Congratulations Designer Sleeves!

I love my job! BIG Images often gets to work with companies just starting out, companies that find themselves at the ground level, releasing innovative new products.

Recently we worked with VRS Marketing to produce tradeshow graphics for their booths at the Consumer Electronics Show and MacWorld. They’re a small local company based here in San Luis Obispo County, but they have some revolutionary ideas.

When they debuted their new laptop bags this week at CES, the world’s largest consumer electronics trade show, none of us had any idea they would do so well; amid the chaos and fanfare they have garnered the attention of NBC, Tech Digest, and many online blogs covering the show. Here’s what one reviewer had to say about the new laptop bags:

Fashion-led neoprene notebook sleeves are nothing new, granted, but Designer Sleeves’ offering, launched at CES, are a little bit more than average.

A patent-pending design means the image is printed directly onto the neoprene for a more colourful, vivid result, and you can chose different images not only for the front and back, but for the lining of the outside pocket too.

That’s attention to detail...

So if you are in the market for a shiny new laptop bag, be sure to check out San Luis Obispo County’s hottest new product launch, designer sleeves.

Images of just a few of Designer Sleeves’ custom-printed laptop bags.

The move is complete…

BIG Images’ move is complete!

We are now located at 767 Francis Ave., San Luis Obispo Ca 93401.

BIG Images is Growing

We’re moving…

A few days ago we signed the lease on a new building! We’re so excited about the news and have been so busy making preparations that this months’ BIG Images Newsletter has been postponed. Have no fear, though — we’ll return next month with some choice words about all this craziness we call “enriching the lives of our readers.” But, for now, let’s talk about the new shop!

BIG Images is moving 3 blocks south to 767 Francis St, San Luis Obispo, Ca 93401. Click here to view this map on Google Maps.

Our new home is at 767 Francis Avenue, San Luis Obispo, CA 93401. For those of you who don’t know where that is, it’s only three blocks south from our current shop. Above is a screenshot of Google Maps showing our old location compared to the new one. Click here to view this map on Google Maps.

BIG Images is moving to a new building about 2.5x larger. Here an electrician is installing a new sub-panel. BIG Images will be fully moved by October 1, 2007.

We’re growing into a building roughly 2.5 times larger than our current building. That means we can finally hire more people and get that equipment we’ve had on our wishlist all these months.

All this craziness should be done and we’ll be completely moved in by October 1, 2007. Don’t worry: there will be no interruption to our regular workflow. See you there!

Step 6 to effective large-format graphics: Placement

Consider Where Your Large-Format Graphic will be Placed

The environment your graphic is going into is very important. In fact, it’s at least as important as its fellow rivals: subject matter, selling point, imagery and layout. And there is an implicit responsibility given to those who advertise: with every ad, poster, banner, or car wrap you produce, you are contributing to the environment around it. I’m not necessarily talking about whether you use green materials (that’s an entirely separate topic). This is about how your graphic adds or subtracts from the experience of your audience in that area.

the only way your marketing materials are going to have any effect is if they are experienced.

Start by asking yourself a few questions: How crowded is the surrounding area? How high will the graphic be placed? Are there any prevalent color themes in the area? Are you competing with other similar advertisements? How is it being mounted? In a window? In a banner stand? On the side of a metropolitan bus? On an adorable puppy?

Okay, perhaps I went a little too far with the puppy part (although that would be a decent way to get noticed...). And yes, sometimes you don’t have any information about the surrounding area of your ad, for example, if you’re working on a national ad campaign. But try to focus on what you do know.

The point is the only way your marketing materials are going to have any effect is if they are experienced. That means your radio ad must be heard, your video must be viewed, or, in this case, your large-format graphic must be seen. Beyond that, you have to make sure that your audience won’t have to fight to see your message. Regardless of where the graphic is placed, determine the most important part of your message and place it on the graphic accordingly, such as at direct eye level. Whatever you do, though, don’t put any important content below waist level of your target audience; it’s like a giant blind spot.

