Pixelation?

High quality image

Pixelated / low quality image

Pixelation usually occurs when the image has been either created too small to be enlarged to poster size or has been compressed when saving the file

We suggest that your image file (tiff, jpg or png) is more then 450kb in size as we have found that anything smaller than this could be pixelated when enlarged up to poster size especially if the poster contains text.

Most digital cameras now take files that are much larger than 450kb so should be fine for poster prints. If you are creating the file yourself please ensure that the quality is large enough to be printed at full size. Also if the file is being sent via a mobile device please ensure that the attachment isn’t being compressed when sent.

If you have any questions or need further help please call or email

Why don’t you quote prices including VAT

VAT

The printing industry is an old established industry and PosterPigeon is a mature business in this industry.  For many years our customers have been businesses who are able to reclaim VAT.  We offer services to both trade clients and the general public.  In terms of both Cash and Numbers the majority of our work is done for commercial clients - Shops, Banks, Franchises, Bars, Bands etc and so we quote our prices Net of VAT.

We are not alone and in a recent search we found every single printer in the UK quotes prices online that exclude VAT.

In order to remain competitive we too quote prices excluding VAT which is added during checkout.  We are not trying to mislead our customers - we are simply trying to ensure that we dont lose out to the rest of the market.  

If you would like to discuss this or anything else - we would be pleased to hear from you.   as ever - your feedback is really helpful and welcome.

OK.  TAKE ME BACK TO PRICES

RGB or CMYK.. eh?

Colour Profiles, Paper Profiles and Accuracy

We prefer artwork that is supplied as RGB as this will retain better colour imaging. We have a part of the printing process (The RIP) that converts your file to CMYK using our specialist paper profiles to ensure consistent colour reproduction across our product range.

If you would like us to send you our custom paper profiles so that they can be embedded into your artwork, please contact us. 

What does trim to artwork mean?

Your Artwork / images can be printed with either a 5mm white border or with the option of trimming to artwork (full bleed)

What does this mean?

All of our posters are printed with at least a 5mm border around the print as standard. The 5mm white border only applies to artwork / images that are in proportion to the selected sheet size, if the artwork is not in proportion to the selected sheet size this may result in uneven white borders of various thickness (see above)

If you would like prints without the white border and printed right to the edge of the page select the "Trim to Artwork" option at checkout - You print will then be printed as large as possible within the selected sheet size without a white border. This is the best option to choose if you require a bespoke size – please let us know your required sizes in the notes section.

Please note: We don’t stretch or crop customers images unless its requested but if we are in any doubt we will contact you directly to clarify before we print!

What is the biggest poster possible?

In stock sizes, A0 is the largest poster we print - but we can print up to 1500mm wide and up to any length ,  contact us directly via email or call us for sizes larger than A0! For other A Sizes see the entry here:

What print technology do you use?

We use the very latest technology from the best manufacturers

Over 40 years in the printing business has given us an in-depth knowledge of the very best in printing technologies. Here at PosterPigeon HQ we use state of the art, super wide HP, Mimaki and Canon printer. Offering the latest in digital inkjet technology and using 8 colour, UV fade resistant pigment inks.

These machines use spectro-photometers to ensure consistent and accurate colour matching, this gives you the very best quality printing at an amazingly low price.

Our customers are blown away by the quality of the posters we print,  if you'd like to see a sample,  please contact us and we can send you one of our sample packs, so you can see the quality for yourself. 

100% Refund Guarantee

100% Confidence from our Money Back Guarantee

We are proud of our reputation.  We are a family business and over the last 40 years we have always tried  to produce the best products possible.  Before we print your artwork we always visually check it and if we think you're going to be less than happy, then we'll contact you.  

We do come across the occasional problem, however we are keen to put things right quickly and without a fuss.  If you are not happy with your poster, we'll refund your payment,  all we ask is that you contact us before returning your poster. This is so that we are aware of the problem and can work with you to rectify the situation as soon as possible.

When you contact us, we'll give you a returns number,  so that you can send your poster back to us and  we can keep a look out for your return.  As soon as we have received your poster we will refund you immediately.  

Do you deliver outside mainland UK?

WITHIN Mainland UK - Our standard delivery charges apply

Unfortunately this excludes Northern Ireland, Scottish Highlands, Scottish Offshore, Channel Islands, Isle of White, Isle of Man - Our Courier charges us more for this service.

Please contact us or call 0161 429 9100 for delivery charges to these destinations

*Please note: unfortunately we are unable to deliver goods to BFPO or PO Box addresses.

When is my order going to arrive?

The Customer is number 1 priority here at Posterpigoen HQ,  we always try to get your posters to you as quickly as we possibly can.

For orders that are received before 12:00pm (lunch time) during a working day, they are printed and dispatched the same working day.  All orders placed after 12.00pm are dispatched the following working day. 

If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to give us a call.  See our contact page for details>> 

Can I collect my order from you?

Absolutely,  just choose “collect from us” at the checkout, and we'll let you know when your prints are ready for collection.

We’re located on 1047 Ashton Old Road, Openshaw, Manchester, M11 2NN. Our business name is Sigma SDI Ltd - there's free parking right outside. 

We are open Monday - Friday between 9:00 to 17:00.

Can I order by email or telephone?

Absolutely! You will need to email your artwork to us at  info@posterpigeon.co.uk, please make sure you include the type and size of poster you want, your name, and most importantly, your telephone number. PLEASE DO NOT Send payment details via Email.  We will give you a call to confirm the price and collect your payment information.

Alternatively you can pop into Posterpigeon HQ and place your order in person - We’re located at 1047 Ashton Old Road, Openshaw, Manchester M11 2NN.  Our business name is Sigma SDI - so look out for the sign, there's free parking right outside. 

