Image courtesy of http://bit.ly/1pLPAm7
As part of our FAQ series, this week it’s the turn of Steve, our Graphic Designer, to answer one of the questions our customers commonly ask:
What is bleed?
The technical answer is that bleed is the term used to define the image area that appears outside of the finished sheet size. Put simply, your image is made slightly larger than the size you will actually receive so that the ‘bleed’ can be cut off (making it the correct finished size). This ensures that information close to the edge of your design is not lost when the paper is trimmed and that there are never any white edges showing on the final product you receive.
Bleed is usually 3mm on each edge, but if you’re unsure, your printer will be able to tell you what they need.
A good example is an A4 sized leaflet, the finished product measures 297x210mm, with the bleed this increases to 303x216mm.
Written by:
Joanne Holloway & Steve Weeks