Setting Up Files For White Ink

White ink is often used as a spot color and behind colors on clear and non-white media. It is also used to cover the entire area of a graphic for second surface (interior / reverse mount) graphics.

It is possible to print full coverage white from files without any special preparation.

For white under specific colors / objects or white as a spot color, please set up your files as follows. We may be able to work from files not set up in this manner, but it may require additional time and incur additional charges.

Adobe Illustrator and InDesign

Prepare your file by creating a spot color named White. Set this spot color to a color that clashes with your design to make the white ink areas visible.

If you are not using white under any color you can stop here and use this spot color as you would any other spot color. If you would like to use white under any other color, complete the following steps:

Create a layer on top of all other layers for the white elements in your art. Name this layer White, or some other descriptive name.
Place all the white elements on this layer and apply the White spot color as the fill/stroke as needed. You can use transparency to set the opacity of these elements for visibility.
In the Attributes panel, set all white objects to Overprint Fill and Overprint Stroke.
We will choke the white layer during prepress. If you have already choked the white, please let us know to avoid any issues.

Adobe PhotoShop

Create a channel or a Spot Cannel to use for white ink and name it White. Put all elements that are white on this channel as black where you want white to be used.