Also, make certain you've got the right material for the right application. For outdoor purposes, consider a solvent print on a vinyl banner. Not to toot our own horn or anything, but BIG Images prints on high-quality banner material that will be lightfast and weatherfast for at least five years. And at $7.50 a square foot, it’s pretty affordable too. If you’re looking for indoor solutions, including posters, window cling, stickers, and many others, we have product for those as well.

However things go, it’s always a good idea to discuss your options with your printer relatively early on in the development stages. They often know a thing or two about these things, and more often than not, with just a simple call you can save yourself time, money and heartbreak.

Read Ben’s Step 5 to effective large-format graphics: Visualizing the final product

Benjamin Lawless knows a little bit about the effect of an adorable puppy on the general population. If you see him downtown with his cute mutt Apollo, say hi. He’ll most likely not run away from you like a lunatic.

Cover Your Assets

War Stories from the Trade Show Floor — Cover Your Assets

Everyone remembers when Obi Wan Kenobi said to Luke Skywalker “You will never see a more wretched hive of scum and villainy.” He was, of course, talking about Mos Eisley, the spaceport on Luke's home planet of Tatooine. However, had Obi Wan been in the trade show industry, I'm fairly certain he might have instead said “There is but one more wretched hive of scum and villainy, New York City’s Jacob Javits Convention Center”.

You see, several years ago I was managing the installation of a million dollar booth at Javits. Out of all the union run-ins I encountered at that show, this one stands out as the most bizarre.

There is but one more wretched hive of scum and villainy, New York City’s Jacob Javits Convention Center

This was a big project: a 20’ tall enclosed theater, conference room, reception area, themed product presentation areas, and rock concert styled lighting complete with lighting crew. The booth also had four 20’ tall columns that had to be built from the inside. The towers where designed around a very specific lift that could fit inside the column. This specific lift was such a crucial part of the booth’s construction that I had the client buy the $10,000 lift and ship it to all the shows along with the booth.

According to union ‘law’ the Installation and Dismantle Union (I&D) could only use ladders. Any tasks requiring a lift required the Lift Union and their equipment. And, for ‘liability reasons,’ the Lift Union could only use their own equipment.

So here I am with the I&D union unable to work, the Lift union telling me that I can’t use my own lift, and their equipment is too big to bother with. They tried however, but I knew; I had already done the research. That’s why I had my client buy the lift in the first place, along with all of its union approved safety equipment. The other union was sitting around waiting to see what I wanted them to do and my client was getting very nervous as the time clicked closer with no booth.

Finally I told the I&D guys to use the lift. After all, this thing needed to be built. What happened next was amazing: the twenty guys from the lift union who were on the floor at the time came and stood in a grid formation in my booth. It was a stand-in, and if any one of the union guys where bumped they would sue. The lift supervisor was yelling at me for taking food off the plates of his guys, while other guys where yelling, and my client was turning pale. I thought they where going to faint. Security was called in.

At this point, the show superintendent came down to the floor. This was one of the most chaotic events of my career. What did I do? Simple, I pulled out my show binder and showed the show superintendent the lift authorization paperwork I had his office sign. The paperwork that said my I&D guys could use the lift as long as they followed proper safety guidelines, had the correct safety harnesses, and had a rider on my insurance policy naming the I&D union and the convention center.

The point is, read the show rules and regulations. Know before you get there what oppositions you are likely to encounter. If anything in your build does not conform to the show regulations request specific permission for your situation and request it in writing.

In short. Do your homework and be prepared.

Written by the man, the myth, the legend: Ken Pettit.

Adobe RGB vs sRGB

Over the course of the next few months I will be writing about color, offering some insight into what BIG Images likes to see in computer files, and why. This month I am discussing the difference between two color spaces: Adobe RGB and sRGB.

