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Designing 7 foot banner for window

djsound

djsound

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Dec 4, 2006
791
17
So I have been employed to design a large 7 ft high x 4 ft wide banner for a store window. I have never really done anything larger then a poster size....do I still need to do it at 300 ppi? That would be a huge file. It is going on some kind of sticky thing that will "stick" onto the window....I am thinking that it probably does not need to be 300 ppi. Anyone with experience in this situation have any info? thanks
 
As always you should consult with your vendor and they'll tell you the specs necessary for their output. However, The banners that I've worked on in the past have been 150 ppi.
 
Is it vector art or raster?

Banners, billboards, and such are usually pretty low dpi as they aren't meant to be seen up close. 150 would be fine.
 
Raster. It is going to have 3 photos of people on it so...I don't know where they are going to get images that big... :confused:

I am pretty sure I will get an email with 3, 5x5 inch photos of people at 72 dpi =)
 
Vendor Input

You need to ask the printer what is required. Most likely you only need low resolution for something that size. Just like your elementary school teacher always said, "There are no stupid questions, only stupid people." Ask the print vendor and you will know for sure.
 
Generally on large format print i would work to a file size of just under 200mbs what ever that equates too...and maybe bump the res on the flat eps at the end upto 350mbs. Remember that even the Highest images from getty would only be 66mbs. Set you file up at 20% and see what size that is as a photoshop file with about 15mm all round for bleed. Aim for around 200mb file and you will be ok. Type work needs to be set as vector in illustrator though :)
 
I've got away with 60 ish dpi at actual size before...

(But as the others say - ask the printer.)

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djsound said:
I am pretty sure I will get an email with 3, 5x5 inch photos of people at 72 dpi =)
Click to expand...

That won't be the real problem - the real problem will be when the client insists you use the gif logo from the top left corner of their website at the full seven foot width.
 
You won't need 300dpi, since it won't be viewed up-close. You could even take a 72dpi image and convert it to 150 with high pixels count, and it wont matter as much as a small project. Consult with a printer on how to best achieve this.
 
jeremy h said:
That won't be the real problem - the real problem will be when the client insists you use the gif logo from the top left corner of their website at the full seven foot width.
Click to expand...

LOL At which point you can simply print out the GIF scaled up to fit an 8.5x11 sheet, show it to them and tell them to imagine what that will look like at many times THAT size. :)
 
Where I work, we shoot for 150 at that size. It's a small banner at a short viewing distance. (Think Bus Shelter.) We would go as high as 250 (very rarely) and as low as 100. Below 100 would be unacceptable.
 
For that size, I'd say 60dpi is as low as I'd safely go. You're not looking at it up close and from the distance it's MEANT to be viewed from, it's not going to be noticeable. I've done large format artwork as low as 10dpi before now which when viewed from 100m away look absolutely fine. As far as speccing file sizes rather than DPI as a requirement, it's not really a guideline I go by - perceivable resolution is king!
 
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