There’s a good amount of space between it and the edge of the paper, there’s still room for bleeding art, and chances are artwork won’t get lost in the binding. In this scenario, depending on how large the print safe area is, you’ll either have too little space, you run the risk of having the artwork within the safe area getting cut off ( if the safe area is too large), and you really run the risk of having the artwork on the inside of the pages get lost in the binding (DC’s reprint of V For Vendetta comes to mind). The opposite is true, too if your print safe area is too large, there will be less room between it and the edge. Now, these may seem like minute difference, but beware that if your print safe area is too small, there will be a lot of room between it and the edge of the page, so you you don’t have artwork that bleeds to the edge, that’s a lot of blank space. 10×15 is also a 2×3 ratio, and after reduction, your print safe area will pretty much be 6.3125×9.46875. After reduction, your print safe area will be about 5.73×8.6. The larger the ratio, the smaller your safe area the smaller the ratio, the larger your safe area.įor example, 11×16.5 is a 2×3 ratio. If you want to have a print safe area that is larger or smaller than a perfect 6×9 size, then in Step 3, change the canvas size to a different 2×3 ratio. Then, in Step 5, you’ll need to change either the width to 6.25 or height to 9.25, depending on how you completed Step 4. In Step 4 above, you’ll need to change either the width to 6.25 (giving a height of 9.375) or height to 9.25 (giving a width of 6.167). This means your trim size will need to be 6.25×9.25. This way, you’ll get your trim size.įor instance, let’s say you want to print a 6×9 sized comic. If you choose to go with a different size, then you’ll need to figure out what size you’re printing at, then add 0.25 to the width and height of the print size. You can choose to have this printed at standard comic book size (which is a good size), or at different size. Now, if you’re going to be printing a trade paperback book, then you have some leeway. This way, I don’t have to think about it after Step 2. The printer will trim off what they need to, depending on a page being on the right or left (if necessary), resulting in a 6.625×10.25 standard comic book size with a safe 6×9 area.įor this method, I’ve recorded this process as an Action in Photoshop. These dimensions will allow you to have full bleed pages, meaning that you can have images running off the edge of the page. This process gives you the page size of 6.875×10.5, which is the size you’ll need to use when going to print. Reduce the canvas size by changing the width to 6.875. If you are using another application, or a higher version of Photoshop, the scaling might be different.ĥ. This will (in Photoshop CS, at least) change the width to 7. Now, reduce the image size by changing the height to 10.5. This makes the page dimensions a perfect 2×3 ratio at a good-sized scale that will result in having our safe area come out to a near-perfect – if not perfect (at least to the eye) 6×9 in the end.Ĥ. In Photoshop, or some other comparable application, reduce the canvas size to 10.5×15.75. Once you’ve cleaned up your scan (another post) and have it looking the way you want, save it as a master copy.ģ. I have an oversized, 12×17 flatbed by Microtek, but I did used to use an 8.5×11 to scan in large pages and then spliced them together in Photoshop.Ģ. For ease of use, we’ll be sticking with a 2×3 ratio and make adjustments if/when we need to.ġ. Standard print size, after trim: 6.625×10.25Ĭomics are generally printed in a 2×3 ratio, but not exactly, and not always. I’m sure a comprehensive guide is out there, but I’ve been doing this for years and I haven’t found one that is definitive, at least for me.Īfter doing yet more research and some calculations (with the assistance of, yes, a calculator and Photoshop CS), I’ve come up with a process that I can actually use to reduce my comic pages so that they meet today’s standard specifications… I think. Being anal retentive, a technique-head, and needing to have a good method in place for comic page post-production, I’ve searched the Internet for as much information regarding comic book pages sizes and reduction methods.
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