We are open Monday - Friday between 09:00 to 17:00.

Please give us a call before you set off so we can keep a look out for you.  

What delivery options do you offer?

FREE DELIVERY on orders over £75.00 - 2 WORKING DAYS, TRACKED COURIER SERVICE, Cost £FREE, FOC, Zilch, Nothing, Nada, Zero, Zip, £0.00

Please note: delivery options are timed from the point items are ready to ship.  Some products, like Canvas Wraps and Mounted or Encapsulated Posters, can take up to 48 hours to manufacture.

Please note these prices are excluding VAT.

• Standard - 2 Day Tracked Courier – delivered within 2 working days from placing your order provided your order is placed before 12:00 on a working day. Orders placed after this time will fall into the next working day, Cost £7.99 (this is the most popular option) AND FREE IF YOUR ORDER IS OVER £75.00

• Express * - Next Working Day Tracked Courier – delivered within the next working day for orders placed before 12:00 on any working day. Orders placed after this time will fall into the next working day. Cost £8.99.

• Collect from Us - We’re located at 1047 Ashton Old Road, Openshaw, Manchester, M11 2NN. Please advise us when you would like to collect your prints.

* Unfortunately due to the high demand on our courier service over the Christmas period we may have to suspend our next day service. Be assured we will endeavour to dispatch your order as swiftly as possible.

Do you resize artwork for printing?

Artwork Scaling 

We can easily scale your poster up or down to the required poster size as long as it is created in proportion to an "A" sized print. So for example an A4 poster will enlarge directly to A3 / A2 / A1 or A0.

If you artwork is not in proportion to an A size, and this is very often the case with photograph files, don't worry, we can enlarge your photo to best fit the size that you need.

Once we have done this, we may be left with some white areas of paper - select the "trim to artwork" option available on Standard or Premium Posters when placing your order if you would like us to remove this for you.

What fonts or typefaces can you print?

Fonts - Typefaces

We can print a wide range of fonts or typefaces as long as they are embedded into your artwork.  In accordance with the Font Copyright regulation for print,  we are not able to print non-standard fonts without the appropriate licences.

The easiest solution to this is to provide us your artwork as a PDF document with the fonts embedded.  

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to give us a call. 

Can you create a poster for me?

No Artwork?

We dont currently have any graphic designers on site here at Posterpigeon HQ,  however if you want something creating we can put you in touch with some talented designers.  We work with some very clever people - just call us and we will put you in touch.  

We can usually turn around artwork quite quickly,  so please just give us a call and tell us what you need. 

Can you print a picture from a web site?

Unfortunately this is usually not possible, in our experience the vast majority of images that are shown on websites are designed to viewed on screen, and so do not have a high enough resolution to be printed to a poster size.

They simply appear very jagged - or pixelated and unclear when printed to a larger size.

Some websites do provide print quality images and we are happy to print these for you providing you have approval from the copyright holder.

If you're in any doubt,  please contact us. 

Can you print Microsoft Office Files?

Posters from Microsoft Office - Word, Excel, PowerPoint.

Word, Excel, Powerpoint, all use fonts that might only be on your machine.  There is too much scope for error and so unfortunately we can not print posters from these files and will need you to convert them to PDF format - However dont worry,  If you are using recent versions of Microsoft Office  you can save your poster as a PDF file simply by selecting the .pdf file format within the 'save as' function.

For more information on File Format, please see the section 'File Types' 

In the meantime if you have any questions, please dont hesitate to give us a call. 

Double check - Previewing uploaded artwork

Preview Poster Artwork

The Poster Artwork you upload is available as a preview in the shopping cart.

If you hover the cursor over the filename, a tiny 'thumbnail' preview image will display.  If you click on the filename - you can download the image to your computer to double check what you have uploaded (Better to be safe than sorry)

If you are at all unsure about your artwork,  please contact us directly via telephone and we can discuss this with you.

Please be assured we manually check all artwork before its printed,  and if we have any problems or queries, we will contact you.  

Suitable file formats

File types and Advice

You can create artwork in any program you like,  we accept PDF, TIFF, or JPG file formats.

We prefer PDF files for posters as this usually creates the highest quality prints with sharp text. if you are using Acrobat to create your PDF file, we have found that using the "press settings" will keep your file size relatively low whilst still producing a good quality print.

If you have a newer versions of some of the Microsoft Office programs (Word, Excel etc),  you should be able to save your design as a PDF within the 'save as' function on your desktop.

JPEG files can be supplied if you are ordering posters from your photographs and camera images, but please note image files that are less than 450kb in size are usually saved at too low a resolution to enlarge up to a poster size print.

If you have any questions or need further clarification, please get in touch.

Handy Tips

Please consider the following when sending your artwork:

• Try to ensure that your artwork is at least 150 - 300dpi resolution. Ideally the higher the resolution is the better your artwork will look.
• We cannot open application files  (e.g. Quark Express, In Design, Photoshop etc),  however it is easy to convert your file to a PDF format within any of these applications.  Please make sure you save your PDF file to at least 300 dpi.
• If you are using any bespoke or unusual fonts,  please ensure that you embed all fonts in your artwork.  We have to comply with the Font Copyright regulation for Print,  and may be unable to print your artwork if the fonts are not embedded correctly.

We reserve the right to replace the font with suitable replacement in the event of conflict or corruption. Fonts should ideally be in Open Type or True Type format for the PC.  We will contact you for approval should we need to do this.

Do you accept Trade orders?

Trade Accounts

Yes!  We have supplied the printing trade for the last 40 years and we welcome trade business.   We offer trade terms on multiple orders over a set value,  and we also offer trade accounts on application - please call us to discuss your needs and one of the management team will help with your questions.