Designing your Yearbook Cover

Designing your Yearbook Cover




1. Be aware of the wrap zone and crop zone . If you will be designing your own cover and importing it into our software, make sure you stretch the image so it extends beyond the RED line (examples shown below). If any important content is lost in the crop/wrap zone, you may want to consider redesigning the cover so you have room to extend the image beyond the RED line without losing important content. If you do not extend your cover design beyond the RED line, you run the risk of white borders around your cover.


*ATTENTION: Reprints for user related design errors will not be offered. It is up to the school/organization to purchase replacements. If you have ANY doubt about your cover, please contact a customer support specialist immediately. 

 

2. Keep important elements such as text and faces at least 1/8” away from the crop/wrap zones

 

3. If you have placed artwork on your cover and want it to be centered or in an exact spot, be aware that adding or deleting pages can cause cover elements to shift. Go back into your cover template and make sure all of your cover elements are positioned the way you intended. To center an object, drag it until you see the center guides appear.


Important note: Text boxes will be centered to the text box the type is contained in and not the actual type itself. To ensure accuracy, size your box as close to the size of the type as possible and select the centered type option in the type character menu.

Here is the text for the Hardcover legend:
  • Bleed Line
All backgrounds need to extend to the PURPLE guideline. This area may be visible in the final print.
Guide Color: {display purple line here}
  • Beginning of Wrap Zone
All artwork that meets this RED guideline may be visible and wrapped around the cover. Due to production variance, margins depicted may shift by an eighth of an inch in the final product.
Guide Color: {display red line here}
  • Safety Zone
Any text or artwork you want on your cover should be within the GREEN safety zone. Due to production variance, margins depicted may shift by an eighth of an inch in the final product.
Guide Color: {display green line here}
  • Spine Zone
The dashed line represents the confines of the spine.

 

4. Don’t forget the back! The backside of your cover is valuable design real estate. Use it to display photos, your mascot, a school seal — get creative!

5. Creator Studio offers a number of pre-designed cover options available for your use. You can access these covers in two ways:

a. Templates: With the cover editor open, click "Templates" from the left panel. Click on any of the available templates. Drag and drop the cover design for that theme on to your cover. 
b. Backgrounds: With the cover editor open, click "Backgrounds" from the left panel. Then click the "Find Backgrounds" button at the top of the panel. The "Covers" filter will be selected for you. Choose a cover background and click the "Apply" button. 

These covers and backgrounds can be used alone or in conjunction with text, photos and art.

 

Designing your cover in an outside program like InDesign or Photoshop? Click here for specs and template downloads


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