Thie Biodiversity Center provides professional printing services for research posters across the UT campus. We also provide design consultation services for reasonable hourly rates. Please visit this link to learn more about our design consultation.
Please make sure either the height or width of your poster is 36" or 42", so as to fit the paper rolls. The other dimension can be to your choosing, but no more than 60".
The preferred file type for submitting for printing is PDF, but please submit your original file (as in Power Point file, or Illustrator file, etc.) as a back up in case we have problems.
We encourage the creation of your poster in Adobe Illustrator. Illustrator creates documents in CMYK color mode, suitable for printing. Illustrator is preferred over Photoshop (which creates files that are too large). We can take PDFs created in Power Point, but just know that Power Point creates in RGB color mode. This may not be a problem for you, but If a perfect color match to your original poster is important, we suggest Illustrator.
Please design your poster with a minimum .25" border to avoid possible truncation of graphics.
We do not print proofs.
To send us your poster PDF and original file: if the attachment is less than 8 MG, you can email it to nicole.elmer[at]austin.utexas.edu, along with a 10 digit UT account number to process payment. See tables below for cost.
Any file larger than 8 MG should be uploaded here via UT Box. Once you have uploaded your file there, please send a link share via UT Box to nicole.elmer[at]austin.utexas.edu. UT Box does not automatically notify us of your uploaded poster, so make sure you send us an email that you have uploaded the poster there. Once we have received your file and your payment, we will send a confirmation email to you of its receipt.
Proceed with payment by contacting Nicole Elmer and she will issue an IDT with a UT account. You must send us your poster via one of the two methods listed above to the nicole.elmer[at]austin.utexas.edu email. We will then reply with confirmation.
We are not responsible for spelling or graphics errors on submitted files.
Should you have questions, please contact us.
Please allow two business days for processing your poster. For example, if you want your poster by 5 pm on Friday, please submit the link to your PDF file by 5 pm on Wednesday. We will let you know via email when your poster is ready to pick up.
We offer color printing on satin or glossy paper. The cost breakdown is listed below. Please always make sure your width is either 36" or 42" to fit the paper print roll. The height can be what you please but no more than 60". If your height exceeds the height recommendations below, please round up in order to choose the correct pricing. For example, if your poster is 36"W x 40"H, please choose the 36"W x 48"H pricing option, not the 36"W x 36"H. However, it is recommended to design your poster using these width and heigth options.
You can pay with a UT IDT account. At this time, we are not able to accept credit cards.
If you’re looking for templates for posters in PPT from the College of Natural Sciences, you can download those from this page.
Other advice on how to prepare a poster can be found at this link.
First of all, give yourself plenty of time to create a compelling poster and compelling scientific figures. You need adequate design time, plus turn-around time from the moment you send your file to us (2 days).
In addition, there is plenty of online support and tutorials for Adobe products. You can purchase academically-priced versions of Adobe software at the Campus Computer store. Or you can access Adobe's Creative Cloud for a student-rate monthly fee.
When beginning your poster project file, please make sure the page size is the same as your final print size. Set the width to be either of your chosen print sizes. For example if choosing a 42" final print size, make the width reflect this.
Make your art at 100% scale, or it will not be at the optimal resolution and will result in a poorly printed photo. It's best to use TIFF files for your photos. It is also recommended to stick to vector graphics as are created in Illustrator.
Also make sure you are using photos released under a license that allows your use of them. Most Creative Commons licenses will allow the academic use of photos, but always double check.
Remember to leave plenty of white space.
Here are a few general size guidelines for your scientific poster.
Title: 72-90pt Authors: 56pt Sub-headings: 30-60 pt Body text: 24pt Captions: 18pt
From a design and readability standpoint, avoid using more than two typeface combinations on your poster. Sans serif typefaces (Myriad, Futura) tend to read better. Also, make sure it is left-aligned.
Make sure you are not creating your document in RGB mode, but in CMYK mode. This is changed in the document set up panel in Illustrator or when you are creating your new document. Keep your raster or resolution size at 300ppi. Your print out will not look anywhere close to your design in RGB mode at a setting less that 300ppi.
To set up your document in Illustrator, go to "File," "New," and adjust your settings in the set up box. Leave the 300dpi option for Raster Effects and the Color Mode in CMYK. Adjust the width and height settings to your desired size. It's also suggested to choose the orientation in landscape mode, as these are easier to read once printed.
Print a small version of the poster and look it over for typos, format issues, etc. Have a second set of eyes review it as well to catch errors.
Please do not compress your PDF. This will cause the image to lose quality.
If you are using Illustrator, convert your file to PDF to ensure seamless transfer with your design elements intact. To do this from Illustrator, go to "File," choose "Save As," and then the pull down menu for Adobe PDF. If you are using Windows, you might need to be sure to check the "embed fonts" option when you convert to PDF.
