I like to make sure my images are the correct size from the get go. I hate having to go back later and fiddle around with adding extra bleed after the image is done. So here is a quick and easy way to add bleed and crop guidelines to your Photoshop documents. If you don’t know what a bleed or a crop mark is then you can read all about it here. Otherwise, let’s get started.
Let’s say I need to create a 6.75″x 8.25″ image with an additional 1/8″ bleed all around. I could do a bunch of addition but that’s a pain in the neck. So instead, I’m going to create a document (File -> New) Make this new document the size of the final art. Don’t worry about adding the bleed yet.
Next, make sure your rulers are visible (View -> Rulers) and snap to document bounds is turned on (View -> Snap to -> Document Bounds) Click on the top ruler and drag down to create a new guideline. Drop that guideline to the top of your document. If you have Snap to Document Bounds set, the guideline will pop itself perfectly onto the edge of the document. Then click on the ruler again and drag a guideline to the bottom of your document.
Hope you found this useful!