Avoiding font problems in PDFs

Creating a press ready PDF is the best way to supply artwork for printing. However, there are a few things to check and watch out for.

How to check if a font can be embedded

When you create a PDF it will usually have the option to embed fonts. Not all fonts can be embedded or outlined, so it is worth checking what the license for that font allows. To do this you need to view the font’s properties by right-clicking on it in Explorer or the font control panel and selecting properties from the popup menu. Go to the details tab (as shown in the diagram below) - it needs to say Editable, Installable or Preview & print.

How to embed a font in a PDF

If you are using Adobe Acrobat to create your PDF then the latest versions will automatically embed any suitable fonts. In earlier versions you can turn this on or off, so make sure you have this ticked (see the diagram below). Also check that the fonts you are using are listed in the Font Source.

Fonts used in EPS files

Any fonts used in an EPS file that are not installed on your computer may not render correctly unless they are embedded. The latest version of Adobe Illustrator will allow you embed suitable fonts by ticking this option when saving the file (see diagram below).

One final check you can do

To check that your fonts are embedded in Adobe Acrobat, go to File on the top menu and select Properties… then select the Fonts tab, this will list the font used in the document. You want to check that they are either (Embedded) or (Embedded Subset). Any fonts not embedded will not come out correctly unless we also have them on our system.

If you have artwork to send us and would like more information about supplying PDFs for press, then get in touch with our production team on 01603 868862.