If you're up and running with another album design application you may not want to use our design service or free album designer. If so you can design Queensberry Flushmounts and Photo Books with third-party software.
The third-party option is NOT available for matted albums (Overlay Matted or Duo). However you could ask us to recreate a design for you from third-party layouts that you've created for our guidance.
With Fundy, SmartAlbums and AlbumStomp you'll find Queensberry's resources built-in. You can safely create your layouts, then log in to Workspace to specify the album details and upload your print files, and later, confirm your order and make payment. For details see How to order an album in Workspace.
If you're not using one of the applications mentioned above — InDesign or PhotoShop for example — you'll need to take great care to ensure that your files comply with our design specifications. We'll need to recreate the design from your third-party layouts if your software doesn't support our file specifications.
Overview
Queensberry's own design tools have built-in checks to help ensure your files meet our technical specifications — file dimensions (ie page size), DPI, ICC profile etc. If you're using third-party software please take care to comply with those specifications (read on for details).
Start by learning about our product and printing options! To avoid creating inappropriate print files it helps to clarify the exact product you want to order, and the type of printing you prefer. The easiest way to do this is to set up the order in Workspace BEFORE you create the page layouts. You'll need to do this, anyway, to order the album. If you change your mind you can always delete the order. Workspace will step you through the process, and ensure that we gather all the information we need and that your selections are valid — in other words, ensure we can make the album to your specifications.
To order: In Workspace go to Buy / Books & Albums, and choose “third party software” as the Design Method (click here for detailed instructions). Currently, you can order Flushmount albums and Photo Books with third party software, but not matted albums.
Smart Albums, AlbumStomp or Fundy: We recommend these design programs, which contain our resources. You will not need to set the page dimensions yourself, but please read on for our file specifications.
Whatever software you're using, make sure it allows you to set the page dimensions, and that it can export photo quality PSDs (for orders colour corrected by Queensberry) or JPGs (for print-ready orders). Read on for our page dimensions.
Once you've finished the design: you'll need to export the design as single sides or double page spreads, depending on the page type and printing option you've selected, and upload the print files to Workspace as either PSDs or JPGs as appropriate. Please note that if you want us to colour correct your files you MUST upload unflattened PSDs, regardless of the product. Click here for more about our colour correction services.
File specifications
Colour space: We recommend that you always adopt Adobe RGB (1998) as your working space when printing with Queensberry. This is because its bigger colour gamut enables us to print the widest range of colours. You COULD use sRGB for silver halide or inkjet printing, but for offset printing you MUST convert your print files to Adobe 98. For more on Queensberry's recommended working (colour) space click here.
File specifications: The page dimensions, and whether single-page or double-page layouts are required, will depend on the book or album size, and the printing method you prefer — digital offset, true photographic (silver halide) or Fine Art (inkjet).
Flushmount albums — True Photographic (silver halide) or Fine Art (inkjet) printing
Silver Halide: 300 DPI, Adobe 1998 RGB (preferred) or sRGB colour space.
Fine Art: 300 DPI Adobe 1998 RGB (preferred) or sRGB colour space.
Files may be layered PSDs or flattened JPGs. If you require artwork or colour correction services we need unflattened PSD files. Colour correction is an optional extra.
True photographic (silver halide) printing is most popular, and available in thin, medium and heavy page weights. Thinner pages offer more capacity: thin up to 60 pages (120 sides), medium up to 45 pages (90 sides), heavy up to 30 pages (60 sides). Pages are generally creased, not cut, at the spine. However 14x10 and larger vertical albums will be cut at the spine.
Fine Art (inkjet) printing is also available, but with thin and medium-weight pages only and lower maximums: thin up to 40 pages (80 sides), medium up to 30 pages (60 sides).
We require double page spreads (layouts) throughout. The left hand side of the first layout and the right hand side of the last layout represent the inside front and back covers, and should be left blank. This means there will be one layout more than the number of pages in the album, but we charge the first and last layouts as one page.
