Plotting Using Photoshop (Macintosh)

Overview

This document provides you with a quick overview of how to plot to DotCIO's plotters using the Macintosh version of Adobe Photoshop.

Procedures

Preparing the Image in Photoshop:

If the longest side of your image is under 35 inches, it works best to to print the image such that the long side is the width of the image. If you want to switch the orientation of the image, then you should rotate the entire image in Photoshop just before printing.

Sending the Image to the Plotter:

1. From the “File” menu, first select “Page Setup...”.
   1. In the dialog box that appears, always select portrait orientation. Do not click on the icon that would select landscape orientation (even if your actual image is wider than it is tall).
   2. There is a pop-up list of paper sizes that will probably say “US Letter” initially. Click on that. Then, at the bottom of the list of paper sizes, select the “Custom” paper size.
   3. Once “Custom” is selected, you can type a paper size into the box on the left.
      1. For the width, choose a number a little larger (about a half-inch) than the width of your image. The maximum width that you can enter is 36 inches.
      2. For the height, choose a number about 1.5 to 2 inches larger than the real height of your image.
   4. Click “OK” in the Page Setup box.
2. From the “File” menu, now select “Print...”.
   1. In the dialog box, select “JPEG” from the list of options on the lower right. This will produce a much smaller print job, and is much more likely to work.
   2. Note that there is an “Options” button in the Print dialog box.
      1. One significant option is “Print Color as Gray”. If you do not need color in your output, selecting “Yes” for this option will cost less and allow the job to print faster.
      2. When you are finished selecting options in this dialog box, click “OK”.
   3. You can now select the “Print” button in the Print dialog box.

Last Reviewed: 18-Jul-2018