Click the "Add/Upload My Images" button on the upper left of the surface designer page, and then click the “Upload art” button in the “Add My Image” section on the bottom of the page. (You’ll need to be logged into an account to do this – see the section on Logging In below for more information).

Next, browse to the location on your PC’s local storage (hard drive, removable or shared network volume) of the image file you wish to upload, and click the 'use this image' button to upload it. Your image will upload and appear in the Disc preview once the upload is complete.

NOTE: only RGB images of .bmp and .jpg formats saved at 300 dpi or less can be uploaded.

NOTE: This function currently works only in IE browsers on Windows PCs. On MAC OS, you shoud use IE or SAFARI with OS X v.10.3 or better.

If you want to upload an image that will cover the entire DVD or CD disc surface, you can download one of our photoshop templates to design the CD or DVD label surface art offline. If you want to cover the entire disc, the printable area is a 1417 pixel diameter circle with a 288 pixel diameter center hole. (For silver knockout, use a 437 pixel diameter center hole.) Our templates include masks for the different disc types. Please turn off masks before uploading. If you don’t use the templates, format your graphics with the disc dimensions in mind, but simply upload a square image.

Once an image is uploaded and added to your CD or DVD label design surface, you should use the ZOOM feature within the surface designer to examine the quality and make sure it is of the proper resolution and fits well on the disc surface.

NOTE: All uploaded images must be in RGB format (not CMYK), and we highly recommend using only bitmap (.bmp) images at 300 dpi so that your images and text come out sharp and clean.

NOTE: We strongly advise that any text on your uploaded images be a 6 pt font size or higher. If the font is under 6 pts, though it may be legible on screen, we cannot guarantee its legibility after it is printed. Sans serif, thicker typefaces – especially at smaller sizes – will always be better than fine lined, serif typefaces.

NOTE: only available with full color disc printing.

Once the image is added, you can reposition it by clicking on the disc preview. Just click where you want the center of the image to go. You can also resize the image, and have the option to center it on the disc automatically (see sections below).

Our library is stocked with all manner of images for you to choose from in several different categories (use the pull down menu to quickly switch to a different category). Please note that this stock art should NOT be used if you plan to use silver effect for your DVD or CD label.

The first way to resize the image is to change the scale factor when the 'constrain proportions' box is checked. This will keep the width and height of the image proportional no matter how large or small you make your image. This is especially helpful for images you’ve uploaded as personal photos tend to be rectangular rather than square or round. After entering the scale factor, click the 'Update' button to have your changes displayed in the disc preview.

The second way to resize an image only works for Internet Explorer 4.0 and above. When the 'constrain proportions' checkbox is unchecked, two new text boxes will appear that allow you to manipulate each dimension of the image independently (note that the width and height of the disc is 4.72 inches). After changing the image dimensions, click the 'Update’ button to display your changes in the design of the CD or DVD disc preview.

NOTE: Resizing an image – especially enlarging much past 100% of original size, will typically result in blurrier DVD or CD printing. It is best to avoid resizing images if at all possible.

After selecting your font attributes, type your text into the text box, and click ‘create layer’ To reposition your text, click any spot on the disc image and the text will be centered there. Checking the 'center vertically' or 'center horizontally' boxes will center the text vertically or horizontally, respectively. Click on 'update' and the text will appear on your disc preview.

HINT: Click on 'Add Text Layer' each time you'd like to add another line of text with a different font, size, color, or location. This will create a new layer of text that you can modify without affecting the other lines of text. This is especially useful if you want to have text appear at various spots on the surface design. To edit a specific layer, click on the T image in the layer box at the right corresponding to the layer you want to edit or move. The layer box will highlight to indicate which text layer has been selected

If you intend to use your own uploaded artwork with the silver effect we highly recommend uploading your images as bitmaps ONLY. JPEG images may produce unsatisfactory results. Also, please make sure to zoom in on your label to verify that the portions that you wish to be silver show up in the blue and yellow checkerboard pattern. This is true even if you use clip-art images from our library – not all of them work properly with silver-knockout. When you inspect your zoomed image, be sure to keep a sharp eye out for stray white pixels that may be knocking out to silver in sections of the disk that you didn’t want. Also, look for white frosting around the borders of the checkerboard pattern – this occurs if the border between white and off-white or other colors are not crisp. Since the silver knockout option changes all pure white (255:255:255) - and only pure white - to silver, off-white pixels will print as off-white, not silver. For example, if you upload a JPEG image (which uses anti-aliasing at the borders of color changes), you will see a white frosting around the edge of your silver knockout, and your edges will not be clean. You will only be able to detect this in advance by using the zoom function.

Additionally, due to the issues surround RGB versus CMYK, we do not support Pantone Color Matching – a system used by print professionals to ensure accurate color. If you are concerned about color-matching, we strongly suggest that you order a single disc as a test print before placing your full order.

You also have the option to create your own CD or DVD image offline using your own graphic design software. You can download templates for use in these programs within the My Account section of the website or the downloads link near the top of the site.

NOTE: For users of Adobe Illustrator, which is vector-based, you will still need to save your image as a 300 dpi bitmap to upload it. Our device output resolution is 300 dpi. As long as your bitmap image looks clear at 100% view size, it will look just as clear on your disc or insert.

NOTE: The resolution in which an image was created is what it is. You cannot load a 72 dpi image – such as an image optimized for a Web site -- into an application such as Adobe Photoshop and expect it to be sharper by simply increasing the image resolution to 300 dpi. The clarity and sharpness of the image will always depend on the resolution in which it was created.