The files must be correctly named as follows (where L = Layout number): L01.psd/jpg, L02.psd/jpg etc.
Important: After you've uploaded the layouts to Workspace, always check that they display in the correct order, and correct if necessary.
Click here to download a PDF table of dimensions for different products.
Flushmount albums — Digital Offset printing
300 DPI, Adobe 1998 RGB colour space only.
Layouts for print-ready orders MUST be supplied as a JPG.
If you want us to colour correct you must provide layered PSDs.
8x8 and 10x7V pages are creased, not cut, at the spine and should be exported as double page layouts (spreads).
All other sizes should be exported as as single sides because, for technical reasons, they require a discrete cut at the spine.
The first and last sides (inside the front and back covers) will be blank, so we do not need a file for them.
Pages are available in thin and medium weights. Maximum pages are the same as for true photographic: thin up to 60 pages (120 sides), medium up to 45 pages (90 sides).
Double page spreads: The files must be correctly named as follows (where L = Layout number): L01.psd/jpg, L02.psd/jpg etc.
Single sides: The files must be correctly named as follows (where L = layout number): L01_R.jpg, L02_L.jpg, L02_R.jpg, L03_L.jpg etc. ending on Lxx_L.jpg.
Important: After you've uploaded the layouts to Workspace, always check that they display in the correct order, and correct if necessary.
Click here to download a PDF table of dimensions for different products.
Photo Books — Digital Offset printing
300 DPI, Adobe 1998 RGB colour space only.
Layouts for print-ready orders MUST be supplied as a JPG.
If you want us to colour correct (an extra charge) you must provide layered PSDs.
We require single-sided layouts. The first and last sides (inside the front and back covers) will be blank, so we do not need a file for them.
You can include up to 80 light-weight pages (120 sides).
Individual PSD files must be correctly named as follows (where L = layout number): L01_R.jpg L02_L.jpg, L02_R.jpg, L03_L.jpg etc. ending on Lxx_L.jpg.
Important: After you've uploaded the layouts to Workspace, always check that they display in the correct order, and correct if necessary.
Click here to download a PDF table of dimensions for different products.
Please check that your layouts are in the correct order!
After you've uploaded your files, please check that they appear in the correct sequence in Workspace. Do this BEFORE submitting the album order to avoid them being bound out of order in the album. This is important as once we receive the layouts we will base the sequence of layouts on how they appear in Workspace. (Files may appear out of order because different sized files can upload at different rates, and so throw out the sequence.)
You can rearrange the layouts in Workspace by dragging and dropping them into the correct order.
How to upload additional files after placing your order
Click this link if you need to upload additional files such as images, layouts (spreads) or artwork for a third-party designed order after you've submitted it to us.
Important: You must have submitted the order before this function will work! To ensure we can link the new files to the correct order, please send an email to orders@queensberry.com with the original Queensberry Order No., and the reason you are sending us these files.
How to submit a draft album design as a guide for the Queensberry design team
If you want to order a matted album, or your software cannot export the files we require, we can recreate the design for you based on your 3rd-party layouts. Submitting a draft design is not mandatory, but if you want to do so, click here for important detailed instructions.
Final tips!
Whenever you design with third party applications, and whether or not your software has Queensberry resources built in, please always read our file specifications. For technical reasons our printing and binding options require different specifications, such as single sided or double sided print files.
Be aware that in an album set up with double layouts the left hand side of the first layout and the right side of the last layout aren't actually pages but the inside covers of the book. For example, you may have 20 layouts to upload but when ordering the album you will only require, and be charged for, 19 pages.
Don't send JPG files if you want colour correction. We can only correct PSD files.
If you are ordering a Book or a Flushmount album with one of our digital offset papers (eg. Tintoretto, Satin) do not send the file in with the sRGB colour profile. We require Adobe 1998. If the wrong profile is used the colour of your images will print incorrectly.
Ian Baugh
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