check out the website.. although the firewall here at work wount let me look at it saying:

Forbidden, this page (http://www.econobanners.com/) is categorized as: Sex.

LOL! I wonder what kind of website it is.. thanx. later.

[Zwaeback]

Since my 9-5 job is as a graphic designer in a sign/promotional products/screen printing place I'll post a bit on this topic.

It is possible to print a cmyk bitmap image to vinyl, which is then placed on aluminum, dibond(thin aluminum mounted on corrugated plastic), mdo(plywood), sintra(plastic), etc. The Sign shop would need to have a Gerber Edge 2 or something like that to print the image.

The images hold up very well. The longevity depending on what direction they face & the weather conditions. Generally I would expect 4 years before significant fading occurs. The vinyl can be coated with abrasion guard and/or matte medium to increase the longevity.

Price depends on your location. It varies considerably.

[[Shizo]]

Thanx Zwaeback, that info is definately useful. However i'm more interested in technical part of it since i'm just the graphic creator, and i needed to know what kind of requirements there were to an image. Would you suggest any special thing i have to keep in mind?
I guess starting out in CMYK is a good idea huh..