One of the most oft-debated topics I hear (and take part in) regarding color is which color space to use for images. Before I continue, let me just say that I do not intend to answer this question for all time, but I will offer you the opinion of a professional printer, and tell you why I believe as I do.

BIG Images prefers files in the Adobe RGB color space.

Keep in mind that BIG Images is all about getting the best possible print that technology can offer. To do this we need the best possible input into our workflow. Simply put — the more color you give us, the more we can print. This is why BIG Images prefers files in the Adobe RGB color space (there are a few exceptions, but those are beyond the scope of this article). Adobe RGB is simply larger than sRGB, allowing more color information to be stored in an image. To illustrate this I have included a visual comparison of Adobe RGB and sRGB. The white, outer shape, is Adobe RGB and the smaller shape inside it is sRGB. This demonstrates that Adobe RGB is physically larger and can capture more color information than sRGB.

Adobe RGB is the outer, white shape, and sRGB is the inner, colored shape. You can clearly see the areas where Adobe RGB captures more color than sRGB.

This image demonstrates the difference between Adobe RGB and sRGB. Click on the image to toggle between the Adobe RGB and sRGB version.

So, lets apply this to a photograph. Here as an example photo saved from Photoshop. This image was saved out as two versions, one with the Adobe RGB color space applied, the other with sRGB applied. By clicking it you can toggle the image between Adobe RGB and sRGB to see the difference between the two color spaces. You should notice a distinct difference in the saturation — the Adobe RGB version has more intense colors. This is exactly what you would notice when printing this image at BIG Images — your Adobe RGB images will be more saturated.

Don’t get to excited though. You cannot simply convert an under-saturated image to Adobe RGB and expect it to look more saturated. This is like trying to take a very small web graphic and enlarging it to print on a 4’ x 8’ banner. The end result will be of a lower quality.

And this leads me to the topic of next month’s article. Now you know why I like Adobe RGB for large format printing. Next month I will offer a few workflow tips to help you take advantage of this larger color space to produce better quality prints.

Article written by Jon Beebe.

Step 5 to effective large-Visualizing the final product

When dealing with large-format graphics, there is always one problem that consistently rears it's ugly head: many people can't visualize what the graphic will look like. Most often, it is just too difficult to wrap your brain around the actual size of the graphic. Most computer monitors are between 17" and 24", whereas almost all large-format graphics are 3' x 5' or larger. Sure you can squint at your monitor from across the room, but that can't possibly give you a decent sense of scale when it comes right down to it.

In previous months, I've discussed the importance of legibility and simplicity in large-format design. Unfortunately, without a decent perception of size, you're taking a crap shoot with your marketing campaign. You see, whether it's a client, a boss, or employees and freelancers, everyone involved in your marketing efforts needs to have the same idea for the impact it will have. Particularly if you're dealing with a large-budget marketing campaign, the entire crew should be able to speak using the same visual vocabulary.

…the entire crew should be able to speak using the same visual vocabulary.

This best way to prevent a major marketing catastrophe in this area is to create a real sized mock-up. I cannot stress the importance of this particular solution enough. It doesn't matter what you use, whether it's the actual material you're producing the graphic on, or if it's just a bunch of taped-together butcher paper. It may sound a little childish, but if the graphic isn't too big, grab some markers and draw a rough draft of your designs' layout right on it. This is a good excuse to keep an eye on your text sizes, determining what size the different elements need to be for good effect.

An even more accurate preview can be created using (and yes, I know it's a horrible name), the Rasterbator. This free tool allows you to upload any image, and it will enlarge it, slice it and give you a pdf for download. When you print the multi-page pdf, just place and tape the images together, and you should have a relatively accurate representation of your graphic at a more respectable size.

Read Ben’s Step 4 to effective large-format graphics: Use simple imagery for maximum effectiveness

Benjamin Lawless isn't a big man, by any means, but he'll surprise you.